The Night Circus Review
Today I’m writing about The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern and since it’s still close to Valentine’s Day I think the timing is appropriate. This story is fantastic, from the writing to the plot and characters. I’ve never before thought that running off to join the circus might be a good life choice, but after reading this book I kind of wanted to.
This book takes place over a number of years, and helpfully has a date of at least month and year at the beginning of each chapter. Without this, it would be quite hard to follow. And most of the negative reviews I’ve seen for this book… the readers didn’t seem to notice or be able these helpful guideposts. The story takes place from 1873 to 1903, though the exact dates don’t matter specifically, it’s more of watching characters grow and change (or not) over time. This is meant to take place in the real world, with just minor (at least at first) magics that are more or less behind the scenes. A lot takes place in London, but as the circus travels it goes all over and some significant things take place in New York state and Paris as well.
The main characters are Celia Bowen (magician) and her father Hector, along with Marco (magician) and his teacher/adopted parent Alexander. The parental figures have been staging contests pitting their students against each other for… a long time. Centuries? Millennia? Not really sure. But Celia is naturally talented at magic and Hector wants to start another contest. So Alexander agrees and finds Marco in an orphanage, and teaches him through books the way magic works. In addition to these, Chanderesh is the one who initially funds and begins the Night Circus which is the venue for the contest. He and a few others plan the shows and theme and colors for the circus, which is to be everything mysterious and special. The Circus almost becomes its own character in this, with all the tents in black and white with the little signs outside. There are also several interesting characters in the circus, including Widget and Poppet (twins born as the circus opens on the first night) and Tsukiko the contortionist. Finally Friedrick Thiessen and Bailey are two of the most important of the Revuers, or circus followers.
The story begins with the making of the pact for the contest, and briefly follows the growing exploits of Celia and Marco, mixed in with Chanderesh and others working to build the circus from the ground up. As the Night Circus prepares to open, Celia becomes the illusionist whose illusions are much more than slight of hand. Marco becomes the right hand man to Chanderesh, helping to get the circus off the ground but not traveling with it. To keep an eye on things he sends his girlfriend to be the Tarot card reader for the circus. The opening of the circus really sets things in motion. Celia doesn’t know who she’s competing against, but Marco has figured out who Celia is. Neither is told how the contest is to be won, so they just go on a bit at a time. They add new tents that play off each other in fun and mysterious ways. Eventually Celia figures it out with Marco and they know each other so well through the magic of the circus that they fall in love. Which I guess isn’t surprising since they have spent all their lives preparing to face each other and through using the magic of the circus know each other intimately on an intellectual level. As a note, no one associated with the circus ages at all once the opening night ceremonies conclude except the babies born just as it is all happening. This goes on for a decade or more, and the circus has a huge following, led by Herr Thiessen. Bailey loves the circus and is trying to decide whether to go to college or be a farmer when Poppet (who is now a teen, not the baby from opening circus night) invites him to run away with them. But before he can join them, the circus leaves early and the Revuers help him to find out where the circus has gone and catch up with it. He arrives in the aftermath of the final showdown (which is super cool, too bad he missed it) of the contest to help the circus carry on without help from its founders.
I love how the layers of the contest, the very personal love story, and the workings of the circus and its founders are all put together. The entire thing is mysterious-you’re never quite sure if what you’re reading is real or some illusion. The characters feel quite real and the Circus is described so beautifully that I really want to go there for myself to explore. The story is very well contained and flows well off the pages, and the conclusion is quite final-you know there aren’t going to be more stories off of this. Though there are a few threads I would have loved to see developed more, especially how the circus carries on after the climax of the book. This excellent book pulls in aspects of historical fiction, romance, and fantasy to create a beautifully realized story. I really need to find more of her books.
This is a great book for adults and teens maybe 14 or 16 years old; it does have a little bit of sex, but not described in great enough detail for me to say adults only.
