From the Bookshelf of Mock Newbery 2026…

The Marvels

Brian Selznick

Start date: December 1, 2015

Finish date: December 31, 2015

Discussion: Book of the Month - 2016

Find A Copy At

Libraries

Group Discussions About This Book

Showing 2 of 12 topics — 339 comments total

Book of the Month - 2016

September Read - The War that Saved My Life
By Kristen · 52 posts · 232 views

last updated Nov 08, 2016 01:53AM

December Reads - 2016
By Kristen · 22 posts · 163 views

last updated Dec 19, 2015 02:35PM

What Members Thought

Feb 08, 2015 Monica Edinger rated it it was amazing

my blog review.

Brian Selznick is one of the great artists of our time. In what is now a trilogy (The Invention of Hugo Cabret, Wonderstruck, and now The Marvels ) he has created a unique storytelling style, one that blends illustration and text in an engrossingly original way. It is an aesthetic and emotive experience not like that of a graphic novel, but one closer to a cinematic viewing experience or a theatrical one; the three books are rich with scenes of powerful beauty created with pap my blog review.

Brian Selznick is one of the great artists of our time. In what is now a trilogy (The Invention of Hugo Cabret, Wonderstruck, and now The Marvels ) he has created a unique storytelling style, one that blends illustration and text in an engrossingly original way. It is an aesthetic and emotive experience not like that of a graphic novel, but one closer to a cinematic viewing experience or a theatrical one; the three books are rich with scenes of powerful beauty created with paper, page turns, close-ups, and more. Upon completing The Marvels, I sat still, feeling as I did after a remarkable theatrical experience, say a dramatic opera, a visually stunning film, or a striking play, in awe of what I'd just experienced. Hours later it lingers with me, a gorgeous work of art.

The Marvels begins in the 18th century with images, hundreds of pages of them relating a mysterious story of a theatrical family over several generations. Ships and theaters, riggings and scenery, weather and atmosphere, adventure and drama, light and dark, youth and age, convention and strangeness --- it is all there. Midway the images end and it is 1990 with a story now told exclusively in words. We meet Joseph who has run away from boarding school and is now in London desperately seeking out the one address he knows: 18 Folgate Street where his uncle lives, someone he knows nothing about and has never met. A fortunate encounter with a child his own age finally brings him to his relative who is not at all happy that he has come. There are mysteries galore --- that of Joseph's uncle's remarkable house, of Joseph's friend from school who has disappeared, of his and his uncle's family, and of another one called the Marvels. By the end, the first two parts of the book are made whole in a brief, but powerful and brave conclusion, told again in drawings, set in the present day.

The book was inspired by a remarkable man, Dennis Severs, his house in London at 18 Folgate Street, and his friend David Milne. My own familiarity with their story, visit to the house a few years ago, and experiences during the period of the second part of the novel made my reading of The Marvels both aesthetically powerful and personally significant. As Joseph's story and that of his uncle's and his house began to unfold I started to recognize aspects of it and had a premonition as to where the story was going, causing me to remember others, artists I knew and cared for so much and whose lives were all too brief. And so I know that my reading was quite likely different from that of someone without my background, especially child readers.

Thank you, Brian, for The Marvels, for creating this work of art that remembers, looks behind and ahead, that celebrates the power of love, of art, of books, and the future with extraordinary art, grace, and elegance. ...more

26 likes · Like · see review

Jul 07, 2016 Jean rated it it was ok

I know I'm going against everyone else who loves this book by saying that I thought it was OK. I LOVED the artwork, like I do in every Selznick book. But the storyline was confusing and the ending anti-climactic and confusing. I really wanted to love it, but just couldn't. ...more

2 likes · Like · see review

Dec 05, 2015 Shari (Shira) rated it liked it

Shelves: childrensbooks

Selznick works his magic again with a tale told in images and prose. While I was entranced by the pictures, I found the story somewhat confusing.

1 like · Like · see review

Dec 12, 2015 Travis rated it it was amazing

Shelves: really-hard-to-fit-into-a-genre, middle-grade

A beautiful middle grade picture book novel (or whatever it is you call Selznick's signature style) that pays beautiful tribute to the city of London, to the victims of HIV, and to the power of stories. Everything about it is beautiful. I can't recommend it enough. ...more

1 like · Like · see review

Apr 30, 2015 Dan rated it it was amazing

Shelves: middle-grade, 2015-read, 2015-2016

The depth of storytelling here is, in my eyes, remarkable. The Marvels is a multi-layered and innovated story about family, love, loss, storytelling, and holding on to our past while living life fully in the present. The Marvels packs an emotional punch.

1 like · Like · see review

Apr 30, 2015 Mary Lee rated it it was amazing

Shelves: knock-my-socks-off, grief-loss, 2015

There are no words.

The craft of this book is simply amazing.

1 like · Like · see review

Dec 25, 2015 Kate Hastings rated it really liked it

Shelves: middle-school, mysteries

Grades 5(?)-12. Young Joseph runs away from boarding school and tracks down his reclusive uncle where he unravels his family's past. As with Selznicks other books, pencil drawings tie two realities together. The most remarkable part of the book is that it is loosely based on an actual house and family in England.

Sensitive social issues address the pain felt when families reject each other based on diverging values. No sugar coating here. Relationships are genuine and heartfelt. ...more

Like · see review

Jan 09, 2016 Cheryl Meibos rated it liked it

Shelves: 6th-graders, young-adult

I loved the illustrated story part of the book. There was magic and mystery, and then there was a twist towards the end that seemed confusing and the magic was gone.

Like · see review

Jan 06, 2016 Carmine rated it liked it

Shelves: family, historical-fiction, juvenile-fiction, magical-realism

Though beautiful and in parts moving, did not speak to me the same way that Wonderstruck or Hugo did.

Like · see review

Jun 03, 2015 Karen rated it it was amazing

Shelves: 2015-published-books, 2015-books-read-this-year, middle-school, childrensbooks, middle-grade, summer-bookaday-2015, inferring, surprise-twists, time-as-important-plot-element

Love the way the picture stories intertwine with the written word story to make a beautiful story altogether. Selznick is a master!

Like · see review

May 03, 2016 Susan marked it as couldn-t-finish

Shelves: chapter-books

I think I'll give this another try later. I lost interest partway into the prose section. ...more

Like · see review

Oct 05, 2017 Michele rated it really liked it

Shelves: juvenile-8-12

As usual, gorgeous illustrations that could tell the story on their own and a wonderfully descriptive text. Be aware that concepts of homosexuality and AIDS are touched on tangentially since this is based on the life of real people.

Like · see review