[LISTENED TO: Summer 2019] Circus Mirandus
I checked out this book exclusively because Bronson Pinchot was reading it. I will listen to just about anything that he reads. So the fact that this story sounded even vaguely interesting (and age appropriate–Pinchot does tend to read a lot more adult books) meant I grabbed it right away.
This book is about Micah, a young orphan who is living with his sickly grandfather. Taking care of Grandpa Ephraim is Ephraim’s sister Gertrudus. Aunt Gertrudus is the meanest, most-horrible person ever. She makes Micah drink bitter black tea, she makes him do all of the work in the house and she refuses to let him see his grandpa.
Micah loves his grandpa and he loves the stories that his grandpa tells. It’s these stories that Gertrudus is trying to keep Micah from.
As the book opens we see the letter that Ephraim has sent to Circus Mirandus:
To: The Lightbender
Carer of Circus MirandusI need to speak to you urgently. I hope you remember me even though its been many years since I was called to Circus Mirandus. Of course I have never forgotten you. My name is Ephraim Tuttle and we met during the war, when I was a boy.
You promised me a miracle.
I don’t know how I will get this message to you. I haven’t even heard a whisper about the circus since I was a much younger man. But you made me a promise and I have believed through all of these years that if I had need of you, you would come.
I need you now.
At that moment thousands of miles away in the tent of The Man Who Bwnds Light, a messenger woke up.
This messenger is a bird named Chintz (Pinchot does an amazing job with all voices, but the bird voices are spectacular). Chintzy has been The Man Who Bends Light’s messenger for years and she does not suffer fools. The Man Who Bends Light tells her he wasn’t expecting any messages, but she says she is never wrong and she senses one. She brings him the letter. When he reads it, he is shocked. He remembers Ephraim as the boy who saved the miracle that he offered.
Chintzy asks him if a child could actually save a miracle? The Man Who Bends Light says that no child ever had before. He wasn’t really sure what if he could still even do anything. He sends Chintzy back to Ephraim.
The author has fun at Chintzy’s expense on the flight back. Porter could open a door anywhere for her to go but since she didn’t ask nicely and even bit him on the shin, Porter made the other door open in a sewer. A rather used sewer.
Then we find out a bit about Ephraim’s childhood. His father was sent to war and fought on the front lines. His mother worked very hard for the war effort. So he had a lot of time on his hands. He also had better things to do than go to school. He also wrote long letters to his father. His father had only written one latter back in which he told Ephraim he loved him but also that he had saved many lives and that the work he was doing was very important. Ephraim wished his father would come home, but he also wished that his father would go on saving lives. It was a tough position to be in.
Most of the time he hung around the beach looking across the ocean. One time he decided he could walk to Europe and to his father. All that effort got him was a fish in his boot.
But back to Micah.
Micah does go to school, even though he is so distracted by his dying grandfather and his horrible aunt that he doesn’t really pay much attention. In fact, he has even forgotten to do his part of the project he is doing with Jenny Mendoza. Jenny is new and is the smartest girl in the school. Micah is intimidated by her. And hen she realizes that he hasn’t done his work (she has done a ton), she doesn’t get mad… she gets really disappointed. But when he explains what is happening with his grandfather, she decides that they can work together on his part of the project, too.
She tells her mother she is sleeping at a classmates’ house, (none of the girls actually like her and she goes to Micah’s house. But Micah is sleeping in the treehouse outside because his Aunt has kicked him out.
They work on the project together. But when Micah starts talking about his grandfather’s stories she starts to get more and more irritated. She knows magic isn’t real and he must know that too. Even when a filthy parrot comes to his grandpa’s window and, finding it locked, flies through the chimney (all the while talking) she still doesn’t believe it’s magic.
Then we learn that magic is, indeed, real.
Flashback to Ephraim. He was on the beach when he heard the circus coming to town. He so desperately to go but he didn’t have a ticket (or money). He did have a fish in his boot, though. And that was just enough to get in! And to get him a rather special ticket.
He noticed there were no adults as customers. It’s not that adults weren’t allowed to go they just weren’t invited.
Ephraim loved everything about it. The two things he loved best were the Man Who Bends Light and the Amazing Amazonian Bird Woman.
He developed a huge crush on the bird woman but he fell under the spell of The Man Who Bends Light. He could create any scene out a a child’s imagination and make it real. When he felt that Ephraim wanted his father to come home so badly, he offered the boy a miracle. But Ephraim had that conflict about his father’s good works. He decided to save the miracle until he really needed it. It was the first time The Man Who Bends Light was surprised by something.
And now he was surprised again. But could he actually help? It’s up to Micah (who gets to visit the Circus) with some assistance from Jenny (even if she doesn’t really believe what she’s seeing) to convince the Man Who Bends Light to consider his Ephraim’s request.
But the surprise is on Micah when he finds out what his grandfather’ request actually is.
This story was magical and funny. It was exciting and sweet. The story jumped back and forth in time, but it all came together very nicely. I enjoyed this book quite a lot.
Book two, The Bootlace Magician, is coming out in October (also read by Pinchot!). I can’t wait.
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