New Yaahk, New Yaahk...

Wow-- Just came back from a whirlwind 4 days in NY for the SCBWI (Society of Children's Book Writer's and Illustrators) Winter Conference. Amazing keynote speakers. Educational workshops. And Brian Selznick.

For those of you who don't know Brian Selznick, he is an author/illustrator whose new book, "The Invention of Hugo Cabret" is recently published by Scholastic. I was lucky enough to be in the audience of Brian's keynote speech on Day 2 of the conference. But it was more like a Power Point presentation. A really, really GOOD Power Point presentation. He had slides. He had music. He had us mezmerized from the get-go.

The book in question is part storyboard, part narrative, part graphic novel. The jacket describes it as an "entirely new reading experience." It is.

Brian was just one of the speakers I was fortunate enough to hear during this fabulous conference. (More about that later!)

But if you have a chance, pick up a copy of "The Invention of Hugo Cabret." It really does transport you to another time. The characters are real.. you feel them about you.. you see them looking you in the eye.... You hear the clock ticking....