Having lived most of her life in the African wilderness with elephants literally on her doorstep, but now happily settled in the UK, Tanya Saunders is a writer, artist, lover of wild places and mother to twin daughters, one of whom is profoundly deaf and wears cochlear implants (her 'magic ears'). She believes that deaf children deserve the same opportunities in life as everyone else; it is not for us to set limits on what they can achieve but rather to give them the platform they need to learn, grow, and attain their goals as equals alongside their hearing peers. Tanya is a Parent Ambassador for Auditory Verbal UK (AVUK), an aspirational organization that teaches deaf children to listen and speak. Her writing is inspired by her own family's speech and language journey with AVUK, alongside numerous other professionals, friends and family members who, as a team, have made truly transformative contributions to her daughter's odyssey into the hearing and speaking world. Although not a professional therapist herself, as a 'parent practitioner' of auditory verbal therapy traveling this road alongside her daughter, Tanya's personal experience and observations can provide helpful insights for other families on the same path. Her vibrantly illustrated stories encourage deaf children to reach for the stars and reassure them that, while it may not be easy, all the hard work involved in learning to listen and speak will be worth it in the end. www.avidlanguage.com/author-tanyasaunders