But with 'The Invention of Hugo Cabret' winning the Caldecott, do you feel like an overnight success story at 41?īrian Selznick: I still feel excited about the idea that anybody looks at a book that I make. NEWSWEEK: You wrote and illustrated your first book, 'The Houdini Box,' in 1991. NEWSWEEK's Karen Springen talks with Selznick: In the process, the fictional boy meets a real silent filmmaker, George Méliès, who's working in the station's toy shop. Selznick uses words on some pages, and black-and-white pencil drawings on others, to tell the tale of a 12-year-old orphan who lives in the walls of a Paris train station and tries to finish his dead father's mysterious invention. Historically, the artist has illustrated shorter classics for younger readers: 'Make Way for Ducklings,' 'Owl Moon' and 'The Polar Express.' But this week the ALA gave the honor to author-illustrator Brian Selznick for 'The Invention of Hugo Cabret,' a 533-page book for 9-to-12-year-olds. Each year the American Library Association awards the Caldecott Medal to the artist of the most distinguished American picture book for children.
