This #1 New York Times Bestseller by Ransom Riggs is absolutely enchanting. The back-cover synopsis didn’t prepare me for the lovely story that unfolds during the first half of this novel. Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children is the first installment of a 7-book series.
For years, teenage Jacob Portman has grown up listening to his paternal grandfather tell stories about monsters and “peculiar” children with special powers he met after escaping Poland during WWII. Jacob has never taken these stories seriously, suspecting his grandfather simply made them up for entertainment, and because he was also suffering from dementia.
When Grandpa Portman dies mysteriously in the marsh near his Florida home, Jacob realizes his grandfather may have been telling the truth about monsters this entire time. Grandpa Portman’s last words to Jacob before he died were “find the bird in the loop on the other side of the old man’s grave, September 3, 1940.” Jacob and his father then travel to a small, remote island off the coast of Wales under the guise of helping Jacob recover from the trauma of his grandfather’s death. However, Jacob’s real motive for visiting the island is to locate “the bird” and the peculiar children who might provide more insight into his grandfather’s mysterious past.
Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children is a wonderful and fun book for both young adults and grown-ups. The book is extremely compelling and magical—you can’t help but be seduced by the story and by Grandpa Portman’s history. There are lots of fun riddles in this book, too—you won’t get bored. The photos of the peculiar children in this book also enhance the story, and Riggs explains in an author’s interview at the end that all the photos are authentic and borrowed from collectors who had found these old photos at places like yard sales and antique stores.
I did lose interest toward the end of this novel when Jacob and his friends escape and battle the bad guys, but only because I’m not too crazy about action scenes in books.
This novel was also made into a movie starring Eva Green as Miss Peregrine and Asa Butterfield as Jacob. It was decent, and I recommend watching it at least one time.
Did you read Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children, and if so, what did you think?
Last Updated on November 11, 2025 by Sarah Ann
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