# The Circus Fire, book review

Category: book Nook

## Post 1 by TexasRed (I'll have the last word, thank you!) on Wednesday, 30-Jul-2008 16:43:32

The Circus Fire Edition: Unabridged
by Stewart O'Nan
read by Dick Hill
Subject(s): Biography & Autobiography Nonfiction
Number of parts: 10
Duration: 11 hours, 15 minutes
File size: 161853 KB
One of America's most acclaimed novelists turns to nonfiction in this powerful re-creation of the great Hartford circus fire, which took the lives of 167
people and forever changed the city and its people. On July 6, 1944, in artford, nnecticut, the big top of Ringling Bros. Barnum & Bailey Circus caught
fire during the middle of the afternoon performance. Nine thousand people were inside. The canvas of the big tent had been waterproofed with a mixture
of paraffin and gasoline. In seconds, the big top was burning out of control. Bleacher seats were fronted by steel railings with narrow openings; the main
exits were blocked by caged chutes in which leopards and lions, having just performed, raged, maddened by the fire. In re-creating the horrific events
of one of America's most cataclysmic civic tragedies, Stewart O'Nan has fashioned both an incomparably gripping narrative and a profound, measured glimpse
into the extremes of human behavior under duress. In the madness of the inferno, some like animal trainer May Kovar and
the tragic Bill Curlee (who tossed dozens of children to safety over the lion's chute), would act with superhuman bravery. Others, like the sailor who
broke a woman's jaw to get past her, would become beasts. The toll of the fire, and its circumstances, haunt Hartford to the present day - the identity
of one young victim, known only as Little Miss 1565, remains an enduring mystery and a source of conflict in the city.
But it is the intense, detailed narrative - before, after, and especially during the panic under the burning tent - that will remain with readers long after
they finish this exceptional book.
I'm not really sure why I grabbed this from the unabridged site, but glad I did. The whole story is fascinating. From the time period in which it happened,
all the way through the personal accounts, and right up to today with the unsolved mysteries of who did it and who little Miss 1565 is. The story is
graphic in describing the burns and other injuries, so if your squeamish, be aware. I really enjoyed the way the author wrote the story, timelines, personal
touches and mostly the ending. I give it a 5 out of 5.
Happy reading,
Carla/TexasRed