Hugo Cabret is the son of a clockmaker. He was being raised by his father until his father died in a fire. Hugo's uncle Claude then took Hugo to live with him in an apartment located in a train station. Uncle Claude's job at the train station is to maintain all of the clocks in the station. Hugo becomes Uncle Claude's apprentice but when Uncle Claude doesn't come home for several days (or ever again), Hugo continues to take care of all the clocks by himself. Hugo becomes intrigued with a toy shop in the train station and keeps a stash of toy parts that he pilfers from the shop. From these parts, he is able to rebuild the broken automaton machine that he found in the wreckage of a museum fire. He is convinced that the automaton holds a message for him from his father. The inventor of the automaton surprisingly ends up being someone that Hugo knows. The one hundred and fifty eight illustrations in this book are spectacular and tell the story with as much power as the words do. So what is the invention of Hugo Cabret? You will be amazed when you find out!

Awards won: Caldecott Medal

Reviewed by: sc

Date read: 4/28/2009

ISBN-10: 0439813786

ISBN-13: 9780439813785

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Share the adventures of Kristy, Mary Anne, Claudia, and Stacy in their first graphic novel. Learn how the Baby-sitter's Club was started, and the adventures the girls have at the very beginning of the business.

Reviewed by: sc

Date read: 3/26/2009

ISBN-10: 0439739330

ISBN-13: 9780439871655

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A modern retelling of the Wizard of Oz story, this graphic novel updates the characters from the classic tale while keeping the adventure intact. Fans of the original tale or the movie will recognize the plot, and enjoy the new twists to the story, all told using eye-catching black and white graphic illustrations. This is the story of Dorothy and Toto, who are whisked away from Aunty Em's home in the city, not a farm, but still end up in Oz, and venture into this new land with characters like the Scarecrow, and the Cowardly Lion.

Similar books: Black Beauty adapted by June Brigman & Roy Richardson; Frankenstein adapted by Gary Reed; Treasure Island adapted by Tim Hamilton

Reviewed by: sc

Date read: 3/26/2009

ISBN-10: 0142404713

ISBN-13: 9780142404713

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From the years of his childhood until the last days, the life story of Pope John Paul II is told in the graphic novel format. This book tells of Karol J≤zef Wojtyla growing up in Poland, losing his family, becoming an actor, becoming a priest, and continuing his journey to become Bishop of Rome. John Paul II established the World Day of Youth in 1986, and said, 'I believe that young people today want to build a world of justice, truth and love; and with the help of God they will do it!'

Reviewed by: sc

Date read: 3/26/2009

ISBN-13: 9781417766215

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This little book about the adventures of a young prince from his own planet as he ventures out into the wider universe is beloved for its deeper story of what is truly important in life. This graphic novel adaptation makes concrete many of the stories inside it, adding richness to the situations contained within. While surprisingly faithful to the text (of the English translation in nongraphic format I examined), the addition of pictures in a frame-by-frame telling of the tale brings an immediacy to the series of dilemmas the little prince and the pilot he meets face, allowing the reader to more fully explore them. In the same way adapting a book to film adds an interpretation that the reader makes on one's own when reading, this transfer to another artistic medium, the graphic novel, adds something that those who love the tale may value. Of course, those who love the tale are unlikely to abandon the textual telling for this one, but the graphic novel, while faithful to the story in the original, is also a work of art in its own right that lovers of the story may also embrace.

Reviewed by: emc

Date read: 11/30/2011

ISBN-13: 9780547338026

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