The Night Circus (2011)
December 18, 2011
I’ve told you on numerous occasions that I love stories. Stories as in fairy tales or things that have a magical tint to them. That’s why I wanted to read Erin Morgenstern’s debut novel “The Night Circus” as soon as I heard a review of it on a Guardian Books Podcast (this one, if you’re curious). I was, of course, delighted when my lovely boyfriend gave it to me for my birthday (just in case you were wondering, honey).
Now, what can I say about “The Night Circus”? It’s a delightful book and definitely an “easy-read” (a must for some and an unconfessed deterrent for others). Well, I’m a sucker for a good story, especially when it’s well told. Erin Morgenstern definitely made me care about the cast of extraordinary characters in extravagant Victorian outfits. Yes, I do appreciate good outfits even in literature. Gosh, I don’t know how to tell you the story without spoiling the thing, especially since many of the initial chapters are all messed up in that lovely way, so that you can’t tell when things happen and how things are related.
The story is nice and simple and mysterious enough to give you that “need to know what happens next” feeling. Basically, at the beginning, two magicians or, more accurately, wizards, or whatever you wanna call them, begin a challenge (another one, since you’re led to believe they’ve done this before) between two of their students. You don’t know what the challenge really is or what the purpose is or when it ends. The only thing that gradually becomes more and more obvious is that the circus is the “venue”. The story is filled with wonderfully strange and mysterious people that can do wonderfully strange and mysterious things. Oh and of course there’s a love story. Well a big one and a couple of little ones, I guess. And a lot of unknowns. It’s light and pleasant and cute but has its dark moments. There are interesting little debates over style and ethics and things and there are lots of questions that remain unanswered. It may sound like I’m a bit masochistic, but I do like having unanswered questions at the end of a book.
What else can I say about this story? Well ever since my aforementioned lovely boyfriend said he was certain they’re going to make it into a film, I keep thinking of a proper way of adapting it for the screen. I’m not sure a film would do it justice and I see a nice clear format for a tv series in it. With a tent being described at the beginning of each episode and rich colours like in Pushing Daisies. Anyway, Colleen Atwood (Tim Burton’s Sweeney Todd and other things) should definitely do the costumes.
P.S.: They launched this cute little website/game before launching the book. I think it’s really cute.
