Ransom Riggs
Author of Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children
About the Author
Ransom Riggs is a writer and filmmaker. He was born in Marland in 1980 and attended the Pine View School for the Gifted in Florida. He studied English literature at Kenyon College and studied film at the University of Southern California. His work on short films for the Internet and blogging for show more Mental Floss magazine got him a job writing The Sherlock Holmes Handbook which was released as a tie-in to the 2009 Sherlock Holmes film. Riggs had collected curious vernacular photographs and approached his publisher, Quirk Books, about using some of them in a picture book. On the suggestion of an editor, Riggs used the photographs as a guide from which to put together a narrative. The resulting book was Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children which made The New York Times Best Seller list. One of his other books inspired by old photographs entitled Taking Pictures was published in 2012. Hollow City, the sequel to Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children, also made The New York Times Best Seller List. (Bowker Author Biography) show less
Series
Works by Ransom Riggs
Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children | Hollow City | Library of Souls (2015) 462 copies, 3 reviews
The Sherlock Holmes Handbook: The Methods and Mysteries of the World's Greatest Detective (2009) 352 copies, 8 reviews
Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children | Hollow City | Library of Souls | Tales of the Peculiar (2016) 23 copies
Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children | Hollow City | Library of Souls | A Map of Days | The Conference of the Birds (2020) 4 copies
A Map of Days (Preview) 1 copy
Strange Geographies 1 copy
Associated Works
Tagged
Common Knowledge
- Canonical name
- Riggs, Ransom
- Birthdate
- 1979-02-03
- Gender
- male
- Education
- Kenyon College (BA ∙ English ∙ 2001)
University of Southern California (MFA ∙ film ∙ 2006)
Pine View School for the Gifted - Occupations
- young adult writer
filmmaker
blogger - Organizations
- MentalFloss.com
- Agent
- Kate Schafer Testerman (KT Literary)
- Relationships
- Mafi, Tahereh (spouse)
- Short biography
- Ransom Riggs (born February 3, 1979) is an American writer and filmmaker best known for the book Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children
Riggs was born in Maryland in 1979 on a 200-year-old farm, and grew up in Florida, where he attended Pine View School for the Gifted. He studied English literature at Kenyon College, where he was a good friend of John Green. He later studied film at the University of Southern California.
His work on short films for the Internet and blogging for Mental Floss got him a job writing The Sherlock Holmes Handbook which was released as a tie-in to the 2009 Sherlock Holmes film.
Riggs had collected curious vernacular photographs and approached his publisher, Quirk Books, about using some of them in a picture book. On the suggestion of an editor, Riggs used the photographs as a guide from which to put together a narrative. The resulting book was Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children, which made The New York Times Best Seller list, and was adapted into the 2016 film of the same name.
Another book inspired by old photographs, Talking Pictures, was published by HarperCollins in October 2012.
The second novel in the Miss Peregrine series, Hollow City, was released in January 2014, with the third installment, Library of Souls, following in September 2015. A spin-off book of short stories, Tales of the Peculiar, was released in September 2016. The fourth novel in the series, A Map of Days, was released in October 2018. The fifth novel in the series, The Conference of the Birds, was released in January 2020.
Riggs married author Tahereh Mafi in 2013. They lived in Santa Monica, California and later moved to Irvine, California. Their first child, a daughter, Layla (means "night" in arabic), was born on May, 30, 2017. - Nationality
- USA
- Birthplace
- Maryland, USA
- Places of residence
- Irvine, California, USA
Los Angeles, California, USA - Associated Place (for map)
- California, USA
Members
Reviews
Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children (Miss Peregrine's Peculiar Children, #1) by Ransom Riggs
Jacob's grandfather tells him stories. Fantastic stories, of children who can float, or are invisible, or have bees living inside of their bodies. Scary stories, of monsters who prey on those who are different. Stories of how at a very young age he ran from those monsters, coming to America to be safe.
When he was very young, Jacob believed. His grandfather had pictures of those magical children, after all, so why shouldn't he believe? When he was older, Jacob thought he'd discovered the show more real story. That his Jewish grandfather came to America to escape the Nazis. All those peculiar children, they were different, not with bees inside and super-strength, but with Judaism or other things his young mind doesn't know. And the monsters? Well, there's nothing more monstrous than what the Nazis did.
The thing is, all his grandfather's stories are true. There are monstrous men and monsters in this world, and there are people who are different and also children who are very peculiar indeed. show less
When he was very young, Jacob believed. His grandfather had pictures of those magical children, after all, so why shouldn't he believe? When he was older, Jacob thought he'd discovered the show more real story. That his Jewish grandfather came to America to escape the Nazis. All those peculiar children, they were different, not with bees inside and super-strength, but with Judaism or other things his young mind doesn't know. And the monsters? Well, there's nothing more monstrous than what the Nazis did.
The thing is, all his grandfather's stories are true. There are monstrous men and monsters in this world, and there are people who are different and also children who are very peculiar indeed. show less
As readers get to know the peculiar children a bit more in this book, it becomes more and more apparent that there's not much to distinguish one from another besides their peculiar abilities. About a quarter of the way into the book, the author himself mixes up two characters (Horace = top hat, Hugh = bees, not the other way around) showing that perhaps there's not much difference to him, either. Moreover, none of the editors caught this mistake. If neither the author nor the editors care, show more why should I?
Against all odds, I continued reading this novel, and I actually ended up finishing it, mostly because it was a really quick read, but of course there were more irritations to come, mostly gnat-sized, but some that really bugged me. Among the gnat-sized was a misquoting of Shakespeare---it's "once more unto the breach," not "into." Just a minor irritation, although it does come from a major, very famous, oft-quoted speech. It was even in a movie.
More mosquito-sized are the two times that men made lewd comments/advances towards Emma. The second time really annoyed me because rather than standing up for their friend after the comment, "All of a sudden everyone was looking off at the paintings on the walls or adjusting their collars," instead of telling the perv off or even giving him a dirty look. Dude didn't have a gun or anything. He was just a dude. These are eighty-year-old children who face down death on a regular basis, and they can't call out sexual harassment when it happens to their friend? What cowards---and completely out-of-character cowards. If the author doesn't see anything wrong with this---which it seems like he doesn't---then I'm angry with him, too. This mistreating of a female character as though she's just an object is bad enough, but it doesn't even move the plot or character development forward, so it really just seems gratuitous, which makes it that much uglier.
The big, hairy tarantula of this book is the time travel. According to the rules of the world, someone from an older period of time going into a future period of time will age forward to their chronological age in the later time. So why doesn't anyone have concerns about going forward in time? And even more annoying: why on earth are these children still child-like? They're 80+ years old. Sure, they've not matured physically, but wouldn't they mature emotionally or intellectually? They've had decades to read, study, learn, expand their minds, yet they're still completely, totally children, and they're fine letting the ymbrynes continue to treat them like children. I just don't buy it. It makes me a lot more sympathetic to the wights.
But the biggest, creepiest bug of all (probably a tarantula hawk, a wasp that I know about thanks to my friend's eight-year-old) is not knowing why I read this book in the first place. After I finished the first in the series, I didn't feel compelled to read the second, but then I saw it while my kids and I were browsing the YA section at the library and here we all are. So, I'd like to be all dramatic and proclaim that I refuse to read any more books in this series and then flounce out of the room swinging my parasol, but chances are I'll end up reading the third book and then be angry with the authors, the characters, and myself all over again. show less
Against all odds, I continued reading this novel, and I actually ended up finishing it, mostly because it was a really quick read, but of course there were more irritations to come, mostly gnat-sized, but some that really bugged me. Among the gnat-sized was a misquoting of Shakespeare---it's "once more unto the breach," not "into." Just a minor irritation, although it does come from a major, very famous, oft-quoted speech. It was even in a movie.
More mosquito-sized are the two times that men made lewd comments/advances towards Emma. The second time really annoyed me because rather than standing up for their friend after the comment, "All of a sudden everyone was looking off at the paintings on the walls or adjusting their collars," instead of telling the perv off or even giving him a dirty look. Dude didn't have a gun or anything. He was just a dude. These are eighty-year-old children who face down death on a regular basis, and they can't call out sexual harassment when it happens to their friend? What cowards---and completely out-of-character cowards. If the author doesn't see anything wrong with this---which it seems like he doesn't---then I'm angry with him, too. This mistreating of a female character as though she's just an object is bad enough, but it doesn't even move the plot or character development forward, so it really just seems gratuitous, which makes it that much uglier.
The big, hairy tarantula of this book is the time travel. According to the rules of the world, someone from an older period of time going into a future period of time will age forward to their chronological age in the later time. So why doesn't anyone have concerns about going forward in time? And even more annoying: why on earth are these children still child-like? They're 80+ years old. Sure, they've not matured physically, but wouldn't they mature emotionally or intellectually? They've had decades to read, study, learn, expand their minds, yet they're still completely, totally children, and they're fine letting the ymbrynes continue to treat them like children. I just don't buy it. It makes me a lot more sympathetic to the wights.
But the biggest, creepiest bug of all (probably a tarantula hawk, a wasp that I know about thanks to my friend's eight-year-old) is not knowing why I read this book in the first place. After I finished the first in the series, I didn't feel compelled to read the second, but then I saw it while my kids and I were browsing the YA section at the library and here we all are. So, I'd like to be all dramatic and proclaim that I refuse to read any more books in this series and then flounce out of the room swinging my parasol, but chances are I'll end up reading the third book and then be angry with the authors, the characters, and myself all over again. show less
So,the third installment of Ransom Rigg's trilogy of Miss Peregrine and her Peculiar Children was hands-down the best. Our favourite, wonderful, peculiar children encounter more peculiars, more threats, all leading to a spectacular closure. I won't say much (ever fearful that I will spoil half of the plot...) but the book is an utter roller-coaster. Literally. The action is almost frantic, and perhaps, this is one of the (extremely few) problems of the plot. The new characters introduced are show more very interesting -peculiar or not- and the new set of photos is exquisite. Also, Miss Peregrine is a real kick-ass heroine in this one (and I really hate this expression, but it is the only suitable for her).
I had only one small nitpicking about the end.It felt too lovey-dovey, too ''they lived happily ever - after, but that is just my taste. No need to pay it attention;)
Ransom Riggs has created a fabulous universe, bleak and hopeful and wonderful in all its peculiarity. I think we are looking at a future classic in the history of the Fantasy and Gothic genre.I mightily enjoyed every page of it.
P.S. I will start the ''Tales of the Peculiars'' soon, because I don't want to abandon the world of the loops and ymbrynes just yet.
P.S. 2 Can we have a book about Sharon's adventures, please? show less
I had only one small nitpicking about the end.
Ransom Riggs has created a fabulous universe, bleak and hopeful and wonderful in all its peculiarity. I think we are looking at a future classic in the history of the Fantasy and Gothic genre.I mightily enjoyed every page of it.
P.S. I will start the ''Tales of the Peculiars'' soon, because I don't want to abandon the world of the loops and ymbrynes just yet.
P.S. 2 Can we have a book about Sharon's adventures, please? show less
Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children (Miss Peregrine's Peculiar Children Book 1) by Ransom Riggs
4.5 out of 5 stars
I confess I got this book solely on account of its cover. The creepy, black and white photograph of a (very children-of-the-corn looking) girl, standing stock still, staring directly at the camera, as if contemplating how best to eat your soul stood out like a corpse at a holiday party. And the title? How could I resist? I plucked the book from the shelves and brought it home. Then (as you already know, if you read my post from a few days ago), I got distracted (things were show more shiny), and the book languished on my shelf. Then low and behold, the book will soon be a movie--directed by Tim Burton no less--and I didn't even want to look at the previews without reading the book first.
Miss Peregrine's is a young adult novel, but one that transcends the genre and is enjoyable even for those of us who have left high school far in the past. The best books in the genre (think Harry Potter) feature young adult leading characters and high school age problems, but also rise above the mundane to speak to the problems of a bigger adult world. The less enjoyable books in the genre (sparkly vampires *cough*) leave you wondering if you might have enjoyed the book when you were thirteen, but fairly confident you were never that insipid (though, obviously, all teenagers are insipid by nature).
Miss Peregrine's is one of the better books in the genre. Following the death of his grandfather, sixteen year old Jacob finds out that the fairy stories his grandfather told him as a child--about a magical island inhabited by children with paranormal abilities--may not have been just stories after all. Jacob sets off to learn the truth about the island with its mysterious house of peculiar children, all watched over by a bird who smokes a pipe.
The story is accompanied by photographs throughout the book, all black and white, with that particular creepy vintage vibe you get if you google search "scary Easter bunny". The pictures are all quite striking, and serve to add to the atmosphere of the book. When you learn that all these photos are actual vintage photographs (most unaltered), collected by the author, it adds to the creepy vibe (what were those people doing?) rather than detracts from it. The book is largely an adventure story suffused with all the creepy atmosphere an ancient, fog-shrouded island off the coast of Wales can deliver. There are a few scary/creepy/violent moments, but these are generally around the level of the dementors in the Harry Potter novels (as, after all, this is still a YA novel, creepy atmosphere not withstanding).
In all, this is a great read, and a fine example of a YA novel not only accessible for adults, but enjoyable as well. The characters are interesting and generally well done, and the backdrops, first of Florida, and then the Island are fully realized and contribute well to the tone of the book. I enjoyed my time with Miss Peregrine's and can't wait to read the second book in the series.
I do, however, reserve judgement on the movie version.
Check out more reviews by checking out my blog!
www.theirregularreaderblog.wordpress.com show less
I confess I got this book solely on account of its cover. The creepy, black and white photograph of a (very children-of-the-corn looking) girl, standing stock still, staring directly at the camera, as if contemplating how best to eat your soul stood out like a corpse at a holiday party. And the title? How could I resist? I plucked the book from the shelves and brought it home. Then (as you already know, if you read my post from a few days ago), I got distracted (things were show more shiny), and the book languished on my shelf. Then low and behold, the book will soon be a movie--directed by Tim Burton no less--and I didn't even want to look at the previews without reading the book first.
Miss Peregrine's is a young adult novel, but one that transcends the genre and is enjoyable even for those of us who have left high school far in the past. The best books in the genre (think Harry Potter) feature young adult leading characters and high school age problems, but also rise above the mundane to speak to the problems of a bigger adult world. The less enjoyable books in the genre (sparkly vampires *cough*) leave you wondering if you might have enjoyed the book when you were thirteen, but fairly confident you were never that insipid (though, obviously, all teenagers are insipid by nature).
Miss Peregrine's is one of the better books in the genre. Following the death of his grandfather, sixteen year old Jacob finds out that the fairy stories his grandfather told him as a child--about a magical island inhabited by children with paranormal abilities--may not have been just stories after all. Jacob sets off to learn the truth about the island with its mysterious house of peculiar children, all watched over by a bird who smokes a pipe.
The story is accompanied by photographs throughout the book, all black and white, with that particular creepy vintage vibe you get if you google search "scary Easter bunny". The pictures are all quite striking, and serve to add to the atmosphere of the book. When you learn that all these photos are actual vintage photographs (most unaltered), collected by the author, it adds to the creepy vibe (what were those people doing?) rather than detracts from it. The book is largely an adventure story suffused with all the creepy atmosphere an ancient, fog-shrouded island off the coast of Wales can deliver. There are a few scary/creepy/violent moments, but these are generally around the level of the dementors in the Harry Potter novels (as, after all, this is still a YA novel, creepy atmosphere not withstanding).
In all, this is a great read, and a fine example of a YA novel not only accessible for adults, but enjoyable as well. The characters are interesting and generally well done, and the backdrops, first of Florida, and then the Island are fully realized and contribute well to the tone of the book. I enjoyed my time with Miss Peregrine's and can't wait to read the second book in the series.
I do, however, reserve judgement on the movie version.
Check out more reviews by checking out my blog!
www.theirregularreaderblog.wordpress.com show less
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Statistics
- Works
- 28
- Also by
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- Popularity
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- Rating
- 3.8
- Reviews
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