From the Bookshelf of La Crescent Public Library…

[close] Our May book club selection was Truevine. Reader opinions were mixed in terms of style of the book. Our book club found lots to discuss and learned much about Jim Crow era and the circus, but all found the book to be disjointed and were confused or overwhelmed by the timeline.

About half our group finished the book, and the other half made it halfway or so through. Reasons for abandoning the title included the timeline and jumping back and forth or following the conflicting historical accounts and the difficulty/violence of some of the history. All readers felt much empathy for the individuals of the sideshow lifestyle and especially the Muse family - Harriet, the mother, particularly so with all she accomplished. Everyone had a deeper appreciation at the end of the discussion learning how the book ended and about how the author spent 25 researching the story.

General interest wished for a condensed version of the story that focused more on the Muse brothers themselves and not as much of the historical content surrounding the circus, the time period, and the place. Though certainly all of it left a lot to learn and talk about.