Bibliography
Selznick, Brian. THE INVENTION OF HUGO CABRET. Ill. by Brian
Selznick. New York: Scholastic Press, 2007. ISBN 0439813786
Plot Summary
Using a combination of well-designed pencil drawings and prose,
THE INVENTION OF HUGO CABRET tells the story orphan Hugo Cabret, who lives in a
train station taking care of the station clocks for his unreliable and missing
uncle. Hugo is caught stealing a mechanical toy by the owner of toy booth, George
Méliès, who takes a prized notebook from Hugo. The book contains drawings of an
automaton that Hugo is trying to repair. Hugo and George come to an agreement
that allows Hugo to earn his notebook back by working at the toy booth. Hugo
becomes friends with George’s goddaughter, Isabelle, who helps Hugo discover
the secret of the automaton.
The secret leads back to George, who admits to
being a famous filmmaker that everyone thinks is dead, and asks Hugo to bring
the automaton to him. Hugo goes to get the automaton and finds out his uncle is
dead. After falling on train tracks running from the Station Inspector, Hugo is
saved by George Méliès. The story ends six month later with Hugo living with George’s
family and attending a special event honoring the films made by George Méliès.
Critical
Analysis
Author and illustrator, Brian Selznick, has created a
beautiful piece of art with THE INVENTION OF HUGO CABRET. The detailed pencil
drawings play out before the reader like reel after reel of a silent movie films
from a bygone era. The shading of the drawings create a grainy black and white view
of a Paris train station at beginning of the twentieth century. Selznick also
uses still images taken from early films as an interesting device to further
the plot of the story. All of these illustrations together create the historical
setting and tell much of the story of Hugo Cabret.
The illustrations are vital
to the reader for understanding and finding meaning in the story of an orphan
boy trying to find a piece of his family in the mystery of an automaton. Selznick’s illustrations help develop the characters of Hugo,
Isabelle, George, and Etienne just enough, while his writing style helps the reader
delve even deeper into their motivations though still not deep enough. While
the story moves quickly and the use of illustrations is fascinating, some of the
characterization feel lost to the medium.
The story of Hugo is inspired by the
true story of early French film maker, George Méliès, which might motivate
readers into learning more about early film making, automatons, and the early
twentieth century. After reading Hugo’s story, I felt the need to watch excerpts
from old silent films and learn about the history behind film making.
Review
Excerpt(s)
2008 Caldecott Medal
From Publisher’s Weekly- “Here is a true masterpiece—an
artful blending of narrative, illustration and cinematic technique, for a story
as tantalizing as it is touching.”
From the New York Times- “It’s enough to say that ‘Hugo
Cabret’ sits at the nexus of magic and storytelling and film, and that Brian
Selznick — who, perhaps not so coincidentally, has the Hollywood legend David
O. Selznick in his family tree — shows us a little magic of his own.”
Book Connections
Other books by Brian
Selznick:
WONDERSTRUCK. ISBN 0545027896.
THE BOY OF A THOUSAND FACES. ISBN 0064410803.
THE HOUDINI BOX. ISBN 0689844514.
Other books that are Caldecott
Medal Winners:
Floca, Brian. LOCOMOTIVE, ISBN 1416994157.
Gerstein, Mordicai. THE MAN WHO WALKED BETWEEN THE TOWERS, ISBN 0761317910.
Wiesner, David. FLOTSAM, ISBN 0618194576.
Activities for THE INVENTION OF HUGO CABRET:
- Go on a WebQuest about the book at the publisher’s website: http://www.scholastic.com/hugocabret/
- Go on a web quest about George Méliès to learn what the facts are and what has been fictionalized for Hugo Cabret.
- Watch the film, “A Trip to the Moon,” and discuss how the author and illustrator used illustrations to create a unique reading experience.
- Do a partner writing activity, describing what they would want an automaton to draw based on their interests and personalities.
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