Vampyre by Margaret Wild

I have read this book four times now.  Published in 2011 and on the Premiers Reading Challenge list for stage 3 it is the story of a Vampyre boy who “longs for light”.    The text is sparse and the illustrations are dark and moody.

However I am not sure I ‘get ‘ this story.  Many of my students have borrowed this book to read and they don’t seem to ‘get’ it either.  Margaret Wild has said that it is about the pressure put on children by families to become like them, and this I understand.  However, at the end the Vampyre boy goes into the light and survives.  While this is a happy ending (suggesting you can be your own person), Vampire lore generally has vampires going up in smoke in the light!  Even some of my students pointed this out!

So besides asking what everyone else thinks of this book, my question is how do you explain a book to a student that you don’t really ‘get’ either?