The Night Circus

A Novel

By: Erin Morgenstern

Narrated by: Jim Dale

Length: 13 hrs and 40 mins

Publisher's summary

The circus arrives without warning. No announcements precede it. It is simply there, when yesterday it was not. Within the black-and-white striped canvas tents is an utterly unique experience full of breathtaking amazements. It is called Le Cirque des Rêves, and it is only open at night.

But behind the scenes, a fierce competition is underway - a duel between two young magicians, Celia and Marco, who have been trained since childhood expressly for this purpose by their mercurial instructors. Unbeknownst to them, this is a game in which only one can be left standing, and the circus is but the stage for a remarkable battle of imagination and will. Despite themselves, however, Celia and Marco tumble headfirst into love - a deep, magical love that makes the lights flicker and the room grow warm whenever they so much as brush hands.

True love or not, the game must play out, and the fates of everyone involved, from the cast of extraordinary circus per­formers to the patrons, hang in the balance, suspended as precariously as the daring acrobats overhead.

Written in rich, seductive prose, this spell-casting novel is a feast for the senses and the heart.

©2011 Erin Morgenstern (P)2011 Random House

Critic reviews

" The Night Circus made me happy. Playful and intensely imaginative, Erin Morgenstern has created the circus I have always longed for, and she has populated it with dueling love-struck magicians, precocious kittens, hyper-elegant displays of beauty, and complicated clocks. This is a marvelous book." (Audrey Niffenegger, author of The Time Traveler's Wife)

"Self-assured, entertaining debut that blends genres and crosses continents in quest of magic…. Generous in its vision and fun to read. Likely to be a big book—and, soon, a big movie, with all the franchise trimmings." ( Kirkus Reviews)

"Debut author Morgenstern doesn't miss a beat in this smashing tale of greed, fate, and love... a giant, magical story destined for bestsellerdom. This is an electric debut on par with Special Topics in Calamity Physics." ( Publishers Weekly)

M&M

Magical & Memorable! A decadent, literary masterpiece. Truly one of my all-time favorites. Thank you so much.

Magic or Madness

Where does The Night Circus rank among all the audiobooks you’ve listened to so far?

The Night Circus is an excellent audiobook and is among my Top 10 favorites. The narration by Jim Dale places in the Top 10 on its very own. The book itself breaks the rules of fictional structure and characters. The structure is episodic, through the lens of the different major characters. It bounces back and forth through time with all the timelines coalescing at the end. This has been unnerving for some listeners, according to other reviews. However, for me, the structure was magical like the book. The characters are also created differently. They are like ghosts: transparent and insubstantial.

What other book might you compare The Night Circus to and why?

I came to her through my love for Audrey Niffenegger's books: The Time Traveller's Wife and, especially, Their Fearful Symmetry.

What about Jim Dale’s performance did you like?

Jim Dale and Roy Dotrice are the best narrators in the business. Jim Dale's ability to create specific character voices for every person in the book is appreciated. He acts the book, rather than simply reading it with some inflection.

Any additional comments?

The book is not for people who are more comfortable with a beginning, middle, end structure, with an emphasis on conclusion. This book is much more ambivalent than that, which I enjoy.

Dark, disturbing, pointless and NOT FOR CHILDREN

Is there anything you would change about this book?

The narrator was tiresome. There were many characters, but little difference between the voices. The narrator was also over-dramatic, breathless and borint.

Would you ever listen to anything by Erin Morgenstern again?

Doubtful

What three words best describe Jim Dale???s voice?

Breathless, boring, unimaginative

Do you think The Night Circus needs a follow-up book? Why or why not?

No

Any additional comments?

THe book promised a lot, but delivered little. It has much pretense of dark, star crossed lovers. However, the relationship is not well developed and becomes tedious. Most of the other characters are just there to populate the story, and are not compelling in themselves. Although it deals with magic, it has little excitement. It labors on to create a plot line that should be wonderful and surprising, but it's not. Overall, a disapointing read.

wow that was truly amazing

I loved it so much I read ( listened) do it twice and found I loved it even more the second time this is a magical book about love and if you love the Harry Potter series as an adult or a teenager you will love this even more

A listener's feast

Such a beautifully written novel. The rich tapestry of words that blend the characters, setting, arc almost makes the actual story and plot line the second thought. I loved every paragraph.

Sad to say I found it a tad bit boring...

I'm not sure exactly why but for some reason this book did not keep my interest and I had to keep making myself turn it back on to finish it. I think it was just a little slower paced than I was expecting. The author is very descriptive though so that was nice and I liked the narrator although it was very quiet most of the time. I just thought this "competition" between the two illusionists would be more like a "competition".

prettily written, but didn't keep my interest

The setting of the book is fun and there are some really lovely, poetic descriptions, but I just couldn't get into it. Maybe the plot didn't have enough clues along the way to tell me where things were going, but my mind would start wandering as I was listening. I also thought the narrator's voice was an odd choice (gravely, elderly man's voice for a love story).

Fantastic

This was a wonderfully written book. If you like character driven stories this is it. The author makes you care about all the characters involved. From the protagonists to the supporting characters.

Jim Dale entrances with Morgenstern's beautiful language

I could listen to this book a million times and still come back for the experience it creates. Reading it isn't the same. The book is beautiful to see, but Dale's thoughtful storytelling is the perfect finishing touch to a book that really transports you to a mystical world. I wish it could be more than a dream myself.
If you like listening to each individual word, phrase and sentence for the feeling it evokes, listen to this book. If you want to lose yourself in another world, listen to this book. If you have a long boring drive and need a good distraction, listen to this book. I can't do it justice, but I adore the circus, the story, the characters, the unique descriptions of everything, even the minute details that I normally get lost in.

a great unexpected story

loved it. I went into it not expecting such a great story. I highly recommend it.