'Twas the Night Before Christmas
Written and Clement
C. Moore,
illustrated by Matt
Tavares
*Starred
review
in
Publisher's
Weekly
2002 New
England Book
Show, Juvenile Category winner
2002 British Book Design and Production
Award,
shortlisted
The Society of
Illustrators
"The Original Art" exhibit 2002
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The stockings were hung
by the chimney with care,
in hopes
that St. Nicholas soon would be there.
Once upon a time, children imagined St. Nicholas as a
stern, skinny bishop who was as likely to dole out
discipline as Christmas presents. But thanks to the
poem "Account of a Visit from St. Nicholas" written by
Clement C. Moore in 1822 and published the next year
in the Troy
Sentinel, a plumper, merrier St. Nick was born,
transformed into the sleigh-riding, chimney-diving
jolly old elf we now call Santa Claus.
With gorgeous monochrome illustrations
by Matt Tavares that are meticulously true to
pre-Victorian times, 'Twas the
Night Before Christmas Or Account of a Visit from St. Nicholas honors
the
poem's original language in a definitive keepsake
volume.
Exquisitely detailed drawings by Matt
Tavares embody the spirit of a magical night in a
lavish, full-size gift edition marking the
two-hundredth anniversary of the classic poem.
Reviews:
"These
are
artworks
you
can
marvel
at for long moments. In short, if
the poem weren't a classic, this book might make it
one."
-Journal
Inquirer
"Stark yet lushly textured
pencil drawings,
recalling the
work of Chris
Van Allsburg, capture the mystery, surprise and
anticipation of what
many children consider the most magical night of the
year. The finely
wrought portraits and shadowy, snow-covered
Victorian
setting will
enchant."
*Publisher's
Weekly
(starred
review)
"A Santa portrait forms the centerpiece of
this
appealing
volume's antique-looking board cover, which is
framed
with decorative
gold-colored embossing meant to suggest the
lavishness
of Victorian-era
gift books."
-Leonard Marcus, New York Times Book Review
"The poem remains anonymous, but Tavares must
take full
credit for his wonderful illustrations; restrained
by
his use of black
and white, the images nevertheless possess a
vitality
and realism which
endow them with an almost three-dimensional
quality.... This has long
been a magical poem for children worldwide, and Matt
Tavares's work
will captivate a new generation ready to be
enchanted
by the perpetual
mystery of Christmas. -Kirkus
Reviews, UK
"Tavares provides
monochromatic pencil
illustrations with
old-fashioned
details and a period setting complementary with the
poem's original
period, but his sophisticated perspectives and
cinematic lighting pull
the whole into the modern era . . . The moody
illustrations suggest the
drama and excitement of the magical night in an
unusual way."
-Kirkus
Reviews
"Clearly designed to
be the treasure of a
Christmas
collection, Tavares' brilliant pencil drawings
transport the reader to
the magic world of Christmas past..."
-Tampa
Tribune
"...a beautiful version of 'Twas the Night Before
Christmas, with the
celebrated illustrations of Matt Tavares. Don't be
put
off by the fact
that it's in black-and-white: This art is so
stunning
that children,
and parents, will find the book much more appealing
than a cheesy color
version."
-Entertainment Weekly
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