From the Bookshelf of Amazon Editors' YA Book Club…

The Night Circus

Erin Morgenstern

Start date: February 2, 2016

Finish date: February 29, 2016

Why we're reading this: Magic, romance and a circus like nothing you've ever seen...perfect reading for February, this one is har…more
[close] Magic, romance and a circus like nothing you've ever seen...perfect reading for February, this one is hard to put down.

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Jan 15, 2017 Katie Ziegler (Life Between Words) rated it liked it

I loved *almost* everything about this book. The writing was lush, the tone was so ethereal and atmospheric. I could see the amazing feats in the tents; I could taste and smell the decadent treats. And the story was dreamlike and absorbing.

My big complaint is that I felt so removed from the characters - and I *need* to connect with characters in books. I thought this book would be an exception because I loved everything else; it was so well done! It was written in such a way that I felt we reall ...more

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Aug 22, 2013 Tabitha rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

I'd like to say that this book was boring. But with every fibre in my body, I just can't. When I bought this book, I didn't quite know what to expect. I liked the anticipation.

I can't really sum up into words how I feel about this book. And I can't really tell you what happened, because not a whole lot did happen.

And at first, I thought this was a bad thing. I wanted to stop reading even if something were not going to happen soon.

And then I thought, approximately half way through this book. I n I'd like to say that this book was boring. But with every fibre in my body, I just can't. When I bought this book, I didn't quite know what to expect. I liked the anticipation.

I can't really sum up into words how I feel about this book. And I can't really tell you what happened, because not a whole lot did happen.

And at first, I thought this was a bad thing. I wanted to stop reading even if something were not going to happen soon.

And then I thought, approximately half way through this book. I now know what I'm getting from this book. I'm lost in a world of dreams and magic that I just didn't think was possible. I've never experienced anything quite like it. I felt like I was in the circus, like I was part of it, and now that it's over I just can't bring myself to accept that my journey is over until I decide to pick it up and read it again.

It's a funny thing, to entice someone through words, to drag them in. Morgernstern does a terrific job at that.

I've never experienced a book like this until now, and I'm glad. It makes this book so much more special. And knowing that the circus will always be infinite so long as I have this book, is incredible.

My advice to you, when reading this book, and I wish I'd have been told this myself, to those who have a hard time getting into books, like myself, come at this book with an open mind. When you begin to read it, don't focus on the words, if you stumble over a sentence and get confused, move on, don't dwell on it. The key to this book is in the imagery, not the words precisely. There will be times when you get confused, don't understand things, but good books do confuse you. Move on from it, and by the end I'm sure you will understand the full story regardless of how many sentences you screwed up a bit.

A lot of people found this book confusing, and that's okay, we're all bound to find parts confusing, and different people will find different things hard to grasp and vice versa, it's all about what YOU grasp, not what other people grasp.

This book is what I like to think of, a different experience for everyone. No one will read the same book, this is YOUR book, and your circus to make your own interpretations from. Forget how other people picture their circus. It's not about them.

Secondly, if you're about a quarter way through, and you feel like you aren't enjoying it, please, continue, and come at it with an open mind as stated. Forget everything you know about reading books, and try and get lost in the book, it isn't that hard.

Thirdly, read it in the voice that comes naturally, don't purposely try and read it in another voice, it's all good and well to say "I'm bored, I'm going to read this in Jude Law's voice to make it more appealing." but it doesn't work. You need to focus. That will take your attention away from you. Otherwise this book just won't work for you. You need to be thinking about the imagery, not the stud that is Jude Law.

Fourthly, I recommend you don't borrow this book, but buy a copy of your own. This is going to sound cheesy, but I like to think of my copy as my own circus right on my very bookshelf that I can come back to at any time I like. If you were to read my copy for example, it wouldn't be your circus, once you gave it back to me, it'd be mine again and your circus would be gone. If you want to feel like you've created your own, you may want to keep this book for years to come, therefore, you need a goddamn copy!

I'm sorry this review is long and cheesy, but honestly thinking about these things helped me. Don't dwell on the confusion, dwell on the imagery and I swear to God it'll be the best choice of your life. ...more

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Jul 23, 2015 Donya Hani rated it it was ok · review of another edition

I think the reason why I disliked this book was because I expected there to be more focus on the challenge but instead there's so many pages describing the circus and it's tents which was nice at first but then got boring after a while :/
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