Module 3 The Invention of Hugo Cabret

Summary: Hugo is an orphan, an clock keeper, and an occasional thief, whose father died in a fire while repairing his invention.  He now works on clocks at a Paris train station. He collects his paychecks under his uncle's name who has also passed away.  He is especially fascinated by a mechanical human figure that he saved from the museum fire and that he keeps within the walls of the train station. He truly believes that if he fixes it, he will discover a hidden message from his deceased father.

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

My Impressions:  At first, I was very intimidated by the size of this book and was pleasantly surprised on how much I thoroughly enjoyed it. Not only is it very well written, but the illustrations, which make up about half of the book, were a great addition to the flow of the story. The author does an excellent job in keeping the reader interested in Hugo's story and the intriguing plot. The story's final twist is a very nice touch and very unexpected.


Professional Review:
Gr 4-9 — With characteristic intelligence, exquisite images, and a breathtaking design, Selznick shatters conventions related to the art of bookmaking in this magical mystery set in 1930s Paris. He employs wordless sequential pictures and distinct pages of text to let the cinematic story unfold, and the artwork, rendered in pencil and bordered in black, contains elements of a flip book, a graphic novel, and film. It opens with a small square depicting a full moon centered on a black spread. As readers flip the pages, the image grows and the moon recedes. A boy on the run slips through a grate to take refuge inside the walls of a train station-home for this orphaned, apprentice clock keeper. As Hugo seeks to accomplish his mission, his life intersects with a cantankerous toyshop owner and a feisty girl who won't be ignored. Each character possesses secrets and something of great value to the other. With deft foreshadowing, sensitively wrought characters, and heart-pounding suspense, the author engineers the elements of his complex plot: speeding trains, clocks, footsteps, dreams, and movies-especially those by Georges Méliès, the French pioneer of science-fiction cinema. Movie stills are cleverly interspersed. Selznick's art ranges from evocative, shadowy spreads of Parisian streets to penetrating character close-ups. Leaving much to ponder about loss, time, family, and the creative impulse, the book closes with a waning moon, a diminishing square, and informative credits. This is a masterful narrative that readers can literally manipulate.

[Review of The Invention of Hugo Cabret, by W. Lukehart]. (2007). School Library Journal, 53(3), 218-218. Retrieved from http://www.schoollibraryjournal.com

Library Uses: The book could lead into lessons about robots, movie making, or Paris. As a follow up activitty students could then illustrate their own movie or create their won robot.