Friday, September 6, 2013

The Night Circus Review - A RIPVIII Read

I have a confession - I did not finish this book.  I am listening to the audiobook and I have about 2.5 hours left, but I can't bring myself to listen to them despite having a story line I was initially interested in and beautiful writing, not the mention the rich voice of Jim Dale.

The Night Circus follows three story lines: the challenge between Celia and Marco, the creation and characters of the circus, and Bailey, a young man from Concord, Massachusetts who wishes to be rescued by the circus like so many characters in fairy tales.  It really is too complex to try and explain to someone without spoiling; each detail builds upon the one before it and eventually manifest into a bigger picture.

These story lines are interwoven through multiple decades by the phenomenal writing of Erin Morgenstern. She has the ability to describe setting, character and dialogue utilizing all five senses and I was immersed in the story line from the very first line.

So what happened?

The Night Circus is written with vignettes that jump across decades, continents, and story lines.  While this normally isn't a problem to read, listening to a story written in this form is an entirely different and confusing experience.  I could only listen to the book for about an hour at a time without getting antsy so a book that would normally take me 1-2 days to read would eventually elapse into a 13 day listening experience due to the length of the audio.  Even when I forced myself to listen to a few hours per day, I would mentally wander or distract myself with something else.  I think if the story was told in a more linear manner I wouldn't have such a difficult time with the book.

Despite my inability to finish the audio version of The Night Circus I might still pick up a physical copy of the book to read so I can finish the story. I would highly recommend this book, especially for an event like RIPVIII because it was generally creepy at the very beginning and has an overall, fantasy/noir feel.

The Night Circus was published in 2011 by Anchor Books.

7 comments:

  1. Hi Heather,

    I agree that some books really should not be audiobooks. And I say that as a real audiobook fan. I was listening to Water Ghosts and had the exact same experience, also because of flashbacks and time changes, etc. Like Night Circus, Water Ghosts contains beautiful imagery and writing. Once I picked Water Ghosts up as a physical book, I had no problem.

    Sometimes the audio book is superior. I recently finished Wolf Hall. The narrator was fabulous and really made the different voices come to life.

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    1. This was my first full length audiobook so I really had no idea how to listen to it.
      I will keep trying other books though!

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  2. I loved The Night Circus - I hope you pick up a paper copy and give it another go, I'm sure you'll love it.

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    1. I hope so! I remember being all in for the first few chapters and then I lost sight of what was happening. Thanks for commenting!

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  3. I've been hearing really good things about this, and it actually sounds really fascinating from what you've said...but since I listen to audiobooks even more choppily than you do, I'll definitely choose a hardcopy for this one!

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  4. I've never experienced an audio book and it's one of those things that I don't think I will, not for the moment anyway. I think my mind would wander. Plus if I'm doing chores or walking I tend to listen to music instead.
    I don't think the Night Circus was everyone's cup of tea although it has very good reviews. I haven't read it and not sure that I will add it at this point.
    Shame it wasn't for you.
    Lynn :D

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    1. I'm sworn off audiobooks for a while too! Maybe if I find a really good one in the future I will do another review on it. Thanks for commenting!

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