Monday, April 16, 2012

Bibliophile's Corner

Wonderstruck
by Brian Selznick

Flap Copy description:
Ben and Rose secretly wish their lives were different. Ben longs for the father he has never known. Rose dreams of a mysterious actress whose life she chronicles in a scrapbook. When Ben discovers a puzzling clue in his mother's room and Rose reads an enticing headline in the newspaper, both children set out alone on desperate quests to find what they are missing.

Set fifty years apart, these two independent stories - Ben's told in words, Rose's in pictures - weave back and forth with mesmerizing symmetry. How they unfold and ultimately intertwine will surprise you, challenge you, and leave you breathless with wonder...

My thoughts:
Brian Selznick, author of The Invention of Hugo Cabret, has created another marvelous middle grade graphic novel in Wonderstruck. The gifted storyteller is a master at creating magical worlds for the young reader to enjoy - both with his whimsical writing, and his beautiful black and white illustrations. He has a wonderful way of weaving multiple storylines together, culminating in a surprising finale. The genre of graphic novel is misleading in the case of both of Mr. Selznick's MG novels - they are truly works of art.
I would highly recommend this book to readers from the ages of eight to eighty!

To learn more about this gifted author, click here: http://theinventionofhugocabret.com/about_brian_bio.htm