A Peculiar Story

I just finished reading Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children by Ransom Riggs.  It was a fantasy-adventure novel that was like nothing else that I have read recently.  It tells the story of a teenage boy who lives with his wealthy family in Englewood, Florida (right up the road from us!).  But Jacob doesn't stay in Englewood for long.  His grandfather (with whom Jacob shared a special bond) passes away, and his mysterious death leads Jacob to travel to the deserted island in Great Britain where his grandfather spent most of his childhood.  I definitely wasn't expecting Jacob to find what he found on that island; it turns out to be just as magical of a place as his grandfather had always described.  The new friends he meets there help him to realize that he can be just as brave of a hero as his grandfather had been.  The book's ending leaves me expecting a sequel, or possibly a whole series, to follow, because Jacob's adventures were obviously just beginning.

Since the ending does leave the reader wondering about the possibilities of what could happen next, I think this book would lend itself well to a creative writing assignment in which students continue Jacob's adventures.  It is difficult not to contemplate where this story could go. 

The story is illustrated with some very interesting old black and white photographs, which the author reveals at the end are all real photographs he found from collectors.  Many of them would serve as excellent writing prompts as well.