A beautiful book but a sad story. Only criticism is that it is probably too nice. Better suited to a young adult!

This follows the story of a young girl who is losing her sight due to a rare condition.

I thought this book was very sweet with lovely characters. It's actually quite odd in that there is no one that's not completely lovely.
I felt it was too short though and just skimmed the surface of the characters and their feelings. I'm wondering if some things were perhaps lost in translation?

A totally gorgeous read, what lovely characters and a lovely story, really enjoyed this a perfect read for young adults and adults too

A beautiful story about a brave young girl who is gradually losing her sight and is afraid of the dark that won't end. Despite her failing sight, she wants to play football, walk on her own and climb her favourite cherry tree. While Mafalda is planning ahead for living in the dark, she makes friends who teach her that she needs to figure out what is most important to her, even when she won't be able to see any more. Mafalda's story is so touching I cried at the end, but that's not to say it is a sad ending, it left me full of hope.

I loved this book - it was a really life affirming, inspiring story based on the author’s own experience of losing her sight. Mafalda is 9 when she finds out that she will lose her sight gradually over the next 6 months. She measures the deterioration by how far away she can still see the cherry tree in her school play ground. She makes a list of all the things she will not be able to do in future but is challenged by Estella to think about what will be important and essential for her when she is ‘in the dark’. Estella is fighting her own battle as she guides Mafalda to come to an understanding of her own future.

I will be recommending this to my readers - another for fans of ‘Wonder’.

How does one come to terms with a descent into blindness and the dark?
Quirky tale, but I'd have liked more... depth I think. Some of the characters and scenarios felt a bit 1-D; I know it's from the viewpoint of the child, but I would have liked some more.

This moving story of nine-year-old Mafalda's struggle to come to terms with her failing eyesight has an intangibly different feel to it to most English language children's books. The characters are the perfect mix of bravery, naivety and vulnerability, and the importance of friendship and acceptance shine through the story.

This is a bittersweet, sad, poignant story about a girl losing her sight. She has a list of what she wants to do and knows what she will miss. This story is about strength and determination and there is so much we can learn from it.

I devoured this book in one day! Such a Sweet yet sad story about a young girl awaiting the day her darkness will come. Mafalda is 9 years old and has an illness called Stargadt disease, which affects her sight. She is slowly seeing less and less each day until the day the darkness takes over.

This is the story of her coming to terms with losing her sight and figuring out her own ways of dealing with it.

I didn't know this story was based on the authors own struggles with the disease, but once you've read it you can feel this must have been a personal thing for her to write.

I did enjoy it, and to be honest think my 9 year old might enjoy it too.

I want to thank Paola Peretti and Netgalley for giving me the opportunity to read and review before Publication date.