Run Away With Me

by Brian Selznick

Overview

Notes From Your Bookseller

A heartfelt story of young love set against the backdrop of a historic city. This gripping romance is perfect for fans of Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe.

From #1 New York Times bestselling author/illustrator Brian Selznick, a profoundly romantic YA novel about two boys finding each other and falling in love over one summer in Rome.

"I'm going to call you Danny. What are you going to name me?"

"Angelo."

Danny is spending his sixteenth summer in Rome. As his mother spends the day at work in a mysterious museum, he wanders the ancient sites and streets. Soon after his arrival, he encounters a shadow... who becomes a voice... who becomes a boy his age. Angelo.

Soon Danny and Angelo are spending as much time as they can together, piecing together stories of the city while only gradually letting their own histories be shared. Attraction leads to affection, and affection leads to both an intimate closeness and a profound fear of what happens next. Danny has never really had a home, or known the love of another boy. Angelo seems to have more experience... but he also has secrets just out of Danny’s reach.

Run Away With Me is a stunning creation, weaving words and illustration to tell the story of a transformative love over the course of one Roman summer.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781339035529
Publisher:	Scholastic, Inc.
Publication date:	04/01/2025
Pages:	320
Product dimensions:	5.70(w) x 8.40(h) x 1.50(d)
Age Range:	12 - 18 Years

About the Author

Brian Selznick’s books have sold millions of copies, garnered countless awards worldwide, and been translated into more than 35 languages. He broke open the novel form with his innovative and genre-defying thematic trilogy, beginning with the Caldecott Medal-winning #1 New York Times bestseller The Invention of Hugo Cabret, adapted into Martin Scorsese's Oscar-winning movie Hugo. He followed that with the #1 New York Times bestseller, Wonderstruck, adapted into the eponymous movie by celebrated filmmaker Todd Haynes, with a screenplay by Selznick, and the New York Times bestseller, The Marvels. Selznick’s two most recent books for young people, Baby Monkey, Private Eye, an ALA Notable Book co-written with his husband David Serlin, and Kaleidoscope, a New York Times Notable Children’s Book of 2021, were both New York Times bestsellers as well. He also illustrated the 20th anniversary edition covers of J.K. Rowling's Harry Potter series. Selznick and Serlin divide their time between Brooklyn, New York and La Jolla, California. Learn more at thebrianselznick.com and mediaroom.scholastic.com/brianselznick.

Hometown:

Brooklyn, New York, and San Diego, California

Date of Birth:

July 14, 1966

Place of Birth:

New Jersey

Education:

Rhode Island School of Design

Website:

http://theinventionofhugocabret.com/index.htm

Editorial Reviews

★ 04/07/2025

Two boys meet, name one other, and fall in love in an extraordinary illustrated novel set in 1986 Rome—a dreamy YA debut from Selznick (Big Tree). An initially unnamed white-cued American 16-year-old who’s staying in the city with his book conservator mother feels watched by the locale. Finding a hand-drawn map tucked into a broken statue leads the protagonist to encounter an Italian boy, “almost three thousand years old,” who calls him Danny—and whom Danny calls Angelo. The two quickly become inseparable, secretly spending days together as Danny’s remaining time in Rome counts down. The boys share cold fruit and tender moments while taking in various sites, and Angelo slowly recounts stories that add to the work’s layers, among them the tale of Giovanni Argento, a sailor, and Dante Ferrata, an assistant to sculptor and architect Bernini. Brimming with electric-feeling affection and longing as well as musings on “stories, ...secrets, ...histories,” it’s an intricately woven Roman holiday: Danny marvels at “my life reflected back through the prism of Angelo,” and readers will too. Bookending the work are elegant, closely hatched pencil illustrations that make ample use of chiaroscuro. Ages 12–up. (Apr.)

Publishers Weekly

Praise for Big Tree:

"The tale of the natural world is the greatest story we have to tell, and Brian delivers a brilliant chapter of that tale throughout the pages of Big Tree." —Steven Spielberg

"Brian Selznick is a singular talent. Big Tree grips you from start to finish and resonates emotionally long after you have finished reading." —Chris Meledandri, founder, Illumination

* "Sure to elicit gasps of surprise and delight…The astonishing story is at once vast and intimate, succeeding as both a small-scale adventure story and a broader exploration of the natural world. Glorious pencil drawings, moving swiftly from macro to micro lenses, turn wispy seeds into spritely, darling protagonists, and wordless sketched reveals that follow text interludes are sure to elicit gasps of surprise and delight... An enthralling and expansive meditation on what it means to be alive on this planet." —Booklist, starred review

* "Selznick's dedication to dual storytelling through text and hundreds of finely detailed pencil drawings allows for each to progress the plot in succession, creating a balanced and rich book that invites careful reading and poring over illustrations to find all of the connective threads... His expressive art that highlights the heart of the story, paired with his keen eye for creating sympathetic and memorable lost children... are a powerful combination to bring to this epic quest. Selznick fans will be delighted, and dinosaur fans and nature buffs will likely be just as enthralled." —The Bulletin of the Center for Children's Books, starred and recommended review

* "Silvery, deeply textural drawings move elegantly between planet-scale drama, microscopic life, and Louise and Merwin's shifting surroundings as the pace bounds inexorably onward, ending in a contemporary city... In evocative prose and peppery dialogue... the cinematic story journeys across time and space, contemplating the power of life to heal and the importance of developing 'roots and wings.'" —Publishers Weekly, starred review

* "Selznick elegantly intertwines pictures and words to tell the macro story of the natural world through the micro perspective of two sycamore seeds... [His] control of narrative, pacing, and book design is idiosyncratic and masterful. Fluid shifts between prose and double-page spreads of accomplished pencil illustrations are clear and effective... Ambitious…poignant…hopeful." —The Horn Book, starred review

* "Selznick returns with a majestically illustrated, modern-day parable… this tale, with its combination of a childlike narrative and profound illustrations, presents a big, universal story of taking care of the miraculous Earth on which we live. Selznick's signature art was created with pencil on hot pressed watercolor paper, and the texture and nuance of these nearly 300 pages will strike wonder in every reader… Weighty themes of connectedness, conservation, and the impact that one small voice can have on the fate of the universe might feel unfathomable and too big for children, but in Selznick’s hands, this poignant fable will resonate with all readers, young and old. A special, one-of-a-kind book for the whole family that readers won’t soon forget." —School Library Journal, starred review

"A labor of love — no, of passion — for the world and all the life it supports, Brian Selznick's Big Tree spreads its storytelling canopy to cover all of us. We're implicated, we’re honored. We're family." —Gregory Maguire, author of Wicked

"Inspirational, important, and beautiful. A fable for our times." —Alan Gratz, bestselling author of Refugee and Ground Zero

"Grand in scope, yet intimate and tender. Quintessential Selznick. A triumph!" —Pam Muñoz Ryan, bestselling author of Esperanza Rising and the Newbery Honor Book Echo

"Big Tree is exactly the kind of book the world needs most right now." —C.C. Harrington, author of the bestselling Indie’s Introduce Pick and Schneider Family Book Award winner Wildoak

Praise for The Invention of Hugo Cabret:

2008 Caldecott Medal winner

National Book Award Finalist

#1 New York Times Bestseller

New York Times Best Illustrated Book

Los Angeles Times Favorite Children's Book of the Year

TIME Magazine's 100 Best Children's and Young Adult Books of All Time

"Evokes wonder… like a silent film on paper." —The New York Times

"A fast-paced treat." —People Magazine

"Distinctive." —The Wall Street Journal

"Cinematic." —Parenting Magazine

"Captivating." —Los Angeles Times Book Review

* "A true masterpiece." —Publishers Weekly, starred review

* "Fade to black and cue the applause!" —Kirkus Reviews, starred review

* "Complete genius." —The Horn Book, starred review

* "Breathtaking… shatters conventions." —School Library Journal, starred review

* "An original and creative integration of art and text." —The Bulletin of the Center for Children's Books, starred review

"Visually stunning… raises the bar." —San Antonio Express-News

From the Publisher

★ 04/01/2025

Gr 8 Up—In Rome for the summer of 1986, 16-year-old American Danny is left to explore on his own as his mother, a librarian, diligently works at a museum and book conservancy whose precise history has been lost in the mists of time. Danny feels an unexplained presence pushing him around the city and at last meets Angelo, a heavenly and mysterious curly-haired Italian boy who insists he is 2,738 years old. Wandering the city together, they share stories, uncover secrets, and fall desperately in love. Pages of Selznick's intricate pencil line drawings serve as bookends to his lyrical prose. From the novel's ethereal cover to the realistic but dreamlike spreads within, Selznick's art effectively captures both the story's setting and sense of profound, wistful longing. Readers will be as drawn to Danny's bashful curiosity and Angelo's charismatic charm as the boys are to each other, avidly following Danny as he counts down his remaining days in Rome, and with Angelo. VERDICT A mesmerizing ode to poetry, art, and love that stands the test of time, Selznick's first title for young adults is recommended for all collections.—Alicia Rogers

School Library Journal

★ 2025-01-18
For one summer, two boys immerse themselves in stories and each other as they discover Rome and fall in love.

Danny and his mother never stay anywhere long. Her work as a book conservator drags him from one city to another, so nowhere feels like home. While his mom works, Danny, a white-presenting American who’s unable to speak Italian, is left to wander through Rome alone. Lonely and restless on the empty, rainy streets, Danny is lured by a mysterious voice and a hand-drawn map attached to a sculpture to discover an obelisk on the back of a marble elephant. There he meets Angelo, an Italian boy with dark curly hair and a mind racing with wild ideas. At first, Danny isn’t sure what to make of this boy who claims he’s nearly 3000 years old, but Angelo’s secrets and stories awaken new life inside Danny. For the first time he feels seen, and he knows Angelo needs someone to see him too. Their adventures unlock Rome—and Danny’s heart. The book opens and closes with two-page spreads featuring Selznick’s vivid line drawings which not only establish the setting but capture the mood of loneliness and longing. Much like Rome itself, Danny and Angelo’s story, revealed in poetic prose, is layered in stories and history, each one essential to the whole. The characters are quirky, imaginative, and enigmatic; their curiosity and desire are as infectious as Roman fever.

Intricate and wondrous. (bibliography)(Romance. 14-18)

Kirkus Reviews