Cover Image: The Circus Comes to the Village

The Circus Comes to the Village

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Member Reviews

I received a free ARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

The pictures were very bright and colorful and the story flowed well. I just wasn't bowled over by it. It was an okay story to me.

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Beautifully illustrated with a stark ending. A great story to read to children and share about another culture on the other side of the globe. The ending introduces the start of a great conversation with kids and their understanding of conflicts and war.

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I am a sucker for books about the circus, carnivals, magicians, etc... I think they are a fantastic story setting. This was a childs book, and it broke my heart and gave me such hope. The way the Circus brought hope and happiness to the Afghanistan people was just so sweet. Too often you see the destruction and heartache in war torn regions and never any hopeful stories. It did leave a very uneasy sadness in me when the village was destroyed in the end with no help or reflection. I appreciate the harsh reality but I hope for more when tough topics are breached in childrens stories. I know this is how real life is so on one hand I respect and appreciate this, and on the other hand it's a fine line for kids.

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This a about a village in Afghanistan. Yamo and his friend Mirado visit the Circus that has come to town. At the end we can have discussions on how war has affected the village. Illustrations are good.

Thanks to netgalley and the publisher for the eARC.

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I received an arc of this title from NetGalley for an honest review. This book is published for little kids but I do not think that little kids will understand it. It was like two stories forced together. The circus and the war.

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It's a sad, yet happy and hopeful book at the same time and I really loved the illustrations as I felt they enriched the story.

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I found this book to be very off. We have so much happiness in the beginning as we enjoy the excitement of the circus coming to town and then getting to go. The boys play and ride the rides and really enjoy themselves. Then, the city is blown up by war. The End. I didn't feel that a child would understand this story. It was heartbreaking, and while I am not against that in a child's book, I think there needs to be something to help them understand what is being read to them. I don't feel that this book explained anything. It was all about the circus, and then at the end, the city is destroyed.

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*received from netgalley for honest review* This book was rather odd imo, reading the description I understood what the book was getting at but not sure younger children would understand much, but the art is amazing so 4 stars

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This story is both heartwarming and heartbreaking. What child doesn't love the circus coming to town? In countries all over the world the arrival of the circus is exciting and fun. Yamo and Mirado are best friends that live in Paghman in the mountains of Afghanistan. They can't wait for it to appear.

"Yamo comes home from school as fast as his legs can carry him.
His friend Mirado follows, playing his flute."

The boys hear the drums and trumpets of the traveling circus coming closer and they want to dash off and witness their arrival. Yama's mother and grandmother are kneading naan bread and tell the boys that there is work in the fields waiting to be done. They must wait until tomorrow to attend the highly anticipated event. Both friends reluctantly head out to the fields to gather wheat and yams. War is all around them and it's important that the village has food, so gathering the crops has to be a top priority before going to the circus. Yamo's brother is fighting in the war and also Mirado's father. Mirado is always playing the flute that his father left behind.

Finally after all their hard work is completed the villagers get to participate in the frivolity and for a short while they can play, have fun and escape the hard dangerous realities that are surging all around them. Yamo and Mirado ogle the sweet rice pudding, barley cookies, honey and chocolate, visit the toy shop, and enjoy the bird shop just to name a few. Their very favourite thing to experience? The swing ride of course! They spin round and round and go so fast their heads start spinning. They can hardly walk when they get off of the ride! What fun!

It's off to see the acts under the big top next. These circus artists make everyone roar with laughter! Then the most beautiful singer mesmerizes the audience and Mirado begins to accompany her on his flute. The singer is so impressed with his musical prowess that she invites him up on stage with her. He blends in with her band perfectly. At the end of the day the tired villagers return to their homes and once again focus on the harsh realities of hard work and survival as the war is still raging on all around them.

Mirado is invited to join the circus group as a musician and his grandmother allows him to go. Hopefully he will find a better life for himself and perhaps find his father. The other villagers are left behind to prepare for another severe winter. The snow arrives and everyone rejoices as snow promises good crops for next year. Very good! Then total devastation occurs. The village is completely destroyed and everyone living there scatters. Paghman no longer exists.

This book is perfect to share feelings... feelings of happiness while experiencing the magical world of the circus and feelings of despair and sadness as the village disappears. The illustrations greatly enrich the text. The author wraps up with a sentence of hope...

"However, as spring always follows a harsh winter, the village of Paghman waits quietly for everyone's return."

Book 3: Return to the Most Beautiful Village in the World (9781940842455)—Coming next spring will be wonderful to read!!! I highly recommend this book. It's good to include a story in your collection that does not have a "happily-ever-after" ending.... yet!

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4★
“Autumn has come.
The long-awaited circus has come to the village of Paghman in the mountains of Afghanistan.”

This is another detailed tribute to the lives of the children of Afghanistan who enjoy the same activities that children enjoy all over the world. They play games and music, and most of all, they look forward to the circus visiting. Yamo was introduced in The Most Beautiful Village in the World. His brother is a soldier in the war, but that isn’t mentioned here. This is about fun and games.

My Goodreads review has an illustration captioned: Mirado is playing his flute (in green, in the back, on the left)

And here comes the circus!
“BOOM! BOOM! RAT-A-TAT! PAP-PAP-PAP!
The drums and trumpets of the traveling circus are heard in the fields below.”

My Goodreads review has an illustration captioned: The circus travelling through the countryside

Later we are told the boys can hear the boom of cannons in the distance and that Mirado’s father has gone to the war but hasn’t returned yet. Unlike the previous book I read in this series, The Most Beautiful Village in the World, we never see anyone carrying guns, and there’s no sign of war that I can tell.

At the circus, the boys see all the sights, the strong man, the magician, and a beautiful singer who is singing about her lover who has gone to war. Mirado plays his flute along with the song and is invited to perform with the musicians!

My Goodreads review has an illustration captioned: Mirado playing his flute with the men

He is a success!

My Goodreads review has an illustration captioned: Mirado cheered by the crowd

In fact, he is such a success that the circus invites him to join them, and his grandmother says YES!

My Goodreads review has an illustration captioned: Yamo and Mirado saying good-bye

Yamo hopes Mirado may see his father somewhere. Meanwhile, the villagers are excited to finally see snow! That means there may be enough water for good crops.

My Goodreads review has an illustration captioned: Villagers celebrating snow!

Immediately following that page is this abrupt ending.

My Goodreads review has an illustration followed by this quotation:
“But that winter, the village was destroyed in the war. The people barely escaped with their lives and moved to other places.
Now no one lives in the village.
However, as spring always follows a harsh winter, the village of Paghman waits quietly for everyone’s return.”

I like that this author has captured the lives of these people who just want to live them as we all do. I don’t know how people recover from this kind of devastation, but I certainly hope this little village of Paghman does some day.

I always love illustrations like these, with tiny details and small moments caught in people’s lives. I enjoy reading these with children and making up stories about who the different people might be.

Thanks to NetGalley and Museyon Books for the preview copy. This was originally published in 1996 and is now out again. It’s been a long war . . . all those children . . .

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A colourful and engaging book. Lots of interesting talking points and a good way to talk about different cultures with young children.

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'The Circus Comes to the Village' with words and pictures by Yutaka Kobayashi is a look at a circus in another culture.

Young friends Yamo and Mirado are excited that the circus is coming to his home of Paghman village. His brother and father are off fighting the war, so the circus is a good distraction, but first, he must do his chores. The circus has a wooden ferris wheel and treats like sweet rice pudding and barley cookies. Like the other Yamo's village book I've read, this one ends with an abrubt and sad last page.

I liked this book. The illustrations are really nice, and I think it's good for children to see how other children in the world live and play. Things are different, but still the same. The abrupt ending, like the first book, is rather harsh, even it it is realistic. Readers should decide if further discussion is warranted.

I received a review copy of this ebook from Museyon and Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. Thank you for allowing me to review this ebook.

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Mention the word Afghanistan and people often think of images from the news, troops walking through streets, dusty roads with military convoys...rarely does something positive or colorful come to mind. This book offers another view, one that shows people going about their everyday lives. Children rush home from school with their book bags, women knead bread, men work in the fields, and the circus comes to town. Gathering the crops and thinking ahead to winter snow that will help water the next year's planting are all part of the rhythm of village life. But there is time for fun when the chores are finished; time to whirl on a spinning swing or ride to the top of a Ferris wheel.

Yamo and his friend Mirado check out all the circus has to offer - rides, snacks, souvenirs, and entertainment. When the circus leaves the next day, the village seems emptier. The villagers stay busy preparing for the winter and celebrating the snowfall that heralds good crops for next year. Then, the last page tells us that the village was destroyed in the war that winter. There is some hope, since the villagers escaped, even though they had to find other places to live. "However, as spring always follows a harsh winter, the village of Paghman waits quietly for everyone's return."

As the publisher's note explains, the author was a frequent visitor to Islamic countries in the 1970s and 1980s, and what he observed there is reflected in his work. A previous book in this series introduces Yamo and his village to readers, and lets them know that Yamo's brother and Mirado's father are away at war. A third book tells of Mirado's return to Paghman after touring with the circus.

A good title for those looking to offer more cultural diversity in their collections, and to show what childhood is like in different areas of the world.

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Yamo and Mirado are good friends. They work in the fields harvesting yams and wheat. Yamo's older brother is gone to war as Mirado's father has, too. They worry about them but they keep working.

Museyon and Net Galley allowed me to read this book for review (thank you). It will be published October 1st.

The circus is great fun. They ride the rides and then watch the performances. When a beautiful singer comes out and music begins to play, Mirado plays his flute along with them. They invite him up on the stage and he joins them.

The next day, as they get ready to move on, they invite Mirado with them. His grandmother says he can go, so he says goodbye to Yamo and heads out for a new life.

When it starts to snow everyone smiles. This means better crops the next year. Next year, everything will change for them as the last two pages show...

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ARC Copy...it was sad yet happy at the same time especially if you are aware of teh social climate of the region. However bit of interesting exotic culture insight in the form of the traveling circus and its acts. I did like how it brought joy and comfort to the village.

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WOW! This book is lovely and manages to do something that most books that touch on war don't. It shows a people in their everyday lives and happiness without privileging the trauma alone. This book gives us a glimpse into a beautiful village full of beautiful people, makes readers relate to them, care for them, and feel their joy and then like war--take its away suddenly and swiftly without a tidy ending. Bravo. A brilliant story.

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The second book for me from this series – I believe there are further visits to this village elsewhere. Two young lads, a fatherless flautist and a hard-working hero, are allowed to go to the circus when it turns up in town. But the book isn't about the flautist, or the hero, or the circus – it's set in 1990s Afghanistan, and by default almost any year since. Still very good, with wonderful artwork that conveys the rural lifestyle as well as particular relevant moods, the only thing is I am sure the same twist ending was used last time.

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A wonderful story, a bit sad but full of hope, and great illustrations.
It's perfect for both adult and children.
Highly recommended!
Many thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for this ARC, all opinions are mine.

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The problem I have with this book is that, like the first book, the village is destroyed because of the war, at the end of the book. This worked well in Yataka's first book about Afghanistan, because you were aware that something was going to happen at the end. In this one, we see all the joy and happiness, and then, bang, this village is destroyed as well.

<img src="https://g2comm.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/09/the-circus-comes2.png" alt="" class="alignnone size-full wp-image-5369" />

<img src="https://g2comm.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/09/the-circus-comes.png" alt="" class="alignnone size-full wp-image-5368" />

I suppose this is the whole point of war, that it is random, and sad.

I like the first book better.

Thanks to Netgalley for making this book available for an honest review.

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This book is very colourful
Great book for tells children about the circus coming to town beautiful pictures and illustrations

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