The Circus

Starred review from May 15, 2017
Grades 9-12 *Starred Review* It's a romantic notion, as well-known as fairy tales and often instilled with the same spirit of enchantment, but running away to the circus doesn't provide Willow a magical escape from life's problems. On the surface, the calculated destruction of her father's fiancee's wedding dress and subsequent disappearance amount to nothing more than a rich girl's acts of teenage rebellion. However, Willow's first-person narrative exposes an array of deep-seated troubles propelling her from a posh life to a gritty existence on society's fringe. Unable to tolerate the prospect of acquiring the Handbag as her new, twenty-something mom, Willow runs away with a plan to track down her real mothera trapeze artist who returned to the circus when her daughter was three. Willow hitches her way to Hastings, a seaside town in England, where she believes her mother once worked, and ends up living on the streets. Still convinced that her future lies with the circus, she befriends a free-spirited homeless girl, Suz, who teaches her to swallow fire and walk a wire. Levez doesn't glamorize the girls' lifestyle, which leaves them hungry, filthy, and vulnerable. Yet as Willow begins performing, she truly comes alive. Some may find the ending too pat, but Willow's personal revelations make her compelling journey of reinvention soar.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2017, American Library Association.)

May 1, 2017

Gr 9 Up-Levez's latest follows 16-year-old Willow as she runs away (not for the first time) from her father and pregnant soon-to-be stepmother's wealth to the unstable world of the streets. Willow quickly meets Suz, a homeless, fire-eating street performer who first presents herself as an enemy-stealing Willow's remaining savings and disappearing in a crowded restaurant. But when they reunite, Suz grows into a friend, instructing Willow on the ins and outs of survival on the streets and how to perform and bringing Willow closer to her dream of being part of a circus troupe-just like the mother she's never met. Unfortunately, this story leans heavily upon the "misunderstood rich kid" trope without adding authenticity to the narrative. Though readers could forgive the protagonist for starting out with a healthy dose of unchecked privilege, they may not be able to overlook that she begins and ends the novel with relatively the same sheltered outlook. More troubling, even after almost 300 pages, Willow never seems to view Suz (and the truly tragic traumas she has suffered-mysteries that unfold over the course of the plot) as more than an exotic vehicle for bringing meaning to her own journey of (stunted) emotional growth and rebellion. Instances of rape, drug addiction, underage drinking, and mature language make this title more appropriate for older readers. VERDICT There are better books than Levez's to humanize the experiences described in this work.-Ann Santori, Cook Memorial Public Library, Libertyville, IL

Copyright 2017 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

May 1, 2017
Part-Romanian, "dark as a gypsy" Willow Stephens has been raised by nannies and posh boarding schools.Willow has everything except what she really wants: her millionaire father's attention. Wanting to feel connected to her estranged, circus-performer mother, Willow decides she, too, will join the circus. With her gap-year savings buried deep in the lining of her bag, 17-year-old Willow reinvents herself as Frog, circus performer. When she befriends homeless street performer Suz, a "tanned skinned, yellow-dreadlocked" Australian, Willow trusts the wrong person and ends up penniless. When the young women meet again, Willow is understandably untrusting. But Suz takes Willow into her squat, feeds her, and teaches her how to juggle--and eat--fire. When the circus comes to town, Willow auditions and goes on the road, leaving lost soul Suz behind. The story never romanticizes homelessness; it's represented as the harsh reality it is. Women in their infinite variety are celebrated: Willow sees her "thick" wrists and ankles as an asset; she recalls the golden hairs on her mother's face as beautiful; and one of the circus members is a charismatic trans woman named Delilah. Poetically fluid descriptions of Willow's emotions and her surroundings bolster the sometimes-uneven first-person narrative. A beautiful and unforgettable story about a girl who learns she must lose who she thought she was before she can become who she's meant to be. (Fiction. 13-18)

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