Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children

First of all, I went into this book with a very different idea of what this book was going to be about. This is my fault because I didn't realize I'd never actually read a summary of the book. I'd heard so much about it, everything about the pictures of course, and thought I knew what to expect. In my mind this book was a creepy, sort of horror book that was set in the past. This resulted in me being a little confused for the first couple of pages because the books starts out in modern Florida. Something that has to be said about this book is that the design is beautiful. I own the paperback version and it's such a sturdy book. The paper feels a lot nicer and is less likely to rip than that of most other books I own. The cover fits the book perfectly and gives it the creepy vibes that attracted me to this book in the first place. Then the book is filled with antique pictures that sometimes give you an image of what a character looks like, and sometimes are just plain creepy. There's a lot of different characters in this novel. From Jacob's best, and only, friend who has green hair to his snobby mother to a kid who is invisible. Jacob himself comes over like a real person and react to the situations in a way that's reasonable and realistic. My favorite characters were definitely the peculiar children because of how they really acted like children. They asked lots of question when they weren't supposed to and used their abilities in ways that weren't always responsible. Sadly we didn't get to know most of them that well so I hope we'll learn more about them in the sequel. Although the main focus of this book is definitely on the plot and the setting it did make me think. These kids are in a loop where they repeat the same day over and over again. Jacob has to decide whether or not he wants to stay. It made me think what I would do in his position. Would I be able to handle going through the same day in the same place again and again, even if I would be happy there? There were two things I didn't really like about the book. The first one isn't that important, but the chapters are huge. There's 352 pages and only 11 chapters. This way I can't be like: "I'll just read one chapter before doing this or that". The other thing that made me feel a little awkward was the beginning romance between Jacob and Emma. Everything is all fine until you remember that Emma used to be the girlfriend of Jacob's grandfather... I am pretty sure this book classifies as young adult but to me it felt a lot more like a middle grade book. There's nothing wrong with that because there are tons of middle grade books I love, but if you don't like those kind of books these may not be for you. Because apart from some gruesomely described scenes I don't think there's anything in the book that I would say is too mature for younger readers. All in all I really enjoyed this book and am really curious about what will happen to Jacob and his friends in Hollow City. I gave it 4 out of 5 stars and would definitely recommend it. Even if it's just to find out what everyone's been talking about. Side note: I found a reference to John Green's papertowns. "Left at the multiethnic roof Santas!" (page 32)show more

When I first went to a bookstore and saw this, I think I stood in front of the book screaming at it, not because I was scared of it, but because I was so happy to see it and it felt like I saw a thing of beauty. The lady at the counter shushed me, so I slid at a corner, but glanced at the copy again and screamed again, and yeah, they kinda wanted to throw me out. Anyway, after quick deliberations, I bought the book and I do not regret anything about it ever since! The photographs used are hauntingly fascinating and you keep on staring at them to get a feel of them, intertwine them fully with the character, and you'd realize how intrigued you are by the characters and eventually intrigued by the real people in the photographs. It's amazing how the photos have so much relevance to a particular scene in the story. You'd think that the book can't avhieve the same type of charm as it did with the photos in it. Ransom is a genius. It takes a lot of great effort to find the right photographs for this story so it would seem. Especially with the wide array of characters, finding the right one to fit their peculiarity, is a task on its own and Ransom was able to deliver by giving us wonderful characters like the beautiful, hot-head Emma, to the charmingly optimistic Olive. The main character Jacob, may have become one of my favorite male protagonist. He's honest, very brave and would never think twice in order to help his friends when they're in danger and his curiousity is a charm. You'd think that you'd be swamped with the number of characters involved in the book, but no! You'd actually look forward to them, and that's what's so beautiful about it. Not only that, Ransom made sure that no one is forgotten. Each character has this specific role that plays well in the situation. No matter how many they were in the picture, they mattered. One other thing about this novel is the play on the past and present; fantasy and reality. Ransom was able to bring us the merge of the present life, with the standstill of the past in the Miss Peregrine's loop. Of course, the fantasy element of the peculiarities of the children, like Enoch's way of bringing the dead back to life for a matter of minutes, or Horace's premonition of the future. Since the past they are living in is set in the time of the Nazi Regime, there are some sort of military references along the way, but still minimal. What is amazing is the peculiar language and the antagonists of the story, the wights and the hollows. Ransom was able to make these horrifying creatures that could possibly haunt you endlessly in your dreams if you think about them too much. And then there are the wights. All too cunning and mischievous, I hate them. Style-wise, Ransom's way of writing isn't at all shocking and is easy on the eyes. You won't exactly need to burn a hundred brain cells to understand. It is comprehensible enough for any young reader or teenager out there! Of course, the terminologies may throw you off sometimes, but there aren't a lot so, you'll be fine. What's amazing is that Ransom was able to embrace the British slang quite well and use it to further make the people of Cairnholm, realistic to the readers. Miss Peregrine's Home For Peculiar Children is a spice of eccentric you need on your bookshelves.show more

I could not put this book down, it was exceptionally good! Both the author and the concept of a book based on creepy photographs is new to me, and I can't wait to read more in this genre. I must say, the book does get quite creepy at times, and if you're sensitive like me, you might want to read it during daytime ;) I've already purchased the sequel but am a bit chicken to start reading it, though I absolutely must know what happens next!show more

Miss Peregrine̢۪s home for peculiar children tells the story of Jacob, a teenager who has grew up listening to his grandfather stories of a mystical island home to children with special powers, who are known as peculiar. All these stories had been exactly that to Jacob until one fateful day when his grandfather is killed by a mysterious creature. This day triggers Jacob to go on a trip to the island of of Wales, an island that holds his grandfathers past and may hold Jacobs future. When beginning this book i was excited as i had read and watched so many reviews that raved how great it was and how they cannot wait for the sequel, well i do not share that opinion. For all the hype it received, it left me stunned as the story was average at best. it didn̢۪t draw me in nor did it keep me hooked like a great story does. I found the storyline mostly uneventful, the ending didn̢۪t have the wow that i expected it was all rather plain and weird to say the least. This book was nothing of what i expected and is certainly not one i would recommend, I will not be continuing the series as it holds no interest for me and i do feel let down by it as i think it was way over hyped. I hope this review has helped you, can you please rate it positively if you liked it as it really means a lot to me, Many Thanks for reading:)show more