A moving tale about a brave hearing-impaired teen losing his vision, told through the perspective of his loving sister in poetry, prose, and the sign-language alphabet. Carlo is a teenager who happens to be hearing-impaired and can see only out of one eye. Now that eye is failing, and Carlo must have an operation to try to save his vision. His fierce and funny sister Emma, Carlo’s closest companion, begins writing poems that express the fear she works hard to hide, while his seeing-eye dog Lulù remains steadfastly at his side. But even with the support and affection of his family, how can Carlo face such uncertainty? And what will happen if he can no longer communicate with them? Before Nightfall is a book about trust, imagination, empathy, and language, narrated through the poems Emma types and through prose passages told from multiple perspectives and illustrated with sign-language alphabet, drawn by the Italian artist Sualzo. Despite the immense challenges Carlo and Emma face, their story is one of hope and wonder.
Silvia Vecchini Book order






- 2024
- 2022
A Difficult Thing: The Importance of Admitting Mistakes
- 48 pages
- 2 hours of reading
Every child, at some point, makes mistakes and must learn to deal with and admit those mistakes. This charming, two-tone, wordless comic deals with that very lesson and shows just how powerful the word "sorry" is. This beautifully rendered volume is a good lesson for children and adults alike.
- 2018
Phone Call with a Fish
- 48 pages
- 2 hours of reading
A school trip to the science museum inspires a curious girl to make a connection with a shy, silent boy in her class.
- 2010
The amazing story of the ordinary parish priest who transformed his parish and worked great miracles. Read with children aged 5 and up. Independent reading from age 7. CTS Saints for Kids are a new range of modern, colourful and affordable books that will help children to make friends with the most exciting people who ever lived - the Saints!
- 2009
Discover St Francis' message of joy, of forgiveness and peace and his love for all of God's creation. [back cover]