Noise All Over follows a little boy with sensitive ears who runs away from loud sounds because they hurt him. What was the inspiration for your story?

I have noticed that, surprisingly, many people—children and adults—suffer from loud noises. After all, “primitively” thought, loud noises are often warnings or alarms about dangers threatening people, from which it is necessary to flee or wise to protect oneself.

This over-activation and exaggeration also apply to our other senses, but I decided to focus on hearing in this book. The change in the sound environment in modern times has been swift. In part, this is because technology has brought sounds everywhere. Different sound stimuli compete with each other for people’s attention in entertainment and marketing.

The loudest and most annoying sound – downright noise – often wins this competition for people’s attention. Its effect may actually harm its target but generate money in its creator’s wallet.

I’m a sensitive person who strongly feels the stimuli in the environment. On the other hand, I’m very social and eager to meet people, experience various situations, and go to different places. I have to find a suitable balance between these opposites for myself. A sound environment that suits you can be good, even if it is loud and intense. When the sounds of nature roar around or an orchestra plays my favorite music at full power, I’m in the same tune, even if the sounds are loud.

Adults have a special responsibility to observe sounds around children. We must protect them from noise that is harmful to them.

How did you decide on the title of this novel?

The title of this book—Noise All Over—is a natural consequence of how I personally experience disturbing noise. I thought about the environment around the exceptional, sensitive child in the story and the feeling of alarming elements around him. They attacked from all directions, and the boy felt helpless and threatened.

With the book’s title, I wanted to emphasize the comprehensiveness of the disturbance and anxiety produced by sounds. The oppressive feeling grows if we can’t escape the noise and can’t decide for ourselves what happens in our environment in terms of sounds.

What were some ideas that were important for you to share in this book? 

Noise is an individual experience. It is one form of stimuli that can become overwhelming for an individual. So we are talking about a real problem, especially for sensitive people.

Various forms of disturbing noise exist—some more obvious and others more hidden. It can be a single loud, frightening, or even painful sound element or a sum of many smaller and weaker stimulants, which become an overwhelming experience when combined or followed without a reasonable break. One must be able to protect oneself from noise in a way that is characteristic and suitable for the individual.

The role of adults as guides and helpers of the child’s burdening experience is essential. The constant awareness of noise can be a secret burden in the child’s life. It can be difficult for a child to explain what bothers or scares him in different sound environments. This hidden experience can restrict or depress the entire life. The child can be reluctant to confess the problem as it might not be pleasant to differ from the others in this respect.

However, I want to show with my book that there are cures for this difficulty. It is essential to realize that no one has to be alone with problems caused by excessive sensitivity, and there is always someone who understands.

Of course, at the end of the story, I can’t resist mentioning nature and its power to level and “understand” human experiences. Nature is always a place where I can at least seek balance in various challenging situations.

Do you write novels for adults or only children’s books? 

I must admit that I am also one of those writers with several adult novels under development and unfinished. I haven’t given them up yet, but writing for children has taken up most of my time – so far, I’ve published more than 60 books in English and even more in Finnish.

I have also written for adults—both nonfiction and fantasy. On the nonfiction side, I have written texts related to my legal scholar background and an extensive nonfiction book that deals with the life work and production of the most famous Finnish storyteller, Zacharias Topelius (1818–1898), from a legal perspective. Including a vast amount of law and justice in fairy tales and reflections on morality and justice, in general, is possible. This topic is close to my heart on all levels of writing.

I have also participated in a peace-themed writing competition, and my essay was included in an anthology of the prize-winners. That was very encouraging as I have written many children’s books about the themes of war and peace, too – in a delicate way.

I’m also constantly writing short stories for adults, and I’ve already published one book where I give a voice to people who don’t usually get one. My motto is that for ordinary people, shockingly big and unusual things often happen in their ordinary lives, even if others don’t always notice them. There seem to be enough stories ready for another book now, so maybe I will publish something for adults again shortly.

There should also be a way to get adults to read more instead of excessive, passive entertainment. There is a lot of talk about children’s reading, but the role of adults as role models is often overlooked. It would be a dream if I could find a way to write about topics touching many people and raising everyday problems to a level where you can see through them more clearly. I don’t mean any self-help books, but stories that make their readers notice new life nuances and possibilities. This became a big wish, but a writer must have such!

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