Story in Review: The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern

“The Circus arrives without warning…”

Magical. Enchanting. Dreamlike.

Those are a few of the words I would use to describe The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern.

We needed something to do in Chicago a few years ago before meeting up with some friends, so of course we found a bookstore. I’m someone who NEVER just picks a book off a shelf and buys it without researching it thoroughly. I’m someone who NEVER looks at the New Releases but heads for the dusty shelves of used volumes first. But this book had me from the moment I walked in the store. I went directly to the new release table in the front window, plucked it off the shelf, and proceeded to read it. At least three times.

The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern is the story of two magicians who have been bound to each other to play out a game to which they don’t know the rules. And they have to do it surrounding by everyone they love and without any help.

Against a pallet of black and white, Morgenstern has crafted in this novel a place that readers want to go – Le Cirque de Rêves. The “circus of dreams” is a place where stories can be bottled, where the clouds become part of a maze, and where the magic surrounding you is so palpable that you can’t believe it is real.

Favorite Quotes:

“He forgets that he was someone’s dream once, himself.” – p. 87

“How can I excel at a game when you refuse to tell me the rules?” – p. 117

“The scents, the music, the quality of the light. Even the weight of the velvet curtains at the entrance. They have arranged each element to appear effortless… To make the artificial feel natural.” – p. 134

“It is these aficionados, these reverse, who see the details i the bigger picture of the circus… They are enthusiasts, devotees. Addicts. Something about the circus stirs their souls, and they ache for it when it is absent.” – p. 143

“He notices that all three of them are walking at the same pace, staying easily together as a group. He is much more used to following a few steps behind.” – p. 194

“We add our own stories…” – p. 223

“They were such simple things. Knots and intent.” – p. 273

“The breaking is the easy part.” – p. 348

“Most maidens are perfectly capable of rescuing themselves in my experience, at leas the ones worth something, in any case.” – p. 375

“Good and evil are a great deal more complex than a princess and a dragon, or a wolf and a scarlet-clad girl. And is not the dragon the hero of his own story?” – p. 375

“This is not magic. This is the way the world is, only very few people take the time to stop and note it.” – p. 380

What made this a great story? Morgenstern has a way of crafting a setting that pulls you into the story, of creating a mystery even when the details are all on the table. She writes people full of quirks and heart. The supporting characters are just as alive as the protagonists. And in the end, you really do wonder if the world is made of magic after all.

What could make it better? The book flips back and forth between points of view and dates very regularly. While this lends to the story unraveling as if you were wandering around the circus itself, it can be slightly confusing as you wind yourself through your first reading. On the second reading (or third!) – it is pure magic.

Have you read The Night Circus? What did you think?.