As an author and artist, Brian Selznick creates two separate
but intertwining narratives in Wonderstruck,
jumping back and forth between them seamlessly, even though one uses words and
the other illustrations. The written story: Ben's, set in 1977, which takes us
to Gunflint Lake, Minnesota, where Ben is feeling incredibly alone after the
death of his mother, the only parent he's ever known. The illustrated version:
Rose's, set 50 years earlier, in 1927, which shows us, through detailed pencil
drawings, Rose's similar feelings of isolation, due to her deafness. Each sets
off on an adventure, Ben seeking his father, whom he knows about only through
clues left behind by his mother, and Rose running away from home, determined to
enjoy the freedom she has been denied because of her lack of hearing. What
drives this graphic novel⎯and
makes it so engrossing⎯is suspense: Which
of them will succeed and how? The finale, set in New York City's American Museum
of Natural History, will surprise even the most seasoned reader. But it's the
journey to that end that enchants, as Ben and Rose assert their independence in
this moving story of family and community.
