Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children

This review can also be found at http://fortheloveofbooksreviews.blogspot.ca/2016/11/miss-peregrines-home-for-peculiar.html


Jacob's grandfather has always told him stories about the people in the strange photographs he owns, and after a while, Jacob realizes that these stories are only fairy tales and that his grandfather's condition may be getting worse. One day, he gets a panicked call and later finds his grandfather dead, after seeing a horrifying creature that his friend claims wasn't there. He and his therapist come to the conclusion that the creature isn't real, that Jacob is just dealing with a lot of stress, and that it would be a good idea to go to the island where his grandfather sought refuge in the war.

He travels with his father, hoping to find out more about his grandfather's past. When he comes across a ruined house and a small, rather unlikable village, he soon learns that things are not as they seem, and that the strange people in his grandfather's photographs may still be alive after all these years.

I couldn't resist buying this book when I found it at the thrift shop. With the film coming out and seemingly everybody talking about it, I had to know if it lived up to the hype. I can't say that I share the same enthusiasm as many fans of the series, but it was very enjoyable, to say the least.

This book didn't blow me away, it didn't amaze me and it didn't seem entirely original. However, the mix of time travel, supernatural or paranormal powers and some sort of evil monster coming after the characters made this book an intriguing read.

There were several smaller twists throughout the book, however my favourite one took place near the end and I definitely did not see it coming! Those are my favourite kind of twists, and I was very satisfied with it.

However, I feel that the pacing of the events was a bit uneven and disappointing. The start of the book seemed to fly by very quickly, then the middle dragged on for a bit, and finally the ending flew by just as the start had. It took me quite a while to get through the middle portion, and at times I felt bored.

I honestly think that the best part of this book is the photographs. They're weird and creepy! They added a lot to the story, and I liked how they were integrated into the book and writing itself. They weren't just random photos, they tied into the story. I spent a lot of time looking them over, sometimes wondering if clues were hidden within the photos. I wish there had been more photos!

While this book was enjoyable, I don't think that it lived up to the hype. I liked the story and the pictures were a fun addition, but I'm not sure if I will read the sequel.

I recommend this to those who like time travel stories and YA books with creatures and people with strange powers.

Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children is told from the point-of-view of sixteen-year-old Jacob Portman.

As a child Jacob’s grandfather Abe, a World War II veteran and Jewish refugee, would tell him stories from his own childhood featuring flesh eating monsters and children with the most peculiar abilities.

Jacob as he grows older becomes sceptical of his grandfather’s childhood tales. Even though Abe shows his grandson a cigar box fill of old photographs as proof Jacob challenges Abe that his stories are fiction. Abe chooses never to mention the stories again.

After Jacob finds his grandfather dying with chest wounds from a mysterious attack, Abe tells Jacob ‘Find the bird. In the loop. On the other side of the old man’s grave. September third, 1940’. What does this mysterious message mean? Even more did Jacob really just glimpse one of the monsters from his grandfather’s stories in the moonlight?

Following his grandfather’s death Jacob finds a letter postmarked from Cairnholm Island addressed to his grandfather from Ms Alma LeFay Peregrine.

Jacob tries to convince his parents to let him go to Cairnholm Island, off the coast of Wales, for the summer. Jacob’s psychiatrist Dr. Golan approves of the idea, so Jacob and his father set off. While there Jacob explores the island and searches for answers about his grandfather’s past.

Riggs initially envisioned his debut novel as a picture book. He was encouraged by his editor to use the photographs to guide the narrative and it really works. Each picture is perfectly selected and adds to the story.

The vintage black and white photographs are quirky photos the author collected and from the collection of other collectors.

The novel has been followed by two sequels Hollow City (2014) and Library of Souls (2015).

A film version directed by Tim Burton opened last month. It includes a stellar cast including Eva Green, Asa Butterfield, Chris O’Dowd, Alison Janney, Rupert Everett, Terence Stamp, Judi Dench and Samuel L. Jackson.

This books was full of so many twists and turns I thought I was going to get motion sickness--but in a super good way. In fact, I loved it so much that I lent my borrowed copy to my mom, who promptly dropped it in the bathtub so I had to pay the library for the cost and I DIDN'T EVEN CARE because now I get it to keep it (swollen pages and all).

I'm not sure what I can say that hasn't already been said.

It's original.
If you aren't comparing it to X-Men.

I love supernatural books! I was excited to read it just because it had that very element of weird.

Now, the strange pictures, (that weren't actually creepy, just weird as shit. The story didn't really need them to accomplish this mysterious thing it was going for.

It's interesting.
It got slow at times, but I cant say I didn't enjoy the story.

Overall, a good read. Something a bit different.(

Miss Peregrine's Home for peculiar children is amazing with a lot of surprises and great and believable characters. The fact the in contains creepy and weird vintage photographs makes the story way better and makes you want to read it all as quickly as possible( which I Did). Warning Don't Judge the book by it cover. It looked creepy and scary but it turned out to be a great surprise. I really enjoy this odd but cool story.

Is it in bad taste to say that I found Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children peculiar? I suppose it is, but it had to be done :P

I rather enjoyed the idea of a story that was assisted by the use of pictures. In reality, though, it ended up being a hit and miss for me. All the pictures themselves were great, but sometimes they didn’t quite work with the story. Sometimes the pictures were a nice addition to the story and sometimes it felt like the story was working just a little too hard to incorporate them.

The story itself, on the other hand, was fantastic. I loved the originality of the storyline. Riggs has some serious craziness up his sleeve. Going in I was just thinking there might just be some peculiar and creepy ghosts of children, but boy was I wrong. This story has some serious depth.

The Nutshell: Looking at the cover and reading the description you can imagine that Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children has the creep factor going for it, but there’s a lot more between the covers as well. There’s a crazy fantastical story, a little mystery, a smidge of romance, and lurking-in-the-shadows nightmares. If you’re looking for a strange, slightly spooky original story then Miss Peregrine’s is worth looking into.

Hit

This book was peculiar. (I have found myself obsessed with using the title to describe the book. It is just so fun!) A good summer read, but a better fall read. Particularly a fall day in which it is raining and gloomy. Perfect. Not the best book for a hot sunny summer day - like the day I read it. Imperfect. Surprisingly though, much of the book takes place in a hot sunny late summer day. September 3, 1940. Imperfect. It should have been at the very least a breezy, cool autumn day. At least normal time was stormy/rainy/gloomy weather. Perfect.

I'll stop obsessing over weather. I do love weather though, it can make or break some books for me. I think more authors should describe the weather in more detail. Sometimes weather isn't even considered in books and we go through the book left to our own imaginative devices at how the weather is. A humid summer day, with storm clouds rolling in the kind of day that makes a person want to simultaneously stay outside and watch the clouds change and stay inside in the blessed air conditioning, that day slowly changes into a full out thunderstorm with thunder and lightning and high winds dark clouds making it seem much later than it actually is, that would be a perfect weather for a day in Beautiful Creatures. Or a fall day, bright and clear blue skies, crisply cold and startlingly alive with possibility, daring a person to explore the woods with trees changing leaves and as the darkness quickly comes build a bonfire and spend the evening outside staring at the stars, perfect weather for a day in The Thief. Like I said, weather can really change how I -at least- interact with a book. Not that books necessarily are any less good because they lack the weather description, but I believe more books need to include details about how the weather changes. It affects how a person may respond or react to a situation.

Anyway, now I will officially stop obsessing over weather.

I liked Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children. Everything was not as I expected but I still enjoyed it. It was creepy enough, though it never went all the way (for mE at least) and the plot was surprisingly faster than I thought it would be. I expected a plot similar to The Night Circus, but was actually given a plot more like Fablehaven. I also expected a focus on atmosphere - and the feel of the world - like the Night Circus, but was actually given an atmosphere more like The Replacement. I was expecting characters similar to The Night Circus, but got characters more like Leviathan crossed with Anna Dressed in Blood. Yet, while Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children (here on out known as MPHfPC) felt similar to many different books it was also very much unlike any of the books I just listed.

So what was MPHfPC? For me it was essentially an adventure story, with some strange pictures thrown in to make things interesting and rather lovely descriptions. More than "rather lovely descriptions" actually. Through much of the book I was gushing over the detailed descriptions of places and spaces and people and objects. I loved that aspect of it. And for the most part the characters were fun, if some were underdeveloped it did not detract from the book as a whole for me at least. Jacob was a good - if slightly idiotic and slow - narrator to follow. Hopelessly naive and bumbling and at times cute. The plot kept me intrigued and moved along quickly and concisely, the description didn't overtake the plot and the book was kept a reasonable length because of it. For what the story was I believe the author balanced description and plot quite well. And left me interested in reading the sequel, without dying because of a cliffhanger.

So what didn't I like? The romance for one. It was just too weird that Emma loved Jacob's grandfather...and they fell in love so quickly, despite Jacob's initial repulsion and thinking that loving her was practically 'incest'. It just felt wrong and weird, and I didn't like it.

The paradoxes that could be created were never addressed. Not even by Miss Peregrine. Maybe it will happen in the second book? I hope so, because if not this will annoy me a lot. In 1940 Jacob is not yet born, but what will happen when he is born and grows up listening to his grandfather's stories...and then when his grandfather dies he goes to Cairnholm...yeah. Or what if he runs into himself. Or what if his grandfather runs into Jacob...etc. etc. etc. This could be a major problem.

At times I don't think the references to the photographs are done very well. He remembers in detail photograph's he glanced over once, recognized blurry faces, and referenced them out of the blue. It just felt like the author was trying too hard to connect the photos, when it might have been better to leave descriptions of some of them out of the plot line all together and just let the reader draw conclusions that "this" photograph describes "this" event. It would make some of the writing feel smoother.

I also wish that there had been more peculiar children, or that the ones were at Miss Peregrine's home had been more peculiar. Some of them were just strange, there peculiar traits perfectly useless and disgusting. Though perhaps that makes sense, not every peculiar trait could be useful or - I believe - the peculiar people would be living much different lives in many ways. However, I wish that the uselessness of some of the traits and the affect it had on those who held the trait had been covered more. The one time that stood out was Claire's during Jacob's first dinner at Miss Peregrine's Home. Or that the characters who had somewhat useless traits had been developed into the plot more instead of left hanging and useless.

All in all I enjoyed the book, it was a nice, quick read to get through and I am eager to read the sequel.

Soundtrack: Stairway to Heaven by Led Zeppelin - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0niLOyhCd5g

Premise - 4/5
Characters - 3/5
Writing Style - 4/5
Story – 4/5
Realistic(the plot made sense) - 2/5
Enjoyment – 4/5

Average Rating - 3.5
My Rating - 4
Cover – The cover is a picture taken from the book, and I think fits the desired feel of the book, but not necessarily the actual feel. I still think it fits the book well enough and don't think something else would have worked.

This book is instantly atmospheric (the photos certainly help!) and the writer maintains the sense of disembodied unreality throughout the narrative. Jacob is a strong character who makes a good narrator, even though I was disappointed that no one else in his life seems to be a match for his strength. I enjoyed the creepy and compelling story of the children who live in the home, and felt on edge as danger closed in.

What keeps this book from getting 5 stars from me is that I couldn't quite understand the mythological set up that allows the most important part of the book to happen. I can't explain more without spoiling the book, but even with my willing suspension of disbelief, I felt like I needed a bit more explanation or to be shown HOW it worked so I could visualize. I also felt like the characters were a bit emotionally distant from me, the reader. However, I think that was more the product of the writer's story-telling style, and not necessarily a fault.

Overall, this is a strange, compelling read that I think readers drawn to dark, atmospheric stories will enjoy.