I love books with circuses, so was really looking forward to this one, and it didn’t not disappoint, despite the heartbreaking subject matter. Great book, great author, 4/5 stars!

This gave me a very real perspective of people living with polio between 1930-1950. This was a great and very interesting read.

Wow! This was a beautiful book! This is unlike any WW2 fiction that I have read in a long time. It was unexpected and kept my attention from start to finish.

this was such an amazing book! i can't wait to read more from this author in the future! and once again, thank you to netgalley and the publisher for giving me an advanced copy!

I'll read anything about circuses because they are endlessly fascinating and magical. What makes this book stand out is that Parikh combines the circus with WWII historical fiction. Set on a lovely timeline this book spans decades and the characters are sensitive and memorable. You'll love being a part of their lives.

An exciting tale that shows the damage of keeping secrets--a bit of a mystery in that I guessed some of the secrets but not all--well done on that score!
Also extremely well done on the background details of the historic period and the travails of working in a circus and then living in a death camp
Best of all though were the stunningly beautiful writing about the people--so real, descriptions, dialogue,
I read it all in one sitting, could not put it down--both a positive and a negative since I was reading online which hurts my eyes,
I did not know her work before this but will be on the lookout for her future titles. She writes about magic and magicians here but she is a magician herself, bringing characters, scenes to life with the tap of her computer key, the swirl of her pen.

I greatly enjoy WWII fiction stories. This is a much lighter story that I expected given the setting; the circus seemed a bit above the war, but I did enjoy the story overall. I appreciate the opportunity to read this advanced copy..

Really loved this one- love the magic of the circus and the historical WW2 fiction. It was interesting to read about polio and the advances in therapies.

I’ve always been a fan of the historical fiction genre, particularly those set in WWII. I’ve also always loved stories set in the circus which is why I thought this book would be perfect for me.

There are a lot of things to like about this book, but in the end it really felt unfinished. And perhaps that’s due to the fact that it’s an ARC, but perhaps not. Aside from a section in the middle when Theo and Alexandre were in a concentration camp, (and honestly even then), the WWII setting felt to me like an after thought. It wasn’t very developed and it didn’t feel like it had any real stakes or urgency to it. Which is hard to do in a setting like that. I also felt that the character of Leike was both under utilized and perhaps entirely unnecessary to the overall story. Particularly her relationship with Alexandre which ended up having no real bearing on the story.
Additionally, I really hate the trope of taking a disabled character and making their entire character journey about becoming abled. Why couldn’t Lena have become happy and successful in her wheelchair? Why was the majority of her story about overcoming her difference instead of embracing it? As a disabled woman I’m sick of this in books. It’s using disabled bodies as “inspiration porn” and that is inherently ableist, even if it’s unintentional.

I did enjoy the childhood on the train, and the fact that this was an odds defying romance that spanned about twenty years, but overall I feel like this story could have benefitted from one more edit.

This is a lighter WWII historical fiction book. There wasn't a lot of tension due to the war; the circus seemed a bit above it all. That isn't to say this isn't an enjoyable book. If you are looking for a book about family secrets and family drama that is not directly connected to the war then this is definitely up your alley.

Amita Parikh paints a lush world of the circus that hides the secrets of some of its biggest stars. One young lady, who is often over looked due to her disability, aims to uncover those secrets and make a name for herself outside the magical world she was raised in.

This was a really good historical fiction novel. I am a huge fan of novels set during World War II. I really liked the writing style of the author. I also really liked the setting of this book. I thought there was really good character development and plot in this boo. Overall a really good book and I would suggest.

I almost put this book down without finishing it. The story moved very slowly but it was put together very well in order to reach the conclusion it did and It’s a wonderful story. It begins with a young child stricken with polio and confined to a wheelchair. It centers on her life and her unwillingness to accept defeat
Thanks to NetGalley for an advanced copy.

In Amita Parikh’s The Circus Train, readers are invited aboard the World of Wonders, a dazzling traveling circus that tours across Europe in the years before and during WWII. This circus contains beauty and betrayal, magic and mystery, loneliness and light. On board, we are introduced to the story’s heroine, Helena (Lena) Papadopoulos and her father, Theo, a master illusionist. Lena is disabled due to contracting Polio as an infant, and we watch her struggle with both her physical limitations and loneliness. But like many of our most difficult challenges, we see strength emerge and transformation occur. “While the other cast members rehearsed, Lena sat patiently, poring over her box of assorted objects and drawings, dreaming up ways to manipulate time, thinking of what it would be like to traverse the constellations on foot, imagining the feeling of weightlessness in diving to the depths of the Pacific Ocean. Science, and the realm of possibilities it represented, became her world.”

She finds friendship, encouragement and love in Alexandre, a Jewish orphan a few years her senior, who she finds after he boards the train on the run from his past. Alexandre, who possesses a talent for sleight-of-hand maneuvers, is taken in and trained as Theo’s apprentice. As the train and history twists and turns into World War II we watch trouble unfold and paths diverge as Lena, Theo and Alexandre are thrust into different environments, only to reunite a decade later.

These characters are extremely relatable and likable, packed with the messy mix of weakness and strength found in us all. We see them each deal with their pasts in different ways and root for them to heal and triumph. As Lena grows older and has moved on from life in the World of Wonders, Parikh pens this poignant truth about time and healing, “Lena had learned that the passage of time did something strange to memories. Ever so slowly it chipped away at the most painful parts, smudging the hurt and softening the aches, to the point that she could now almost reminisce about her childhood in a fond manner, not always stuck on the parts that hurt.” Parikh’s writing is flowing, both with action and feeling, and I found myself not wanting this journey to end. In this debut novel, she delivers a solid narrative of history and entertainment and her notes at the end about the actual people and places in the story added to its meaning. I anxiously await another ride into her next world of wonder.

Thank you to NetGally and Penguin Group Putnam for a DRC in exchange for my honest review.

At first I thought this would be something different, but I DNF'd it once it turned into Yet Another WWII novel. The circus train concept felt really neat, but then it felt utterly disconnected from the reality of the socio-political context...until a couple of the protagonists get sent to a concentration camp. Bah.

I cannot stress enough how much I loved this book. If you’re a fan of The Night Circus or Water for Elephants, this one is definitely for you. I swear I thought that while I was reading it and didn’t read it was part of the synopsis online until I got done reading it 🙃. The characters are so easy to love, and Lena is a #boss. The way the story progresses from the wonder of circus life in the 1930/40s into the way WW2 changed the landscape of Europe and the horrors it brought with it is beautifully written.

I was approved for this ARC a couple of months ago and I’m so sad it took me this long to get to it. This book is available now and I can’t recommend it enough. Thank you so much to NetGalley and HarperCollins for the ARC of it.

Thank you NetGalley for this ARC in exchange for my honest opinion.

The premise of this book was intriguing to say the least. But, unfortunately I just could not for the life of me get into it. I may come back around in a week or so and try again. But for now, I was quite disappointed by the pace of the story and it fell flat and boring for me.

This book was an incredible read. With much of the book taking place on a traveling circus, the story has elements of mystery and magic that made it captivating from the very start. As the story unfolds, the richness of the plot becomes clear, exploring the relationships between a father and daughter, the daughter and a young Jewish boy, the friendships of those on the train, with world war 2 as a historical backdrop.

This was such a unique book and I thoroughly enjoyed reading it. I would highly recommend this for those that enjoy historical fiction.

I just reviewed The Circus Train by Amita Parikh. #TheCircusTrain #NetGalley

Thanks to NetGalley and Putnam Books for my ARC in exchange for my honest review. This book will be published December 6, 2022.

I was intrigued because I enjoyed Water for Elephants and The Night Circus but I was nervous because I’m not a big fan of historical fiction.

This book sucked me in immediately and I finished it within a day. It was incredible! First there’s a traveling circus. Theo is an illusionist and Horace is the extremely wealthy, money-hungry owner.

Then there’s Lena, his daughter. She has polio and can’t walk. Her main friend is her nanny Clara. She loves to learn and spends many a lonely day in her room reading.

Then there’s Alexandre, who Lena finds beat up in one of the train cars. We don’t know much about him but he befriends Lena so Theo is happy for his daughter.

So much happens in this book. You will laugh and cry and get angry and be happy - all the emotions! It’s brilliantly crafted and was so engaging! I truly felt like I was living during WW2, experiencing the magic of the circus, the sadness over Jewish concentration camps, the fierceness for Lena who overcomes so many obstacles and relief that Theo and Alexandre finally share their secrets.

Trust me. This book was superb. Put it on your TBR list!

How does a person become resilient?
Amita Parikh’s debut novel, The Circus Train, introduces us to a variety of characters who all show resilience, but in different ways.
Imagine traveling through Europe on a circus train during World War II. There’s a daughter coming of age as she overcomes the obstacles of polio, the dad who is the circus illusionist, an orphaned Jewish boy with his own secrets who becomes like family, and various others who support and challenge them along the way. The war brings separation, loss, and a story of star-crossed lovers, revealing each characters’ resilience.
As the story progressed, I found myself rooting for Lena. She was resilient from the beginning, showing persistence and strength as she came of age in this novel. I especially enjoyed that she was curious and inquisitive and that those around her encouraged her every step. She is the definition of resilient.
Read this book for a newer perspective on World War II historical fiction.

Thank you NetGalley and publisher for this ARC publication for an honest review.

The Circus Train

Amita Parikh

Pub Date: 06 Dec 2022

The Circus Train is a historical fiction with a twist: life in a traveling circus! The author did a wonderful job capturing the wartime period while showcasing the magical atmosphere of a circus. The story focuses on Lena who caught polio as a baby and has physical disabilities. Her father, Theo, is an illusionist in the circus who while providing for Lena's education by way of a tutor, also tries to shelter her from the outside world. Lena longs for a friend...and one day she rescues a young boy. Alexandre becomes her best friend, but he gives her more than just friendship. He believes in her and gives her purpose and a will to try impossible things. Their relationship was just so pure, and I loved how they each wanted to be better, stronger people because of the other.

The book was divided into different sections/timelines and had different character point of views. I was intrigued throughout the book and was invested in the outcome of each character. Wonderful book!
4 stars