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celjla212's review against another edition
4.0
Portia Remini lives with her father and her Aunt in the Great Depression era. Times are tough, and her father takes off to try to find work and make a better life for them, leaving Portia with her Aunt Sophia. Portia is lonely and sad, but she is comforted by the fact that she has always been an adept and creative storyteller, a fact her hardworking and practical aunt doesn't truly appreciate.
After 4 years of just the 2 of them, Aunt Sophia sends the 13 year old Portia off to live at a "Home for Wayward Girls." When Portia gets there, she discovers that it is a place where an oppressive man called Mister rules over a group of girls with an iron fist and crushes their dreams.
Soon, Portia loses her only friend in the house and runs away to join the traveling circus that happens to be in town. She starts working with the circus' sideshow, and the "freaks" everyone else shuns may come to be the only people she can rely on.
I thought this was a cute story. Around the time of the setting of this book, to run away and join a circus was every kid's fantasy. In the early 20th century, the circus was in its' heyday and the traveling sideshow was its' biggest attraction.
I liked Portia, but I'm not sure if I loved her. She is very resourceful and I liked the way she was able to take care of herself even though she was so young. I guess the fact that she was so young was the basis I had for not loving her totally--she held on to the dream of her father coming back for so long.
I was a little thrown by the way the story, which was told in third person perspective, would switch to a character's first person point of view from time to time. To me, it disrupted the flow of the story a bit. But, I did appreciate how it let me know a little more about the reasons behind that character's words or actions.
Though the middle of the book seemed to drag for me, in part 3 it really picked up. I really loved the ending of the story, and it was unexpected to me. The events that happened made me smile. I would recommend this book to younger teens, as the content is fantastic and the book tells a good story. I believe there were only a couple of curse words in the story, so that is something to watch out for. I'm very glad I read this book! I'd give it 3.75 stars.
After 4 years of just the 2 of them, Aunt Sophia sends the 13 year old Portia off to live at a "Home for Wayward Girls." When Portia gets there, she discovers that it is a place where an oppressive man called Mister rules over a group of girls with an iron fist and crushes their dreams.
Soon, Portia loses her only friend in the house and runs away to join the traveling circus that happens to be in town. She starts working with the circus' sideshow, and the "freaks" everyone else shuns may come to be the only people she can rely on.
I thought this was a cute story. Around the time of the setting of this book, to run away and join a circus was every kid's fantasy. In the early 20th century, the circus was in its' heyday and the traveling sideshow was its' biggest attraction.
I liked Portia, but I'm not sure if I loved her. She is very resourceful and I liked the way she was able to take care of herself even though she was so young. I guess the fact that she was so young was the basis I had for not loving her totally--she held on to the dream of her father coming back for so long.
I was a little thrown by the way the story, which was told in third person perspective, would switch to a character's first person point of view from time to time. To me, it disrupted the flow of the story a bit. But, I did appreciate how it let me know a little more about the reasons behind that character's words or actions.
Though the middle of the book seemed to drag for me, in part 3 it really picked up. I really loved the ending of the story, and it was unexpected to me. The events that happened made me smile. I would recommend this book to younger teens, as the content is fantastic and the book tells a good story. I believe there were only a couple of curse words in the story, so that is something to watch out for. I'm very glad I read this book! I'd give it 3.75 stars.
kelleemoye's review against another edition
5.0
Portia is looking for her family, but ends up finding a place in the least likely places- a "freak show" touring around the midwest during Depression-era America. The author seamlessly intertwines Portia's story with the story of the traveling show even mixing up points of views and narrators during the story. Although it sounds like it should definitely not work, it does. And it does beautifully. This book is mostly about heart, family, and home. Portia's story is so enthralling and her transformation is amazing to be part of.
As I read this book, I found so many different places that could be mentor texts within the classroom. Hannah Barnaby's debut novel is not only a great example of literary, lyrical writing, it is also a novel that would definitely be useful for a reading mentor text. Since the story is so complex, it takes a strong reader to read it thus would be a great book to model comprehension with. As a writing mentor text, there are examples of exemplar writing throughout.
Read Together: Grades 9 and up
Read Alone: Grades 8 and up
Read With: The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern
Snatch of Text: "The truck lurched uncertainly onto the dirt road indicated by the sign and quickly came to a fork - downhill, to the right, Portia saw a cluster of small wood cabins and, behind them, the apple trees. They were different than her apple trees. Hers had grown tall and sat heavy over her like a canopy, even now that she was thirteen. These were dwarfish, twisted, and gray. It was halfway through harvest time, and many of the trees stood bare as skeletons, reaching for the cold sky. Uphill, to the left, was a massive dark house with a sharp, staggered roof that looked like the teeth of some huge, mythical beast. Portia had no desire to get any closer, but Sophia, as usual, had other ideas." (p. 25)
Mentor Text for: Suspense, Predicting, Point of Views, Imagery, Attention Grabber, Vocabulary, Voice, Literary Writing, Setting
Writing Prompts: Don't judge a book by its cover does not only apply to books; it also applies to people. Think of a time when you judged a person by their cover and you were wrong. Connect this with Portia when she first arrived at the Wonder Show.
Topics Covered: Human Curiosities, Family, Loss, Loyalty, Relationships, Identity
As I read this book, I found so many different places that could be mentor texts within the classroom. Hannah Barnaby's debut novel is not only a great example of literary, lyrical writing, it is also a novel that would definitely be useful for a reading mentor text. Since the story is so complex, it takes a strong reader to read it thus would be a great book to model comprehension with. As a writing mentor text, there are examples of exemplar writing throughout.
Read Together: Grades 9 and up
Read Alone: Grades 8 and up
Read With: The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern
Snatch of Text: "The truck lurched uncertainly onto the dirt road indicated by the sign and quickly came to a fork - downhill, to the right, Portia saw a cluster of small wood cabins and, behind them, the apple trees. They were different than her apple trees. Hers had grown tall and sat heavy over her like a canopy, even now that she was thirteen. These were dwarfish, twisted, and gray. It was halfway through harvest time, and many of the trees stood bare as skeletons, reaching for the cold sky. Uphill, to the left, was a massive dark house with a sharp, staggered roof that looked like the teeth of some huge, mythical beast. Portia had no desire to get any closer, but Sophia, as usual, had other ideas." (p. 25)
Mentor Text for: Suspense, Predicting, Point of Views, Imagery, Attention Grabber, Vocabulary, Voice, Literary Writing, Setting
Writing Prompts: Don't judge a book by its cover does not only apply to books; it also applies to people. Think of a time when you judged a person by their cover and you were wrong. Connect this with Portia when she first arrived at the Wonder Show.
Topics Covered: Human Curiosities, Family, Loss, Loyalty, Relationships, Identity
postitsandpens's review against another edition
4.0
Thank you to Houghton Mifflin Harcourt (via NetGalley) for the e-galley of Wonder Show.
When Portia Remini is taken to McGreavey's Home for Wayward Girls and put under the "care" of Mister, the only thing she can think about is escaping and finding her father, who left her when she was young. When a traveling circus-slash-carnival comes through town, Portia decides that the best place to hide from Mister and start her search is as a member of the carnival, where she is one of the so-called "normals" amongst all the circus freaks. And thus begins Portia's search for answers, and most of all, herself.
I really enjoyed this book. I found Portia to be a very real character: a girl who has been deserted and left behind her entire life, who grew up with a love and gift of storytelling, who only wants to find her father and be reunited with him. Instead she's put into a horrible situation at Mister's, and after a terrible event, can no longer stand to be there. So she escapes on a red bicycle and takes shelter with a traveling carnival show. I found her to be so incredibly strong; she has dealt with one blow after another and never gives up hope, even when things seem out of her control and falling apart. Portia was really the strength of this story for me personally, although the entire thing was really well put together.
I also liked the fact that the surrounding characters, from the two girls she becomes closest to at the Home to the various people populating the carnival, were all fleshed-out with their own back stories. I liked the glimpse of what it was really like to be part of the bally of a 1939 circus, which had already reached its heyday and was slowing dying out and winding down. The book is told mostly from Portia's point-of-view, told in third person, but has first person chapters from some of the characters, from Gideon, who becomes Portia's closest friend, to Jim the giant and Jimmy the dwarf. I liked the fact that the third-person voice was always slightly removed, telling it like it was, while the first-person narrative really allowed you to see exactly how the character was feeling. It added something special to the story that just made the book even more engrossing and interesting, and was something I personally hadn't seen before.
This is very much a coming-of-age story, with a very strong, independent female lead who has some weaknesses but never completely allows them to bring her down. It's about the search for a place in the world, someplace you can leave a mark--and someplace to call home. And it's done in a really wonderful way.
Wonder Show is now available from your local bookseller. Definitely check it out.
When Portia Remini is taken to McGreavey's Home for Wayward Girls and put under the "care" of Mister, the only thing she can think about is escaping and finding her father, who left her when she was young. When a traveling circus-slash-carnival comes through town, Portia decides that the best place to hide from Mister and start her search is as a member of the carnival, where she is one of the so-called "normals" amongst all the circus freaks. And thus begins Portia's search for answers, and most of all, herself.
I really enjoyed this book. I found Portia to be a very real character: a girl who has been deserted and left behind her entire life, who grew up with a love and gift of storytelling, who only wants to find her father and be reunited with him. Instead she's put into a horrible situation at Mister's, and after a terrible event, can no longer stand to be there. So she escapes on a red bicycle and takes shelter with a traveling carnival show. I found her to be so incredibly strong; she has dealt with one blow after another and never gives up hope, even when things seem out of her control and falling apart. Portia was really the strength of this story for me personally, although the entire thing was really well put together.
I also liked the fact that the surrounding characters, from the two girls she becomes closest to at the Home to the various people populating the carnival, were all fleshed-out with their own back stories. I liked the glimpse of what it was really like to be part of the bally of a 1939 circus, which had already reached its heyday and was slowing dying out and winding down. The book is told mostly from Portia's point-of-view, told in third person, but has first person chapters from some of the characters, from Gideon, who becomes Portia's closest friend, to Jim the giant and Jimmy the dwarf. I liked the fact that the third-person voice was always slightly removed, telling it like it was, while the first-person narrative really allowed you to see exactly how the character was feeling. It added something special to the story that just made the book even more engrossing and interesting, and was something I personally hadn't seen before.
This is very much a coming-of-age story, with a very strong, independent female lead who has some weaknesses but never completely allows them to bring her down. It's about the search for a place in the world, someplace you can leave a mark--and someplace to call home. And it's done in a really wonderful way.
Wonder Show is now available from your local bookseller. Definitely check it out.
moswald's review against another edition
3.0
If you, like me, grew up loving Lemony Snicket and School of Fear, then you'll probably enjoy this book. It has a similar dry, deadpan narration style, and also doesn't shy away from horrific details that wouldn't be included in other middle-grade books. It doesn't have loads of action and shocking plot twists, but what it does have (character, found family, imagery that packs a punch), it does well. And unlike other circus-themed stories, this one makes a decent attempt at portraying the complexity of what it meant to be in a freak show, rather than using it as a just a backdrop, shock value to make up for a lack of writing talent. Barnaby does have talent in spades; however, I felt the portrayal of Portia's Romani heritage was disappointing - Romani people have a long, complex history and multifaceted culture, and their own complicated relationship with the circus, which would have added more to this story. What we have instead is a stereotypical flighty family, and the problem of the Greek woman pretending to be a Romani fortuneteller isn't explored much either.
rosalind14's review against another edition
4.0
4.5.
This was really lovely, from the writing, to the characters, to the gorgeous cover. Set in the US in the late 1930s, Wonder Show follows a fourteen-year-old girl, Portia, from the time her aunt sends her off to the despicable "Mister" at McGreavey's Home for Wayward Girls to Portia's escape to Mosco's Traveling Wonder Show. With its slightly vague and surreal feel, whimsical setting, and realistic and likable characters, it is a unique, thought provoking and very enjoyable read for children, YA, and adults alike.
This was really lovely, from the writing, to the characters, to the gorgeous cover. Set in the US in the late 1930s, Wonder Show follows a fourteen-year-old girl, Portia, from the time her aunt sends her off to the despicable "Mister" at McGreavey's Home for Wayward Girls to Portia's escape to Mosco's Traveling Wonder Show. With its slightly vague and surreal feel, whimsical setting, and realistic and likable characters, it is a unique, thought provoking and very enjoyable read for children, YA, and adults alike.
readwithpassion's review against another edition
5.0
I adored this magical tale. Portia escapes Mister, the eery leader of McGreavy’s Home for Wayward Girls and sets out to find her father. She joins, The Wonder Show, a carnival of freaks, and learns to lead the rubes (customers) through the various sideshow acts. This is a story that will be appreciated by readers of all ages.
gaderianne's review against another edition
3.0
This book was a fine read about a girl whose family puts her in a wayward home for girls. Eventually she runs away and joins a carnival with the "freak show"
It was entertaining and fairly short. I wish that I would have been longer because I wanted more details about certain aspects of the book. And the ending snuck up on me. One minute I was drawn into the story and the next it was just finished.
It was entertaining and fairly short. I wish that I would have been longer because I wanted more details about certain aspects of the book. And the ending snuck up on me. One minute I was drawn into the story and the next it was just finished.
typesetjez's review against another edition
1.0
I did not like this book much, nor do I care to finish it. I read the first third of it for class, then left it alone. The style of writing seems unattached and transient, and there are many strange shifts in point of view, even going from third person limited to first person with the same character. I wanted to like this book based on its premise, but the execution was so poor that I just couldn't stick with it.