Take a photo of a barcode or cover
jenontheshelf 's review for:
The Circus Train
by Amita Parikh
⭐️⭐️⭐️ 1/2
This book was a bit unbalanced for me. The latter third was much stronger than the first two thirds.
While setting the majority of the novel within a traveling circus is a more interesting angle to the traditional WWII novel, I admit I was a bit trepidatious since WWII novels are not my favorite. So many have been written over the years (with a woman walking away on the cover…) that they all start to feel the same. In fact, the middle third of the novel followed many of the more familiar, well-trod tropes. So I struggled to remain engaged and push through that middle section.
The first third was little too much telling and not enough showing. I find this is common in historical novels, especially ones that cover a large timespan in an attempt to situate the bears of the story against the historical backdrop. But I was pretty on the fence as to how much I’d like the book overall.
I enjoyed the final third the most. Though there’s also a super random chapter toward the end set in India. Super random. It honestly felt like the beginning of a different novel—one that could be extremely interesting to read. But I don’t think it was necessary for the story this book was telling.
This book was a bit unbalanced for me. The latter third was much stronger than the first two thirds.
While setting the majority of the novel within a traveling circus is a more interesting angle to the traditional WWII novel, I admit I was a bit trepidatious since WWII novels are not my favorite. So many have been written over the years (with a woman walking away on the cover…) that they all start to feel the same. In fact, the middle third of the novel followed many of the more familiar, well-trod tropes. So I struggled to remain engaged and push through that middle section.
The first third was little too much telling and not enough showing. I find this is common in historical novels, especially ones that cover a large timespan in an attempt to situate the bears of the story against the historical backdrop. But I was pretty on the fence as to how much I’d like the book overall.
I enjoyed the final third the most. Though there’s also a super random chapter toward the end set in India. Super random. It honestly felt like the beginning of a different novel—one that could be extremely interesting to read. But I don’t think it was necessary for the story this book was telling.