Carnivalesque

April 1, 2017
An adolescent boy is abducted into a world of secrets and addictions by a magical circus while his mother suspects something is masquerading as her son in Jordan's (The Drowned Detective, 2016, etc.) coming-of-age fairy tale.It is a fairy tale: the carnies and roustabouts of the traveling circus are the last fey, reduced to surviving off mortals' emotions, and hiding their superhuman abilities in plain sight. Mona, who can fly, poses as an aerial dancer...and "adopts" a British youth who falls through the cracks of the carnival's Hall of Mirrors. Andy--or Dany, as his name becomes in the circus--is a boy like many others save for his close relationship with his mother, Eileen, a suburban housewife in a troubled marriage. As Dany adjusts to the carnie life under Mona's tutelage and learns the carnival's dark secrets, something else has exited the mirror in Dany's place...and now calls itself Andy. Eileen struggles to understand the seeming changes in her son, rationalizing them as adolescence and puberty, but she is haunted by memories of Andy's unusual birth. Though the tale builds slowly, progressing in a parallel haze of Dany's state of uncertain enchantment and Eileen's growing unease, it comes to a visceral head with the revelations of Dany's origin and a villain whose delightfully macabre presence will leave the reader reaching for some bug spray. However, the showdown between Dany and his foe is over too quickly, and the story sinks back into a languid emotional remove. Jordan's at his best when exploring the dark history of his circus fey or when detailing the quiet miseries of the supporting cast; our hero feels less Real Boy than a reactive cipher, muffled by cotton candy. Still, spun sugar is tasty, and there's much here to like.

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Starred review from February 1, 2017

In the summer of 2016, 14-year-old Dubliner Andy Rackard enters Burleigh's Amazing Hall of Mirrors at a traveling carnival. Upon his exit, a different Andy emerges, a sullen reflection of the boy who entered, now trapped in a fun house mirror. The ethereal carnie Mona rescues him and, over time, initiates the rechristened Dany into the mysteries of the Carnies' lore and life. With each revelation about the carnival and its people, Dany more deeply intuits his identity and crucial role in the ancient war between the Carnies and the Dewmen. Ultimately, Dany faces the horrific Captain Mildew, the traitorous Burleigh, and his twin to save the Carnies and his human mother, Eileen, bereft of the beloved boy who disappeared months ago in a hall of mirrors. VERDICT This new work from director/author Jordan is a house of mirrors, reflecting and distorting Celtic fairy tales to reveal new dimensions to timeless stories. Jordan's seductive narratives are unmatched in modern literature, although many will recognize parallels to Oscar Wilde, Ray Bradbury, Margaret Atwood, and Neil Gaiman.--John G. Matthews, Washington State Univ. Libs., Pullman

Copyright 2017 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

December 1, 2017

Andy enters Burleigh's Amazing Hall of Mirrors as a young boy, puzzled by his parents' failing marriage and intrigued by the carnival attraction. Once inside, he becomes trapped behind the mirrors as his doppelganger walks out. As Andy is taken under the wing of an aerialist named Mona, the reflection who replaces him lives with Andy's parents, confounding his mother as he matures. The carnival is an evocatively drawn, colorful backdrop for an immersive coming-of-age story, and the Irish setting is effectively rendered. While teens will relate more to the chapters centering on Andy than those from his mother's perspective, her musings on the muddy waters the fake Andy is navigating speak to universal truths. Infused with magical realism, this page-turner will enthrall teens. VERDICT A bewitching bildungsroman, perfect for fans of Erin Morgenstern's The Night Circus.-Erinn Black Salge, Morristown-Beard School, Morristown, NJ

Copyright 2017 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

February 15, 2017
He was a reflection. And the thing that reflected him had walked out with his mother some time ago. The author's words flow with poetic cadence, conveying the light and dark sides of fairy tales from long ago, in this story of predictions come true, changelings, unknown origins, mysterious mildew, swarming rodents, and insect infestations. Andy, a boy on the verge of adolescence, conceived through unnatural circumstances, is taken to a carnival by his parents and enters a house of mirrors. What emerges is a mystical tale of dual imageryof Dany, who was Andy, and Andy, a reflection of the boy who became Dany. Happy with his new life, Dany wanders endlessly with the ever-youthful carnies, while Andy travels the world of his parents, neighbors, home, and school. One has substance without his original form, the other has the body but no substance, and when their father arrives, the carnival, its wondrous inhabitants, and the world will suffer. Fans of Jordan's The Drowned Detective (2016) will be entranced by this fantastical coming-of-age chronicle.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2017, American Library Association.)