The Circus Lunicus [Hardcover]

Marilyn Singer (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: October 1, 2000 | Age Level: 10 and up

Solomom Yanish uncovers his family ties to a celestial circus in this quirky middle grade novel.

Solly heard a noise coming from his closet. This time it wasn't a rattling. It was a small, spongy noise, like a balloon bobbing. Cautiously he opened the door.

The plastic lizard was standing there, its feet in the trash can, its head grazing the top shelf. It looked at Solly with yellow eyes and spoke: Freeble, freeble, freeble.

Solomon Yanish has it rough. His mother has disappeared from his life, his father is constantly away on business trips, and now Solly is stuck with two crabby stepbrothers and an evil stepmother he calls Old Staircase. What's worse, Solly can't seem to get a straight answer about his family's past. But who's keeping it from him, and why?

Enter The Circus Lunicus, and Freeble -- a fairy godmother in shrink-wrapped disguise. Suddenly things start to make sense. Until some strange transformations begin . . . Can Solly uncover the mystery behind his heritage before the circus leaves town?

This fast-paced novel is full of bizarre characters and surprising revelations. So forget what you know about the circus and grab a bucket of worms. Things are going to get weird...

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Singer (Deal with a Ghost) serves up an energetic but predictable male Cinderella story, with a supernatural twist. Ever since his mother's supposed death, 11-year-old Solomon Yanish has lived with his hard-edged stepmother, "Old Staircase," and his two stepbrothers, Jason and Mason. Old Staircase makes Solly do all the chores and rewards her lazy, bullying biological children with expensive gifts. His father, perpetually away on business, doesn't seem to care. But when the mysterious Circus Lunicus comes to town after a six-year absence, and Solly's toy lizard begins to grow to enormous proportions, Solly begins to suspect the truth: his mother was involved with the circus in mysterious ways. Freeble Komodeeble, once a lizard toy but now his fairy godmother, teaches Solly "Lizardry" and tells him secrets in a made-up dialect. For example, after transforming the malevolent stepbrothers into Solly's doting servants, she quips, "Just a weeble switchereeble." The climactic scene is utter mayhemDSolly himself calls it "bedlam"Dwith plot elements that are more over the top than Big Top. The strange activities of the circus will intrigue fantasy fansDeven if they can guess the plot's resolution. Ages 10-up.
Copyright 2000 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From School Library Journal

Grade 4-6-Solly Yanish's dad is off again on yet another long, slightly mysterious business trip, leaving the boy at the mercy of his stepmother and two disagreeable stepbrothers. The only good thing to look forward to is the return of the magical Circus Lunicus. Just when it appears that he won't be able to go because of his many chores, a fairy lizard arrives-sounds like a fractured Cinderella, except that his mother is not dead as he had been told, but is the half-alien and half-human daughter of the circus Ringmaster. The opening chapters are charming, with references to the circus, mysterious developments, and a refreshingly multifaceted stepmother. Solly is a likable lad, and his stepbrothers have a few interesting quirks. As Freeble, the fairy lizard, begins to grow, the plot takes a turn downward. The creature's language, basically English with an "eeble" added to the end of many words, grows tiresome and the pacing becomes rather frantic with alien alligators and a convoluted conclusion. This offbeat novel should appeal to graduates of Jon Scieszka's "Time Warp Trio" tales (Viking). An even stronger humorous alien romp is Daniel Pinkwater's Lizard Music (Dell, 1996).
Marilyn Payne Phillips, University City Public Library, MO
Copyright 2000 Reed Business Information, Inc.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 10 and up
  
• Hardcover: 168 pages
• Publisher: Henry Holt and Co. (BYR); 1st edition (October 1, 2000)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0805062688
• ISBN-13: 978-0805062687
• Product Dimensions: 8.6 x 5.7 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 12.3 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 3.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #3,766,885 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Marilyn Singer was born in the Bronx (New York City) on October 3, 1948 and lived most of her early life in N. Massapequa (Long Island), NY. She attended Queens College, City University of New York, and for her junior year, Reading University, England. She holds a B.A. in English from Queens and an M.A. in Communications from New York University.

In 1974, after teaching English in New York City high schools for several years, she began to write - initially film notes, catalogues, teacher's guides, and film strips. Then, one day, when she was sitting in the Brooklyn Botanic Garden, she penned a story featuring talking insect characters she'd made up when she was eight. Encouraged by the responses she got, she wrote more stories, and in 1976, her first book, The Dog Who Insisted He Wasn't, was published by E.P.Dutton & Co.

Since then, Marilyn has published over eighty books for children and young adults. Her genres are many and varied, including realistic novels, fantasies, non-fiction, fairy tales, picture books, mysteries and poetry. She likes writing many different kinds of books because it's challenging and it keeps her from getting bored.

Marilyn currently lives in Brooklyn, NY, with her husband Steve; their standard poodle Oggi, seen in the home page photo; a cat named August ; two collared doves named Jubilee and Holiday; and a starling that says, "Hi. How are you? Sweet Birdie. Okay!" Her interests include ballroom/Latin dancing, dog training, reading, hiking, bird-watching, gardening, playing computer adventure games, and going to the movies and the theatre. She's also a major Star Trek fan.

Marilyn is the former host of the AOL Children's Writers Chat and currently co-hosts the Poetry Blast at various conferences. Visit her web site: www.marilynsinger.net.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

4.0 out of 5 stars Calling all CinderFELLAS..., December 20, 2000

By 

Freelance Writer (Spokane, Washington United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Circus Lunicus (Hardcover)

For generations, girls have dreamed of having their problems magically put into focus via a fairy godmother, no matter how bleak their lives (with or without ugly-hearted step families) might be. Young MEN now have a hero in mysterious shoes, courtesy of charming and prolific children's author, Marilyn Singer. Thanks to an absentee mother, a work-weary father, a nasty stepmother and two creepy step bros, Solly has it tough. But stumbling on (and in) to the Circus Lunicus will definitely put a new spin on his odd little life. Peeking in on Solly's curious adventure is sure to delight readers from 8 to 10 (not to mention the grown-ups smart enough to snuggle up and read it with them).

4.0 out of 5 stars Highly Imaginative and Funny, December 4, 2000

By A Customer

This review is from: The Circus Lunicus (Hardcover)

Writers have always been attracted to circuses and carnivals. Marilyn Singer is no exception. But in her circus, there's more going on than meets the eye (or claw). Solly, her main character, has been stepped on by life (and especially by his step mother and step brothers). But when the circus enters his life, along with various lizards, the scales start to tip in his direction. Why does the ring master seem to know so much about him? Who is the mysterious little girl he keeps running into? And why does his father have such a strange reaction to lizards? Everything is tied together with wit and humor, making this book a fun and satisfying read.

3.0 out of 5 stars This Circus is Loony, November 13, 2000

By 

D. MCNALLY (Cleveland, OH USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Circus Lunicus (Hardcover)

This is an odd little story with some bizzare twists and turns that ultimately entertains but does not satisfy the reader. Solomon Yanish is the youngest of three boys in a disfunctional family. Solly quickly realizes there is a connection between his mothers disappearance six years ago and the return of the Circus Lunicus. The first half of the book reads like a whimsical mystery as Solly creeps around the circus trying to discover it's secrets. The second half of the book is a science fiction farce. Solly's toy lizard becomes a real six foot tall reptile named Freeble. She helps Solly become a reptile too! Solly finds out that the whole circus crew are from planet Reptilia. Eventually, we find out that Solly's mom is a reptilian and that they came back to reclaim Solly as one of their own. In one of the more "realistic" passages, Solly and his stepmother argue and she smacks him. While this is a bizzare enough tale to hold a child's attention, it lacks focus and meaning.