The Invention of Hugo Cabret

This was such a fun book to read. The book, by Brian Selznick is a mish-mash of text and illustrations. There will be 4 or 5 pages of text followed by a half dozen pages of pencil drawn illustrations. It is such a creative way to write a novel. The illustrations even won a Caldecott Award. The story follows Hugo Cabret who runs the clocks in a Paris train station. I don't want to give too much away, but the story ends up being about the movie maker Georges Melies. He was one of the first film makers and he invented the *special effect*. He was the first to make someone disappear on film. The rock group The Smashing Pumpkins were clearly inspired by him and based their music video for "Tonight, Tonight" on several of his films, including "A Trip to the Moon." The way that Selznick approaches the topic of this great man is masterfully done and I would recommend this for children and adults alike. (My grandmother's town is reading this for their One Book One Community book). It was a really fun way to learn about such an amazing film pioneer.

Below are the music video for Tonight Tonight (I believe the man at the beginning with the white beard is supposed to be Georges Melies) and the film A Trip to the Moon, made in 1902.