Review: Invention of Hugo Cabret

Written and Illustrated By Brian Selznick

Scholastic; 2007; 533 pages

Juvenile Fiction; Realistic Fiction; Caldecott Award

Grades: 3-6

ISBN: 978-04-39813-785

Hugo's father has been killed in a fire, and his uncle has disappeared. Left on his own to take care of the train station clocks, Hugo embarks on a journey of discovery. While repairing a clockwork figure that is his only link to his father, Hugo makes connections with a filmmaker, a fellow orphan, and the world around him.

My Thoughts
This was a very interesting book. It is definitely not a picture book, yet it won the Caldecott Medal...and rightly so. The artwork, though black and white, is amazing. There is depth and detail that is almost photo-realistic. Also, towards the end of the book, the drawings are intermingled with actual stills from old silent films. The pictures are also integral to the text. They are not illustrations, they are the text. I would be reading along, and then there would be a series of 4 or 5 full spread pictures that would pan across a scene, or zoom in on important actions. Each set was like a single frame of a film. It was amazing. Then the text would pick up again, only it wouldn't pick up where it left off, it would pick up where the pictures left off. It was innovative, unique, and totally enthralling.

I think that kids will love this book. The story line is interesting. Since it has a male protagonist, it will appeal to both boys and girls. Also, movies are such a huge part of modern culture that a book that addresses their beginnings will intrigue children. As will the whole notion of clockwork and mechanisms in our technological, micro-chip society. The writing is well done, the pictures are flawless. It will challenge younger readers lexically, but the pictures won't hinder older kids. (The size of the book alone will make any reader, young or old, feel like they have accomplished something upon completion.) I heartily, and without reservation, recommend this book to everyone...child and adult.

*Sidebar: I saw this at my library as an audiobook. Which literally shocked me. I am normally a huge proponent of audio and e books, but in this case I am not. DO NOT GET IT AS AN AUDIOBOOK. The pictures are integral to the text. You will not get the same experience.

The Thoughts Of Others:
Publisher's Weekly's 2007 review found the book to be "an artful blending of narrative, illustration and cinematic technique, for a story as tantalizing as it is touching." They appreciated the use of movies both in the plot and in the illustrations. They saw the book as more of an experience than merely a read.

Kirkus also reviewed the book in 2007. They drew comparisons between the book and silent films, seeing the illustrations as they pan and zoom as traditional film storyboards which often told the story better than text alone ever could have. They also liked that the book was "an homage to early filmmakers as dreammakers."

Review: On The Wings Of Heroes

By Richard Peck

Dial Books; 2007; 148 pages

Juvenile Fiction; Historical Fiction

Grades: 3-5

ISBN: 978-0-8037-3081-6

Davy's life changes as he gets older and watches his world change. His older brother goes off to war, his father faces hardships at his filling station, his mother takes a job, and his grandparents move in.

My Thoughts:
This was a very good introduction to the hardships that those on the homefront faced during the early years of WWII. Told from a child's perspective, the story brings out the aspects of rationing and war that children would be able to identify with. For example, Davy compares Halloweens before and after the war started. He points out how kids move into town when their mothers get jobs in the factories. The era and the quirks that go along with it are put in terms that modern day children will understand. It also centers more on relationships and people than it does on events or impersonal facts.

Richard Peck is a very good writer. His story is not only historically accurate, but it is engaging. He gives the historical facts, without getting bogged down in them. I think that this book would be a great way to interest kids in the genre. The read is fairly simple, nothing that the average third grader couldn't handle. The story is interesting enough to both encourage gifted second graders and still intrigue older elementary students. Also, the book is not obviously lower level, so slower or reluctant older readers would not be embarrassed to be seen reading it.

The Thoughts of Others:
Sheldon Fogelman of Publisher's Weekly thought in 2007 that this book was a "delicious mixture of humor, warmth and local color." He praised the characterizations in particular. He also appreciated the realism of the child's perspective.

Booklist's 2007 review by Michael Cart stated that "all in all, there remains no more genial guide for a trip down memory lane than the redoubtable Peck." He noted the episodic nature as engaging to children. The rich description was also impressive.