Diacritical Fantasy

Ransom Rigg’s Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children is, for lack of a more appropriate term, peculiar. His debut novel is a dark fantasy, a genre I was hitherto unfamiliar with. Never have I read about such an interesting cast of characters, from an invisible Millard to a levitating Olive to the “fire-ball” Emma, and so on. And what is really interesting about these characters are the real, undoctored photographs interspersed throughout the narrative ( a collection of photos that Riggs purchased at flea marts and from collectors).

The odd nature of the characters is certainly a prominent aspect of the story, but underneath their salient physical traits lurks a morbid past, specifically one day in history: September 3rd, 1940, a day when this island off Wales would be forever changed, a day when tragedy literally hit it via a raid by 650 German aircraft.

At the heart of this story is Abraham Portman, a WWII refugee and Jacob, Abraham’s grandson. Abe dies early on in the story but not before leaving his grandson with important clues, compelling Jacob to take a flight to this island where his grandfather grew up and to find—you guessed it—Miss Peregrine’s peculiar home, a place where children sought refuge and were sent by their parents during the war.

What Jacob discovers there is shocking, memorable, morbid, intriguing, and strange all at once. Coupled with the vintage images throughout the book, the narrative chills you to the bone. There is such depth and complexity to these characters’ lives and an urgency within the plot that speaks to the cruelty of humanity and the isolation and entrapment that comes with war.

An unforgettable read.