Tuesday, January 12, 2016

Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children



TITLE: Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children
AUTHOR: Ransom Riggs
RELEASE DATE: June 2013
PUBLISHER: Quirk Books
PAGES: 382 pages 
SERIES: Book 1 in Miss Peregrine's Peculiar children series (#2:Hollow City, #3:Library of Souls)
GENRE:
Mystery, Fantasy, Paranormal

OVERALL RATING: 4/5
APPROPRIATE AGE: grades 7-12


SUMMARY: Jacob is a bit of an outsider, rather normal, but without many friends. The one person he feels closest to is his grandfather. His grandfather who told him stories about a mysterious school on the other side of the world full of peculiar children watched over by a bird. Soon Jacob got to the day that he no longer believed his grandfather's wild stories, and their relationship was never the same. But when Jacob's grandfather calls one day terrified of the monsters that have finally found him, Jacob is the only one who can help. Rushing to his rescue, Jacob searches his grandfather's house and the woods for him, only to find him too late. The police say Jacob's grandfather was attacked by wild dogs, but Jacob knows there was something else in the woods with them that day. Now Jacob is beginning to second guess the skepticism he had for his grandfather's wild stories.

WHAT I LIKED: It took me a while to finally read this book. The cover always freaked me out. Nothing is scarier than creepy little kids. However, the black and white cover and semi-creepy photos of some of the peculiar children are where it all stops. It was my niece who finally convinced me to read the story, saying it took place during WWII. And all I can say is that the story is not at all what I expected, and I say that in the best way possible. There really is nothing more I can say about it without giving away major spoilers.

WHAT I DIDN'T LIKE: I really have to say I didn't like the cover. While I definitely think it will appeal to a lot of Young Adult, it did not appeal to me. When I first ordered the book for my library, I assigned it to the Horror section. After reading the first book, I have moved it to the Fantasy section (after a big debate between Fantasy or Mystery). I even had another teacher tell me that the cover of the book really turned her off as well, but after my short description, she has decided to add it to her To Read list. Overall, the cover is the only negative I have to say about this book. 

READALIKES: The Replacement by Brenna Yovanoff, Asylum by Madeline Roux, Pretty Monsters by Kelly Link

MOVIE RELEASE: December 25, 2016 (directed by Tim Burton)

BOOK TRAILER: 



No comments:

Post a Comment