Dedicated to the channel island of Guernsey where he spent 15 years of exile , Hugoâ s depiction of Manâ s battle with the sea and the horrible creatures lurking beneath its depths spawned an unusual fad in Paris : Squids . Dedicated to the channel island of Guernsey where he spent 15 years of exile , Hugo 's depiction of Man 's battle with the sea and the horrible creatures lurking beneath its depths spawned an unusual fad in Paris : Squids .