Did you like the book?

[Brianna]

I just couldn't get into the book because of all the description and point of view changes. Can someone who liked the book explain the concept of it cause I truly tried to love the book.

[Erin]

For me, the story itself wasn't great. I thought it was a fantastic concept, but I agree with you that the POV changes really got in the way. I am very guilty of skipping chapter titles, so for the first few chapters, I had no idea that I was missing information about when something was happening, and to whom.

However, I still loved the book. The plot was thin, but the writing was absolutely beautiful. I'm the sort who is good with books that aren't totally plot-driven, so I was okay with all of the narration. The parts between sections, the moments written in second person, were incredible.

I do this thing where I cut up books (something people will vilify me for, I'm sure -- especially here!) and use the pages to create customized shoes. If I'm left in charge of what excerpts to use, I go through the book and choose my favorite moments. The best quotes, the most beautiful passages. With this book, I truly couldn't decide. I ended up cutting out so much that it was a struggle to pick the best parts to use, deciding what could be slightly covered by another layer and what absolutely had to be on top, unobscured. With all of the shoes I've done, I've never experienced that particular problem. Everything was just so beautifully written that I had such a difficult time.

This type of book isn't for everyone, and people either loved it or hated it. If they hated it, they usually ended up not finishing it, which is totally understandable (why finish a book you can't connect with?). For me, it was all about the writing, Morgenstern's descriptive language, the rhythm of the entire thing. For me, that was enough.

[CS]

I completely agree with Erin.

I loved Morgenstern's depiction of this elusive circus. The way she described every little detail added to the magic and mystique, and while reading, I realized the story wasn't about the characters, but the circus itself. To expand, it wasn't even necessarily about the circus, but about the magic and wonder that seems somehow lost in today's reality.

[Belle]

Erin wrote: "For me, the story itself wasn't great. I thought it was a fantastic concept, but I agree with you that the POV changes really got in the way. I am very guilty of skipping chapter titles, so for the..."

This is actually a really interesting way to use a book. Very creative. I've seen it done with comic strips. No reason to get bent out of shape about it, it's not like you're burning them because you don't want anyone to read them, and it could possibly be an interesting form of marketing for the book.

[Kandi]

I have to admit that tho I thought it was a "pretty" story, I really struggled thru reading it. I didn't really care about any of the characters nor was I even able to distinguish if they were meant to be real or imagined. I'm glad I read it and have enjoyed reading other's reviews and comments about their experience with the story, but I realized that I am definitely not the audience this book is searching for.

[CS]

Kandi wrote: " I'm glad I read it and have enjoyed reading other's reviews and comments about their experience with the story, but I realized that I am definitely not the audience this book is searching for."

Awesome reaction to a book you don't necessarily like; I mean, exploring literature is what reading's all about isn't it? :) I've seen readers mindlessly bash books the don't enjoy and dub it as 'bad' or 'boring', forgetting that these same books may be precious to others. Thanks for your mature outlook on disagreement in taste, I wish more people were like you! :D

[[deleted user]]

I adore the book! To me it was definitely a breath of fresh air from the usual YA trilogies I've been reading. The story was definitely whimsical and magical, the writing style beautiful. And the pacing was really relaxing. :)

[Jill]

Brianna wrote: "I just couldn't get into the book because of all the description and point of view changes. Can someone who liked the book explain the concept of it cause I truly tried to love the book."

I struggled with Night Circus for two months last winter. Some insight into the meaning occurred to me while having dinner at Chilli's with my mother and my 5-year-old, who was tired and misbehaving. My mom was losing patience, losing balance perhaps. I think Night Circus is about how everyone's life is a competition - with a match but also with one's self. I was struck by the description of the competition - not like chess. But a balancing.
I also kept thinking of a famous art quote that I thought was about Raphael: "He is only an eye, but what an eye."
Night Circus to me is a beautiful fable - complete. Nothing more but nothing less. It is all there if you can grasp it.

[chinami]

i loved this book. when i started this book i lost myself in the story and narration and when i ended it i was dazed and wanted more of it. to me the ultimate duty of a book is to leave me giddy,satisfied and shedding happy tears.

[chinami]

Jill wrote: "Brianna wrote: "I just couldn't get into the book because of all the description and point of view changes. Can someone who liked the book explain the concept of it cause I truly tried to love the ..."

your last statement is beautiful.

[April]

I personally loved this book. I found it entertaining and it brought out a sense of magic and wonder that I think we all really need in this world. Liked the "easy read" feel and the depth of the characters. Hated to see it end.

[Jill]

Thanks, Veronica. :)

[Pardina]

Reading this book felt similar to a summer fling. I fell in love with it, felt dazed when it was over as if I had resurfaced in a pool and taking a big gulp of air... and now I've forgotten what it was that made me love it so much ^^;;; I suppose it was the aura it provoked, the feeling of mystic glamour in the air around me as I read. I'll reread it and get back to you :D

[Brianna]

All of these brilliant comments about this book make me feel like I just didn't grasp it very well.

[Jeanine]

I loved the book! The descriptions were rich and I really enjoyed the different points of view.

[chinami]

Brianna wrote: "All of these brilliant comments about this book make me feel like I just didn't grasp it very well."

read it again.

[Sarah]

I loved it and thought it was beautiful and I can't explain why. Others thought it was just okay. That's what it's all about.

[Katie]

I listened to the audio version and really enjoyed the book. With the audio version, each character speaking in their own voice was very easy to follow. I thought the concept was very creative and it pulled me into a completely different world. I enjoyed this book very much!

[Ronald]

i liked.... it at first i was getting bored caused i didnt quite get the plot but getting further i understood that is a Circus you need to have all that description to really understand what is going on, in fact the Circus Itself was the main character instead of Marcus and Celia...

My favorite Storyline was BAILEY`S and Chandresh both of character for em were the most affected by thee Circus itself... Bailey`s cause you know at the end he is the one that keeps it and Chandresh cause Marcus screw with his mind so bad that he went insane but good at the end everything went well with him.

[Katherine]

I think this book is amazing, its well written, good plot and I really liked when you were at the circus in the book

[Kimberley]

This is such a magical book. It transcends a need for a genre.

[Erin]

i totally loved the book. so different from most of the Young Adult novels out there. The writing style was so much more complex. I loved it because it wasn't so focused on the love story that it outshines the rest of the novel. i think the plot is amazingly original and I love how all the different point of views came together in the end. It was quite slow though and that can be hard for some people to get through, as slow-paced novels usually are for me. But this one was different. I found the details that she gave helped to really paint an amazing picture of the circus that she created, and really helped provide a deep and complex mystery. I loved everything about this novel.

[Kassandra]

I loved this book - it was one of my 5 stars of 2013. The characters were engrossing and the author used such beautiful imagery that I could see the circus and all of the amazing tents come to life in my mind.

[Lynn]

I've noticed that the book has been moved from the YA shelves and into general fiction at the bookstores. I don't think the YA audience really enjoyed this book.

[Joe]

Absolutely in love with The Night Circus - the writing, the characters, the story, the changing perspectives, the imagery & the setting; did I say the writing? This is one of my favorite books. I could go on and I did, here: http://wp.me/p2XCwQ-33

[Gerd]

Lynn wrote: "I've noticed that the book has been moved from the YA shelves and into general fiction at the bookstores. I don't think the YA audience really enjoyed this book."

Well, it doesn't exactly strike me as being written for a YA audience specifically, so I kind of marvel how it could have ended up there in the first place. :)

[Anfenwick]

I liked the book but I can see how it's not for everyone. I think it works better for people who like the feel of words for their own sake, rather than just wanting to merge into plot/setting/life of characters. I always seem to end up reading books like that over Christmas. Maybe I need a few endless days and nights without pressure to get into them. II can't imagine it as a YA book.

[m solan]

I loved this book. I wanted to be in this story. The only reason I would want The Night Circus to be a movie, is too see the scenes come to life. A movie wouldn't be as good as the book in my opinion.

[Samantha]

Overall, the book was decent. The only thing that made this book decent was the imagery... but at the same time i felt like the descriptions were the book's biggest downfall. They were beautiful but I felt as if I was constantly be told what was happening instead of being shown. The storyline has a lot of loopholes and I didn't appreciate certain aspects of the circus not being not fully explained, such as how the circus operated, what the rules of the game were, etc. I didn't even really become attached to the characters. I wouldn't have cared if either of them died. Honestly they were dull to me and their love was superficial as well. One second they were competitors and then the next they were in love. Despite all this, I think the book would make for a good movie if the graphics were done well.

[Sparrowlicious]

I think this book was alright. That you can still tell that it was written during Nanowrimo shows that it should've been edited a bit better than it was. Not that I'm saying this work seemed unedited. Not at all. I really liked the concept of the story but it was paced a bit too slow for me. So slow that most of the time it just filled the pages with things that didn't do anything for the story.
The end though was quite interesting because the end of the challenge was a challenge itself and I think the conclusion was though a bit unsatisfying still sort of interesting.
The night circus is btw the 'ninjas' of this story: whenever you don't know what to write, throw in something unexpected. There you go, night circus. If the night circus had been molded into something that was a part of the story that didn't show that it was actually 'ninjas', maybe the book would've been better than it is.
Well. One can only speculate.
(I myself am a notorious participant of Nanowrimo and I know how to produce quite an amount of words for short scenes, though through the years my stories have more scenes so I don't need to do that anymore.)

Edit: I forgot to mention: I had a huge problem with Friedrick's name. It's unusual. He's supposed to be German, right? My native language is German and the 'k' in his name made me read his name as 'Frederik' all the time. 'Ch' is not a 'k' sound, it's a much softer sound. 'Friedrick' might be an actual name according to websites that collect names, but to me as a native speaker it looks like a typo.

[Wendy]

It took me a while to get into the book, as well. I wasn't fond of the POV changes, either. It felt disjointed and jarring as I read it. Until I became accustomed to it, I found it distracted me from fully engaging in the world. At some point it clicked and I couldn't put the book down, finding it beautiful, magical, and lush.