The Invention of Hugo Cabret

The Invention of Hugo Cabret
By: Brian Selznick












BIBLIOGRAPHY

Selznick, Brian. 2007. The Invention of Hugo Cabret. New York, NY: Scholastic Press. ISBN 0439813786

PLOT SUMMARY

Huge Cabret is an orphaned 12 year old boy living in the walls of a Paris train station and charged with keeping the clocks in working order. His obsession with reconstructing an automaton he'd been working on with his recently deceased father leads him to cross paths with a grumpy toy shop owner and his goddaughter. While struggling to keep his own secrets and appearances, Hugo and the girl find they have more in common than they realize, and their lives intertwine in a fantastic, cinematic ending.

CRITICAL ANALYSIS

Selznick has created an absolutely stunning combination of illustration and text for what is sure to be remembered as one of his masterpieces. His hand-drawn pencil illustrations are magnificent in detail and incredible in style. Each page of the book is framed in black to simulate the reader is viewing an old black and white movie from the 1930's, the time in which the book is set. His illustrations mimic a movie as well, panning in with each subsequent illustration and focusing in on the smallest of details. Selznick switches between illustration and text when the story calls for it, and he does it seamlessly, in an homage to the movies of that era.

The visual lines of his illustrations are so sharp that the reader will search each picture for every possible detail before moving on, amazed at what they are experiencing. The story moves quickly, and the characters grab the reader's attention, immersing the reader in Hugo's mysterious world. This book combines elements of graphic novels, picture books, and the world of film. The character, Isabelle, said it best when she said, "Sometimes I think I like these photos as much as I like the movies. You can make up your own story when you look at a photo." (The Invention of Hugo Cabret, 2007). Brian Selznick has certainly defined a new style of reading.

REVIEW EXCERPTS/AWARDS

Caldecott Medal Winner 2008
National Book Award Finalist
#1 New York Times Bestseller
New York Times Best Illustrated Book 2007
Quill Award Winner
2007 Borders Original Voices Finalist
Los Angeles Times Favorite Children's Book 2007
Publisher's Weekly Best Book 2007

Starred review from KIRKUS: "From Selznick's ever-generative mind comes a uniquely inventive story told in text, sequential art and period photographs and film."

Starred review from SCHOOL LIBRARY JOURNAL: "With characteristic intelligence, exquisite images, and a breathtaking design, Selznick shatters conventions related to the art of bookmaking..."

Starred review from HORN BOOK: "Here's a dilemma for the Newbery committee...and the Caldecott: what do you do with an illustrated novel in which neither text nor pictures can tell the story alone?"

CONNECTIONS

*Read and compare other books either written or illustrated by Brian Selznick. These might include Wonderstruck (ISBN 0545027896), The Houdini Box (ISBN 0689844514), The Robot King (ISBN 0060244933), or The Boy of a Thousand Faces (ISBN 0064410803). Does he employ similar storytelling/illustrating methods?

*Find out more about the filmmakers and actors from the era depicted in the book. These filmmakers might include Georges Melies, Harold Lloyd, Rene Clair, Charlie Chaplain, Buster Keaton, or Jean Renoir. Perhaps write a short biography of any of these people.

*Research more about automatons. There is a link for the automaton that Brian Selznick studied at The Franklin Institute that is fascinating. http://www.fi.edu/learn/sci-tech/automaton/automaton.php?cts=instrumentation Find more information about automatons. Books to read include Automata and Mechanical Toys by Rodney Peppe (ISBN 1861265107) and Paper Automata: Four Working Models to Cut Out and Glue Together by Rob Ives (ISBN 189961821X).

*Introduce authors Jules Verne and Hans Christina Anderson to the students. These were two authors mentioned by Hugo in the story, and they are likely to be less familiar to the students of today.

*Direct the students the the website set up by Scholastic that is specific to Hugo Cabret. http://www.scholastic.com/hugocabret/Here they will be able to hear from the author, Brian Selznick, interact with the illustrations from the book, and build or fix automata.