MODULE 3: The Invention of Hugo Cabret

Book Cover Image:

Genre:

Picture book/Graphic Novel

Book Summary:

Orphaned Hugo hides in the walls of the Paris train station, where he lived with his uncle before his disappearance, repairing clocks and rebuilding the automaton that Hugo and his father found years before.  Fates collide when Hugo is caught stealing a toy mouse from one of the station’s shopkeepers and meets the man’s goddaughter, Isabelle. The shopkeeper forces Hugo to work for him in exchange for the return of Hugo’s notebook which contains notes and drawings of his father’s attempt to repair the automaton. Hugo befriends Isabelle but steals her necklace, the key to the automaton, and the two bring the machine to life. The mechanical man draws a picture and signs the name of Georges Melies, the shopkeeper and Isabelle’s godfather, who is also a well-known, French filmmaker. Hugo’s friend, Etienne, a film student, helps them piece together the life of Georges, who nearly went mad after his career waned, and together they assemble a tribute to the film pioneer.

APA Reference of Book:

Selznick, B. (2007.) The invention of Hugo Cabret. New York, NY: Scholastic.

Impressions:

Inspired by the life of French filmmaker Georges Melies, The Invention of Hugo Cabret reads like a cinematic masterpiece. Pushing the boundaries between picture book, biography, graphic novel, children’s story, and cinema, Selznick creates a magical story from the moment the reader steps into the first page. At first glance, it is a bit intimidating with over 500 pages, especially compared to other Caldecott winners. However, it does not take long to appreciate the beauty and importance of the illustrations which at times come alive like a flipbook animation.  Hugo’s determination and perseverance are inspiring, and his quest to reassemble the automaton leads him to assemble an eclectic family to take care of him.

Professional Review:

In a book that blurs the genres between picturebooks and graphic novels, Selznick tells the story of an orphan named Hugo who lives in a train station in Paris and is determined to fix a mechanical man called an automaton that his father was working on before dying in a fire. Hugo meets a mysterious man in the train station who turns out to be a celebrated filmmaker named George Méliès. The style of this book is unique in that there are many sequenced pages of charcoal sketches that make readers feel as if they are actually watching a film unfold. Some pages offer close-ups of small details in the way that a camera would. This book is a masterpiece and hopefully will lead others to experiment with hybrid texts. At the end of the book, Selznick includes a listing of all the films that were referenced throughout the book. 

APA Reference of Professional Review:

McNair, J. C. (2009). The invention of Hugo Cabret. Language Arts, 86(4), 322. 

Library Uses:

This book would be a great inspiration for a Makerspace or STEM project kickoff.

Readalikes:

Wonderstruck, by Brian Selznick

The Houdini Box, by Brian Selznick

The Marvels, by Brian Selznick

It’s difficult to compare Selznick to another author but his other titles are similar cinematic experiences and format.