Not Barnum & Bailey
Magical & mysterious yet somehow believable, The Night Circus
The best fiction creates a world for you to explore, inhabited by people you care about. Sometimes the world feels just like the one we live in day after day. Sometimes it's more like a dream.
The world that Erin Morgenstern creates in The Night Circus is dreamy, verging on nightmarish at times. I'm OK with the "real" world, but would love to escape into one like this every once in a while.
If there's a weakness to this book, which I've been savoring for several days, it's that the characters aren't nearly as multi-dimensional as the environment they live in. I've had trouble keeping the names straight for those who stay in the background much of the time yet are critical to the story.
But that's OK. The circus itself is well worth the trip.
And also
Online game: not as magical, but interesting.
Actual chocolate mice, like in the book. Who knew?
