Booksellers, librarians and reviewers have been abuzz about Erin Morgenstern’s “The Night Circus” for months, with the debut work receiving starred reviews from Library Journal, BookList and Publisher’s Weekly, as well as appearing at the top of the September 2011 Indie Next list. Described with words and phrases like “lush,” “compelling,” “magical,” “unusual,” “genre-blending,” “romantic” and “inventive,” this book appeals to readers of all types, as evidenced by the number of people on the waiting list for one of the library’s multiple copies
Add your name to the holds list for “The Night Circus” (in print or on audio, which is read by the marvelous Jim Dale – such a delight!), and then check out one of these read-alikes while you wait.
- “The Invention of Hugo Cabret” by Brian Selznick tells the story of an orphan who lives within the walls of a train station in Paris. The book blends drawings and text to instill an atmosphere of wonder. Though shelved in the children’s section of the library, this magical book is for all ages.
- “Jonathan Strange & Mr. Norrell” by Susanna Clarke weaves magic and English history in lavish detail, appealing to fans of both historical fiction and fantasy.
- “The Night Bookmobile,” a graphic novella by “The Time Traveler’s Wife” author Audrey Niffenegger, tells a haunting tale of a woman who encounters a library on wheels that only appears between dusk and dawn and contains all the books she has ever read.
- “Sorcery and Cecelia, Or, The Enchanted Chocolate Pot” by Patricia C. Wrede and Caroline Stevermer is an adventure story told in letters exchanged between two British girls living in an alternative, magical 19th-century England.
- “Swamplandia!” by Karen Russell has nothing to do with circuses or magic, but like Mortgenstern’s novel it has unique characters, an original style, a vividly portrayed setting (Florida Everglades) and competition between two rivals.
Read more posts by Lauren on DBRL Next.
