Rosa By Starlight

(Hardback)

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'A star-filled story of courage, belonging and the particular magic of feline friends. A treasure of a tale, beautifully told.' - A.F. Steadman, NYT-bestselling author of the Skandar series From the Costa Award-winning author Hilary McKay, comes the story of a young girl looking for magic in the world, and the feline family who help her to find it. A gorgeous, hardback gifty package, highly illustrated by the wonderful Keith Robinson. Rosa lives in a world where she discovers there is magic. It arrives with Balthazar, a large black cat, just when she needs it most. Even so, it takes all her courage to stay hopeful and adventurous when her dreadful aunt and uncle move into her life. And when she finds herself abandoned in the ancient city of Venice, can magic help her then Perhaps it can. The stars are watching, and there are lots of cats in Venice. 'Beautiful, captivating, such a joy to read I didn't want it to end!' - Sophie Anderson, bestselling author of The House with Chicken Legs and The Snow Girl 'A charming Ghibli-esque tale of a girl whose only friends are cats. Surprising and magical in equal measures.' - M. G. Leonard, bestselling author of The Adventure on Trains Series, The Twitchers series, and The Ice Children

Reviews

A wistful, comforting treasure of a story destined to become a classic. -- Emma Carroll, bestselling award-winning author of Letters to the Lighthouse
Beautiful, captivating, such a joy to read I didn't want it to end! -- Sophie Anderson, bestselling author of The House with Chicken Legs and The Snow Girl
A magical story, beautifully told and illustrated too. With cats and Venice and at the end kindness. -- Tom Palmer
Even in the darkest of times, there are cats and magic and starlight! This is a book to be treasured - I loved it. -- Lucy Strange, author of Our Castle By The Sea and The Island at the Edge of the Night
Rosa by Starlight is magical not least because of Hilary McKays magic touch. From the first line, I was under its spell ... -- Nicolette Jones
A charming Ghibli-esque tale of a girl whose only friends are cats. Surprising and magical in equal measures. -- M. G. Leonard, bestselling author of The Adventure on Trains Series, The Twitchers series, and The Ice Children
A quirky, dreamy and melancholy tale about a young girl finding her place in the world -- Charlotte Eyre * The Bookseller *
A star-filled story of courage, belonging and the particular magic of feline friends. A treasure of a tale, beautifully told. -- A.F. Steadman, NYT bestselling author of the Skandar series

Rosas world has become very small since her parents passed. An unfamiliar aunt and uncle
come to claim her and the family house, but the uncaring grownups are interested only in
monetary success and keeping their life as tidy and uncomplicated as possible. Rosas presence
is, of course, a massive complication in their eyes, and they disapprove of the lovely girls
general existence. Despite her increasingly dire circumstances, Rosas belief in magic never
waversa conviction formed by a seemingly impossible encounter with a neighboring cat. An
initially disastrous trip to Venice turns into a madcap (and slightly murderous) adventure, and
Rosa combines magic and mettle to take the reins of her extraordinary life. The wonderfully
quirky tale has shades of Matilda, particularly in the outrageously villainous relatives, but the
feline focus and Italian excursion give it a fantastic flavor all its own. The storys shorter length,
quick pacing, and sweet illustrations will easily appeal to younger readers, as will the whimsical
peculiarities of Rosas world. An incredibly creative case for doing things scared and on ones
own terms.

Author Bio

Hilary McKay won the Costa Children's Book Award for The Skylarks' War, the Guardian Fiction Prize for The Exiles, and the Smarties and the Whitbread Award for The Exiles in Love and Saffy's Angel respectively. She is also the author of Straw Into Gold, A Time of Green Magic and The Swallows' Flight, a companion novel to The Skylarks' War, among many critically-acclaimed titles. Hilary studied Botany and Zoology at the University of St Andrews, and worked as a biochemist before the draw of the pen became too strong and she decided to become a full-time writer. Hilary lives in Derbyshire with her family.