Synopses & Reviews
Sophi Fevversthe toast of Europe's capitals, courted by the Prince of Wales, painted by Toulouse-Lautrecis an aerialiste extraordinaire, star of Colonel Kearney's circus. She is also part woman, part swan. Jack Walser, an American journalist, is on a quest to discover Fevvers's true identity: Is she part swan or all fake? Dazzled by his love for Fevvers, and desperate for the scoop of a lifetime, Walser joins the circus on its tour. The journey takes himand the readeron an intoxicating trip through turn-of-the-century London, St. Petersburg, and Siberiaa tour so magical that only Angela Carter could have created it.
Review
"A remarkable book by any standards." Guardian
Review
"Angela Carter has influenced a whole generation of fellow writers towards dream worlds of baroque splendour, fairy tale horror, and visions of the alienated wreckage of a future world. In Nights at the Circus, she has invented a new, raunchy, raucous, Cockney voice for her heroine Fevvers, taking us back into a rich, turn of the 19th century world, which reeks of human and animal variety." The Times
Review
"Nights at the Circus is a glorious enchantment. But an enchantment which is rooted in an earthy, rich and powerful language....It is a spell-binding achievement." Literary Review
Review
"A glorious piece of work, a set-piece studded with set-pieces. The narrative has a splendid ripe momentum, and each descriptive touch contributes a pang of vivdness. By doing possible things impossibly well, the book achieves a major enchantment." Times Literary Supplement
Review
"Nights at the Circus is good, clean fun well, good fun anyway. It's raunchy moments are steaming, bizarre, at times unsettling, but there is definitely an appreciation here for love, sentiment, and entertainment." San Francisco Chronicle
Review
"A book of wonders, then, even if too cloying for some tastes and a welcome occasion for reassessing the work of one of the most unusual writers of recent emergence." Kirkus ReviewS
Synopsis
Winner of the James Tait Black Memorial Prize for fiction
From the master of the literary supernatural and author of The Bloody Chamber, her acclaimed novel about the exploits of a circus performer who is part-woman, part-swan
Sophi Fevvers--the toast of Europe's capitals, courted by the Prince of Wales, painted by Toulouse-Lautrec--is an aerialiste extraordinaire, star of Colonel Kearney's circus. She is also part woman, part swan. Jack Walser, an American journalist, is on a quest to discover Fevvers's true identity: Is she part swan or all fake? Dazzled by his love for Fevvers, and desperate for the scoop of a lifetime, Walser joins the circus on its tour. The journey takes him--and the reader--on an intoxicating trip through turn-of-the-century London, St. Petersburg, and Siberia--a tour so magical that only Angela Carter could have created it.
Synopsis
Sophi Fevvers the toast of Europe's capitals, courted by the Prince of Wales, painted by Toulouse-Lautrec is an aerialiste extraordinaire, star of Colonel Kearney's circus. She is also part woman, part swan. Jack Walser, an American journalist, is on a quest to discover Fevvers's true identity: Is she part swan or all fake? Dazzled by his love for Fevvers, and desperate for the scoop of a lifetime, Walser joins the circus on its tour. The journey takes him and the reader on an intoxicating trip through turn-of-the-century London, St. Petersburg, and Siberia a tour so magical that only Angela Carter could have created it.
About the Author
Angela Carter (19401992) wrote nine novels and numerous short stories, as well as nonfiction, radio plays, and the screenplay for Neil Jordan's 1984 movie The Company of Wolves, based on her story. She won numerous literary awards, traveled and taught widely in the United States, and lived in London.