Mini-Review: Wonderstruck by Brian Selznick

Genre: Middle Grade- Historical Fiction?

Source: Checked out from Library

Series: No, Standalone

Buy It: The Dolphin Bookshop (Shop Indie!),  The Book Depository

Challenge: Free Reads 

From Brian Selznick, the creator of the Caldecott Medal winner THE INVENTION OF HUGO CABRET, comes another breathtaking tour de force. 

Playing with the form he created in his trailblazing debut novel, The Invention of Hugo Cabret, Brian Selznick once again sails into uncharted territory and takes readers on an awe-inspiring journey. 

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. Rich, complex, affecting, and beautiful--with over 460 pages of original artwork--Wonderstruck is a stunning achievement from a uniquely gifted artist and visionary.

     Wonderstruck blew me away.  The story was beautiful, as were the delicately detailed illustrations.  I decided to do a mini-review only because of all the pictures.  
     The magic wasn't in the writing, it was in the story.  The writing was nothing special while the characters drew me in, held on, and never let go.  I'm still touched by all of the relationships between the characters and how the story played out.  I absolutely adored the ending and I hope that Brian Selznick writes a companion, or sequel, or something!  The pictures were absolutely gorgeous and they played out just like a movie.  They were perfected down to every last detail.  
     At first, I was hesitant about the idea of the two POVs to be 20 years apart.  Thankfully, I was very grateful for this interesting technique at the end.  The closing of the book made perfect sense and I loved it.
     I finished Wonderstruck in a few hours.  The pictures were beautiful and they made it a really quick read.  Wonderstruck leans more towards middle grade, so it's a very light read.  I really loved this book and it's a treasure on any shelf!  In fact, I wish I had my own copy so I could stare at all the pictures!  Wonderstruck was awesome!


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