Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children * The Graphic Novel *

Author:  Ransom Riggs
Illustrator:  Cassandra Jean
Published:  2013

Do you remember those shows in the 70s that ended with:  "To be continued...?"  That was how this book ended, so it left me pretty confused.  I went out and bought the 2nd book, but it isn't a graphic novel, it's going to take me a bit longer to read, so I probably won't get to it until this summer. (Or at least I'll get to it after I finish the class I'm taking!)

I bought the 2nd book though because my son had finished the first book before I even had a chance to look at it and then wanted the 2nd book.  This is definitely a book that middle school boys and girls will like.  It is VERY strange.

I'll explain what I understand so far.

The book is a graphic novel and it switches from black and white to color throughout the book.  The book also switches back and forth between the present and 1940.  Mostly, the colors are black and white in the present and go to color in the past.  The best parts are the photographs from the 40s.  You have to really look at the pictures and you'll notice that there is something weird there.  You can't help but go back and look at them.  On Rason Riggs's blog he says that he found these photographs. It seems that his family collected some and then he found boxes of these strange photos at a flea market.  That is the only explanation I can find about them.

The story is about a boy, Jacob, who discovers that his grandfather has been killed by a monster.  The grandfather had always talked about the monsters, but since he fought in WWII, I think everyone thought he was referring to Nazis.  He wasn't.

The grandfather had a special gift.  He could see these monsters.  As a child, because he had this gift, he was peculiar, he was sent to Miss Peregrine's home.  All of the children and Miss Peregrine are peculiar, but in different ways.  You can see the children in the photos.

 After the grandfather dies, Jacob goes to the home where his grandfather grew up and befriends Miss Peregrine and the peculiar children.  Miss Peregrine has trapped all of them on September 3, 1940 so that they do not die because on that day the home had been bombed and all of the children would have died.

They have also trapped themselves there to protect themselves from the monsters.  The monsters had once been peculiar too, but they were interested in immortality.  The monsters are hungry for the flesh of peculiars and for the power of Miss Peregrine to control time.

The children's home is destroyed, Miss Peregrine is injured, and all of them are now searching for a new place to go.

The story is interesting, but really the pictures are what I wanted to keep looking at while I read.  I will probably get the novel.  I'm hoping there are more photographs because when I search the web, I see many that are not included in the graphic novel.

Read about Ranson Riggs's creepy photos
Check this book out from the library.