The invention of Hugo Cabret by Brian Selznick is a new kind of novel, at least one I haven't seen before. The author/illustrator writes and draws this book as the mood strikes him (at least that is what I've been told) so that when he thinks it is more appropriate to show a scene in images, he draws the story and when he thinks it is more appropriate to use words, he writes it. Thus the book starts with 21 double spreads of the most stunning pencil illustrations, then breaks into words as the story continues. Throughout the book we see movie stills, pencil illustrations and photos in black and white, making this a 524 page book that you can easily read in an afternoon.I find this book fascinating as I am teaching narrative art (art that tells a story) and visual literacy (reading a painting) in my classroom right now. Here is an example of "reading" a picture in a more literal way. Not only can we read the clues that an artist puts into his/her work, but we can read the story as it continues through each picture and see the subtle changes as the action/plot changes. I find this type of novel very exciting!
