Historical Fiction = A Fantastic Story

I think overall Sara Gruen did an excellent job with this novel and making it a representation of historical happenings. Before this novel, my knowledge of the circus was only as deep as a child’s understanding. I knew they had clowns, cotton candy, and horses, but that was basically it. I knew nothing about the behind the scenes action and all that goes into the life of a circus worker. Gruen opened my eyes and struck a chord of interest that makes me want to continue developing my knowledge on the Depression-era circus and all that revolves within it.

I think this novel did a very good job of showing the darker side of the circus. To an outsider the circus seems to be a joyous thing, filled with laughter and lighthearted entertainment. However, Gruen envelopes the reader and shows them things that they would not normally expect to accompany such a seemingly happy show. She shows them the dark side – the prostitution, the drinking, the violence, and the power struggle. It may seem like all these things are implanted in the book for pure entertainment value but as we discussed in class Gruen did her homework and thoroughly researched the circus, and all its parts, good or bad, and then presented them here in this novel.

This book and its time period feels like it happened a hundred years ago, when in fact the Depression was not all that long ago. Eventually our economy rose out of it but currently, today with our economic troubles we may be facing another one. It is not a far fetch to imagine our society being put into another depression-like scenario. If this did happen I might be tempted to run away with the circus. Sure, there are plenty of hardships to endure when working for the circus but in the end it would make for a fantastic story.