A Starlit Somersault Downhill

A Starlit Somersault Downhill is a 1993 book by Nancy Willard and illustrator Jerry Pinkney about a rabbit that is invited by a bear to share a cave over winter but instead of hibernating decides to enjoy the outside.

A Starlit Somersault Downhill
AuthorNancy Willard
IllustratorJerry Pinkney
LanguageEnglish
GenreChildren's literature, Children's poetry, picture book
Published1993 (Little, Brown and Company)
Publication placeUSA
Media typePrint (hardback)
Pages32 (unpaginated)
ISBN9780316941136
OCLC24010468
Calligraphy by Barbara Bash

Publication history

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1993 A Starlit Somersault Downhill, (Little, Brown and Company)[1]
2011 A Starlit Snowfall, (Little, Brown and Company)[2]

Reception

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Publishers Weekly, in a review of A Starlit Somersault Downhill, wrote "Willard's typically sophisticated language gains meaning through repeated readings, and her sonorous rhyming couplets impart liveliness to nature's sleeping season. Lavishly detailed, full-spread watercolors afford views of untidy woods and tousled fur--they bristle with energy even as they suggest the restlessness youngsters may experience in the deep of night, wide awake and alone."[3]

A Starlit Somersault Downhill has also been reviewed by Booklist,[4] Kirkus Reviews,[5] The Horn Book Magazine,[6] School Library Journal,[7] and the Cooperative Children's Book Center.[8]

References

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  1. ^ A starlit somersault downhill. OCLC. OCLC 24010468.
  2. ^ A starlit snowfall. OCLC. OCLC 699002873.
  3. ^ "A Starlit Somersault Downhill". Publishers Weekly. PWxyz LLC. August 30, 1993. Retrieved February 16, 2017.
  4. ^ "A starlit somersault downhill". Buffalo and Erie County Public Library. Retrieved February 16, 2017. With a rhyme that's pleasant to the ear, if not always clearly understandable to young listeners, .. Graceful in both picture and word, this creates a mood that transcends the intricacies of the text.
  5. ^ "A Starlit Somersault Downhill". Kirkus Reviews. Kirkus Media LLC. May 20, 2010. Retrieved February 16, 2017. In gossamer lyric verse, delicate as early snow, a whimsical tale
  6. ^ "A starlit somersault downhill: Reviews". catalog.wccls.org. Retrieved February 16, 2017. Pinkney's realistic watercolors of the bear and rabbit include a final fold-out page and perfectly complement Willard's poetic images of darkness and light, movement and slumber, snow and spring.
  7. ^ Shirley Witton (September 1993). "Book Reviews: Preschool & Primary Grades". School Library Journal. 39 (9). Media Source Inc.: 221. Retrieved February 16, 2017.[dead link]
  8. ^ "A Starlit Somersault Downhill". ccbc.education.wisc.edu. University of Wisconsin-Madison. Retrieved February 16, 2017. This lyrical, lively poem is touched with humor and filled with joy .. Jerry Pinkney's illustrations spanning each two-page spread fill the pages with autumn and winter light.