A Book Summary: The Invention of Hugo Cabret by Brian Selznick

The story takes place in a train station in Paris.

Hugo is twelve-year-old  boy who lives inside the train station. Hugo's father, a watch-maker, finds an automaton in a museum, and in his free time, he tries to fix it. An automaton is a complex, gear-driven machine that does a task.Unfortunately, the museum burns down and the father dies. Hugo goes to the burned museum, finds the automaton and tries to fix it with found and stolen materials.

Isabelle is a girl who helps Hugo go on his adventures.

Papa Georges is an older man who works in a toy booth in the train station and is Isabelle's godfather.

  The story ends with Hugo living with Papa Georges and Isabelle. he goes to school and makes his own automaton. The Invention of Hugo Cabret is over 500 pages but more than half of them are very detailed and descriptive pencil drawings.

Summer Blacksmithing: How I made a Forge on Whidbey Island

This summer on Whidbey Island I made a blacksmith forge. It reached over 2000°F. I made the forge by going to the thrift store and buying a pot, a pan and a hairdryer. At the hardware store, I got long nails, a glue called, "J.B. Weld" and a small metal pipe. I got the J.B. Weld glue because it can get to over 500°F. It was the glue which was the most tolerant to heat that I could find. I then went on the beach that is located in our backyard and found some damp drift wood, squishy, cold clay and found a big block of sparkly coal. Then, I made the forge by first drilling holes in the pan. After, I glued the pan on top of the pot with J.B. Weld. I put a hole in the pot and glued the pipe in it. I attached the hairdryer to the pipe with duct tape. 

I took a hammer and broke the coal down into little pieces. 

Then, I put the little pieces of coal in the top of the forge and lit it. I then turned on the hairdryer and the coals got really hot. I was very excited. The first time I fired up the forge I just flattened a piece of steel. The anvil I used was a piece of railroad track that was given to me by a friend. The next day I fired up the forge, I made a knife from a nail which I had found on the beach.

 Here are some pictures and diagram of it.