The Invention of Hugo Cabret
| The Invention of Hugo Cabret | |
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| Author(s) | Brian Selznick |
| Cover artist | Brian Selznick |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
| Series | None |
| Genre(s) | Historical Fiction |
| Publisher | Scholastic Press |
| Publication date | January 30, 2007 |
| Media type | Print (Hardback) |
| Pages | 533 pgs. |
| ISBN | 9780439813785 |
| OCLC Number | 67383288 |
| LC Classification | PZ7.S4654 Inv 2007 |
The Invention of Hugo Cabret is a historical fiction book written and illustrated by Brian Selznick and published by Scholastic Press. The hardcover edition was released on January 30, 2007, and the paperback edition was released on June 2, 2008. With 284 pictures between the book's 533 pages, the book depends equally on its pictures as it does on the actual words. Selznick himself has described the book as "not exactly a novel, not quite a picture book, not really a graphic novel, or a flip book or a movie, but a combination of all these things."[1] The book won the 2008 Caldecott Medal,[2] the first novel to do so, as the Caldecott Medal is for picture books.
The book's primary inspiration is the true story of turn-of-the-century French pioneer filmmaker Georges Méliès, his surviving films, and his collection of mechanical, wind-up figures called automata. Selznick decided to add automata to the storyline after reading Edison's Eve by Gaby Wood, which tells the story of Edison's attempt to create a talking wind-up doll. Méliès actually had a set of automata, which were either sold or lost. At the end of his life Méliès was broke, even as his films were screening widely in the United States. He did work in a toy booth in a Paris railway station, hence the setting. Selznick drew Méliès's real door in the book.
Contents |
[edit] Characters
[edit] Hugo Cabret
Hugo is a 12-year-old orphan who lives in the walls of a busy Paris train station where he works as a clock keeper. In order to survive, he steals food from local shops.
[edit] Isabelle
Isabelle is an orphan who lives with Georges Méliès, her godfather. She accompanies Hugo on most of his adventures.
[edit] Movie adaptation
Martin Scorsese bought the screen rights to the book in 2007, and John Logan wrote the script. Scorsese began shooting the movie in London at Shepperton Studios in June 2010. It is produced in 3D, and its theatrical release was on November 23, 2011 by distributor Paramount Pictures. Asa Butterfield plays the lead role of Hugo, with Chloë Grace Moretz as Isabelle, Sacha Baron Cohen as the station inspector and Ben Kingsley as Papa Georges. Jude Law, Richard Griffiths, Ray Winstone, Christopher Lee, Frances de la Tour and Helen McCrory also star.[3]
[edit] Television series adaptation
Millimages plan to create a 2D-animated TV Series based on this book, Aired on Middle of 2012 in France 3, Same Animation of The Fantastic Flying Journey and The Way Things Work.
[edit] References
- ^ http://www.amazon.com/dp/0439813786
- ^ American Library Association: Caldecott Medal Winners, 1938 - Present. URL accessed 27 May 2009.
- ^ "Martin Scorsese's Hugo Cabret Starts Filming Today". Movieweb. http://www.movieweb.com/news/NEBA8FEHOgLDFF. Retrieved June 29, 2010.
[edit] External links
| Awards | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by Flotsam |
Caldecott Medal recipient 2008 |
Succeeded by The House in the Night |
