Week 6: Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children by Ransom Riggs

You've got to read this one!

Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children by Ransom Riggs is the best book I've read so far on this blogging journey! Fantasy....not usually my genre of choice, but this is one that caught me by surprise, and I have a feeling it's going to be big!

It's about a teenager named Jacob. His grandfather dies at the beginning of the book under somewhat mysterious circumstances, but right before he dies, he whispers some jibberish to Jacob who has spent his life debating whether or not his grandpa is crazy. Jacob also finds a letter from a woman his grandfather knew, and this leads him (along with his dad) on a journey to an island near Wales where his grandfather grew up. While Jacob tries to make sense of the jibberish his grandfather had muttered and put together some puzzle pieces, Jacob learns about a whole other realm, causing a lot of drama along the way.

There are mysteries to be figured out, and a great deal of suspense in this book. As I was reading I was thinking about how during almost every part of the book, there was something left unresolved, or some mystery that I knew was about to be revealed-- great motivation to keep reading! I didn't want to put it down! It didn't drag on or ever slow down, and one of the coolest characteristics of this book was that entwined with the story were old-looking/vintage photographs of children, drawings, scenes mentioned, and more. Jacob described the photographs of his grandfather's that he came across, and while the reader can sort of come up with a mental image based on the descriptions, (like a boy who had bees living in his stomach), the picture made the vision so much clearer so you can really understand why Jacob thought that it may or may not have been photoshopped or altered.

I was worried that all of my questions wouldn't be answered by the end, but indeed they were. The explanations were sometimes so complex that I had to reread particular parts. The storyline was obviously well-thought-out, and a sequel is coming in Spring 2013. (Why wouldn't the author write a a sequel? This one was a NY Times Bestseller!) I just consulted my old friend Wikipedia, and it appears that the movie rights have been bought, too. Like I said, I know this is going to be big!

This book is great for any reader, and I think adults would even really like it. Check out Ransom Rigg's book trailer below, and you'll be hooked!

Would interest: both boys and girls, grades 7-12, and adults
Good for: a general good book, suspense, mystery,
Themes: acceptance, death, exploration, reality
My grade: A