The Invention of Hugo Cabaret by Brian Selznick

Selznick's "novel in words and pictures," is a unique and amazingly good book!. It is an intriguing mystery set in 1930s Paris about an orphan, a salvaged clockwork invention, and a celebrated filmmaker. This illustrated novel is somewhat similar to a graphic novel, but experiencing its mix of silvery pencil drawings and narrative interludes is ultimately more like watching a silent film. This picture novel has over 150 double-page illustrations that are integral to the story. Most are detailed drawings, but a few are photographs from the early days of motion pictures. This historical novel centers on Hugo, a young boy on his own in the Paris train station after his father dies in a museum fire, and his uncle, the caretaker of the station clocks disappears. In his room in the walls of the station, Hugo is repairing a mechanical man using his father's detailed drawings; the parts he steals from the toymaker's booth. But, the old man catches him stealing and Hugo is forced to give up the notebook and to work in the booth to pay for what he stole. The old man's granddaughter, Isabelle, holds the key to bringing the automaton to life as the bitter old man was once much more than an unhappy toymaker. Although Hugo and Isabelle are fictional characters, the old man is based on Georges Melies, whose automatons were indeed left in a museum attic.

Don't let the thick book scare you, due to all the pictures, it is actually a quick read.