1866. In a coastal village in southern England, Nell picks violets for a living. Set apart by her community because of the birthmarks that speckle her skin, Nell’s world is her beloved brother and devotion to the sea.

But when Jasper Jupiter’s Circus of Wonders arrives in the village, Nell is kidnapped. Her father has sold her, promising Jasper Jupiter his very own leopard girl. It is the greatest betrayal of Nell's life, but as her fame grows, and she finds friendship with the other performers and Jasper’s gentle brother Toby, she begins to wonder if joining the show is the best thing that has ever happened to her.

In London, newspapers describe Nell as the eighth wonder of the world. Figurines are cast in her image, and crowds rush to watch her soar through the air. But who gets to tell Nell’s story? What happens when her fame threatens to eclipse that of the showman who bought her? And as she falls in love with Toby, can he detach himself from his past and the terrible secret that binds him to his brother?

Moving from the pleasure gardens of Victorian London to the battle-scarred plains of the Crimea, Circus of Wonders is an astonishing story about power and ownership, fame and the threat of invisibility.

In the cool, pre-dawn hours on a June night in 1918, a train engineer closed his cab window as he chugged toward Hammond, Indiana. He drifted to sleep, and his train bore down on the idle Hagenbeck-Wallace Circus Train. Soon after, the sleeping engineer's locomotive plowed into the circus train. In the subsequent wreckage and blaze, more than two hundred circus performers were injured and eighty-six were killed, most of whom were interred in a mass grave in the Showmen's Rest section of Chicago's Woodlawn Cemetery. Join local historian Richard Lytle as he recounts, in the fullest retelling to date, the details of this tragedy and its role in the overall evolution and demise of a unique entertainment industry.

Almost 7,000 fans eagerly packed into the Ringling Brothers big top on July 6, 1944. With a single careless act, an afternoon at the "Greatest Show on Earth" quickly became one of terror and tragedy as the paraffin-coated circus tent caught fire. Panicked crowds rushed for the few exits, but in minutes, the tent collapsed on those still struggling to escape below. A total of 168 lives were lost, many of them children, with many more injured and forever scarred by the events. Hartford and the surrounding communities reeled in the aftermath as investigators searched for the source of the fire and the responsible parties. Through firsthand accounts, interviews with survivors and a gripping collection of vintage photographs, author Michael Skidgell attempts to make sense of one of Hartford's worst tragedies.

During the last 300 years circus clowns have emerged as powerful cultural icons. This is the first semiotic analysis of the range of make-up and costumes through which the clowns' performing identities have been established and go on developing. It also examines what Bouissac terms 'micronarratives' - narrative meanings that clowns generate through their acts, dialogues and gestures. Putting a repertory of clown performances under the semiotic microscope leads to the conclusion that the performances are all interconnected and come from what might be termed a 'mythical matrix'. These micronarratives replicate in context-sensitive forms a master narrative whose general theme refers to the emergence of cultures and constraints that they place upon instinctual behaviour. From this vantage point, each performance can be considered as a ritual which re-enacts the primitive violence inherent in all cultures and the temporary resolutions which must be negotiated as the outcome. Why do these acts of transgression and re-integration then trigger laughter and wonder? What kind of mirror does this put up to society? In a masterful semiotic analysis, Bouissac delves into decades of research to answer these questions.

Step right up for the most captivating read of the year . . . Filled with the sights and sounds of Victorian England, Circus of Wonders is the instant Sunday Times bestseller from Elizabeth Macneal, author of The Doll Factory. 'Intensely satisfying' - Stacey Halls, author of The Familiars England, 1866. When Jasper Jupiter's Circus of Wonders arrives in a coastal village, Nell soon catches the showman's eye. Shunned by her community because of the birthmarks speckling her skin, to Jasper she is a prize - she could be his very own leopard girl. But how to make her his? Soon Nell finds herself the star of Jasper's show. Suddenly she is famous. Crowds rush to watch her soar through the air. Figurines are cast in her image. Even Queen Victoria wants to see her perform. But is Nell free to live and love as she chooses? And when her fame begins to eclipse Jasper's own, could she be in danger? After all, the higher you fly, the steeper the fall . . . 'Filled with character and life' - The Times 'Utterly beguiling' - Daily Mail 'Brilliantly involving' - Daily Express 'Exhilarating' - Sunday Times, Books of the Year 'An immersive gem' - Red 'Joyous, frightening, heartbreaking' - Independent 'Deliciously vivid' - Woman & Home

In Truevine, Virginia, in 1899 everyone the Muse brothers knew was either a former slave, or a child or grandchild of slaves.

George and Willie Muse were just six and nine years old, but they worked the fields from dawn to dark. Until a white man offered them candy and stole them away to become circus freaks. For the next twenty-eight years, their distraught mother struggled to get them back. But were they really kidnapped? And how did their mother, a barely literate black woman in the segregated South, manage to bring them home? And why, after coming home, would they want to go back to the circus?

In Truevine, bestselling author Beth Macy reveals for the first time what really happened to the Muse brothers. It is an unforgettable story of cruelty and exploitation, but also of loyalty, determination and love.

Contemporary Clowning as Social Performance in Colombia brings to light the emergence of new kinds of clowning in everyday life in Colombia, focusing particularly on the pervasive presence of clowns in the urban landscape of Bogota. In doing so it brings a fresh and updated perspective on what clowning is as well as what it does in the 21st century. Featuring descriptions of more than 24 distinct clown performers, Barnaby King provides an engaging and lively account of the performative moment in which clowning transpires, analyzing the techniques and processes at work in producing what is commonly named as "clowning". In contrast with their North American and European counterparts, clowns in Latin America are seen every day in public settings, are popular cultural figures and sometimes claim to exercise real political influence. Drawing on five years of co-performative ethnography, the book argues that clown artists have thrived by adapting their craft to changing social and economic conditions, in some cases by allying themselves with authority and power, and in others by generating spaces for creativity and resistance in adverse circumstances. By applying performance theory to clowning in a specific cultural context this is the first work to propose an appropriate scholarly response to the diversity and ingenuity of clowning beyond Europe and North America.

It was during the Victorian era that the circus, whose origins lay in the fairground world, emerged as a commercialized entertainment that we would recognize today. This development was intricately tied to a widespread demand for circus acts by a broad range of classes. In The Circus and Victorian Society, Brenda Assael examines this interest in the circus as an artistic form within the context of a vibrant, and sometimes not so respectable, consumer market. In doing so, she provides not only the first scholarly history of the Victorian circus but also a new view of nineteenth-century popular culture, which has usually been seen as the preserve only of the working class.

The Victorian circus ring was a showcase for equestrian battle scenes, Chinese jugglers, clowns, female acrobats, and child performers. In addition to their wondrous qualities, unabashed displays of physical power, and sometimes subversive humor, however, Assael reveals how such acts were also rendered as grotesque, lewd, or dangerous.

The consuming public's desire to see the very kinds of displays that reformers wished to regulate put the circus establishment in a difficult position. Wishing to create a respectable reputation for itself while also functioning as a profitable business, the industry was engaged in a struggle that required the appeasement of both the regulator and the consumer. This conflict informs us not only of the complicated role that the circus played in Victorian society but also provides a unique view into a collective psyche fraught by contradiction and anxiety.

Explore the lives of over 150 of the top sideshow performers of by-gone days, as well as the history of the circus and sideshow. Take a look behind the scenes at the banner artists, gaff artists, photographers, and showmen who made the freak show as American as apple pie. The performers were born different-very different-yet they managed to create a life for themselves, find gainful employment, travel the world, marry, and have children. Some even managed to find true happiness. You will meet some very unique souls in extraordinary bodies. Look beyond their physical differences and delve into their interesting stories. See for yourself why being born different is not so bad, with the right attitude and a little luck!

Elephants, lions, tigers and leopards evoke fascination and awe, fear and excitement. This book analyzes trained acts in twentieth-century live circus and cinema, reveals how humans anthropomorphize animals with their emotions, and interrogates the notion that animals embody a phenomenology of emotions and feelings in culture.

The Sunday Times bestseller from the bestselling author of The Doll Factory, Elizabeth Macneal. Set in a spectacular circus in the pleasure gardens of Victorian London, Circus of Wonders is an addictive novel about power, fame, and a love that is threatened by a terrible secret. 'Glitters and gleams . . . utterly beguiling' - Daily Mail 1866. In a coastal village in southern England, Nell lives set apart by her community because of the birthmarks that speckle her skin. But when Jasper Jupiter's Circus of Wonders arrives in the village, Nell is kidnapped. Her father has sold her, promising Jasper Jupiter his very own leopard girl. It is the greatest betrayal of Nell's life, but as her fame grows, and she finds friendship with the other performers and Jasper's gentle brother Toby, she begins to wonder if joining the show is the best thing that has ever happened to her. In London, newspapers describe Nell as the eighth wonder of the world. Figurines are cast in her image, and crowds rush to watch her soar through the air. But what happens when her fame eclipses Jasper's own? And as she falls in love with Toby, can he detach himself from his past and the terrible secret that binds him to his brother?