Monday, March 14, 2011

The Invention of Hugo Cabret

I recently heard a rumor that The Invention of Hugo Cabret, written and illustrated by Brian Selznik and winner of the 2008 Caldecott Medal, was going to be made into a movie! I rushed home to do some research and low and behold found out that it was true - this book really is going to be made into a movie. A movie directed by Martin Scorsese and in 3D - a first for this extraordinary director.

I know that this blog is all about the books that I share with Emmy, but I must "push her to the side" and tell you how much I - the Mommy - LOVE this book. I still remember picking this book up in the bookstore. It looked so intriguing. As I flipped through the pages, I literally fell in love. AMAZING!

Here's a snynopsis:

Orphan, clock keeper, and thief, twelve-year-old Hugo lives in the walls of a busy Paris train station, where his survival depends on secrets and anonymity. But when his world suddenly interlocks with an eccentric girl and the owner of a small toy booth in the train station, Hugo’s undercover life, and his most precious secret, are put in jeopardy. A cryptic drawing, a treasured notebook, a stolen key, a mechanical man, and a hidden message all come together...in The Invention of Hugo Cabret.

The story is told in 526 pages with 300 of them in pictures! The Invention of Hugo Cabret is not exactly a novel, and it’s not quite a picture book, and it’s not really a graphic novel, or a flip book, or a movie, but a combination of all these things. If you haven't experienced this book yet, you must get your hands on it and quick. It is a one-of-a-kind!!!!

Click here to watch the opening sequence of drawings in the book.

Another reason to be so excited for this upcoming movie...Ben Kingsley!!!! He plays Georges Melies (a famous filmmaker who worked from the 1890s through the 1920s. He made the world’s first science fiction movie called A Trip to the Moon).

I will end this post with a quote from Sir Kingsley:

"The movie Hugo Cabret examines the early days of cinema through the eyes of a child. You know how Martin Scorsese is devoted to cinema and its evolution. We go right back to those first flickering images, so it's about memory, it's about childhood, it's about invention. It's a very, very beautiful film."
Actor Ben Kingsley

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