Review: Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children

Reviewer: Kelsey
Author: Ransom Riggs
Format: Paperback
Pages: 352
Rating: 6 out of 10

Summary (Goodreads knows that I'm peculiar): A mysterious island. An abandoned orphanage. A strange collection of curious photographs.

A horrific family tragedy sets sixteen-year-old Jacob journeying to a remote island off the coast of Wales, where he discovers the crumbling ruins of Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children. As Jacob explores its abandoned bedrooms and hallways, it becomes clear that the children were more than just peculiar. They may have been dangerous. They may have been quarantined on a deserted island for good reason. And somehow—impossible though it seems—they may still be alive.

A spine-tingling fantasy illustrated with haunting vintage photography, Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children will delight adults, teens, and anyone who relishes an adventure in the shadows.

Thoughts: This book was cool. The pictures were really interesting, especially when you get to the back of the book and you see the collection information. The historical aspects of this book make it much more exciting than it would be any other way. I think the pictures being in the book where they are mentioned is perfect. They were the coolest thing. The pictures are why I picked up the book in the first place.

I found myself pulled into a world of murder and mystery and wild fantasy. This novel was one that had just about everything, even a little growing romance. It was quite an adventure for Jacob to go on and I felt bad for him in some ways. I could understand his curiosity but I would have had a mental breakdown. I also don't think that I would have wandered around by myself after seeing the things that he saw.

This novel has quite the cast. Each one is a character worth of their own book. Each is so unique. I wonder how the author came up with them all. Sadly, it was a little hard for me to follow who each one was. The author does a fairly good job of reminding the reader frequently and the second novel comes with a list (I already have it).

My only real problem with this novel is that it felt more like a middle school novel because of how young the protagonist was. The vocabulary and writing were outstanding, so that sure wasn't the problem. I guess I just had a bit of a hard time connecting with Jacob.

If you like paranormal/fantasy novels or historical (but not at all accurate...because of the paranormal stuff) novels than this one is for you. I think that even if you are just into old photos you should at least flip through the book. It's interesting. Check it out.