The Circus Fire

Rating:
Summary: One of the Most Compelling Books I Have Ever Read
Review: Even though this event took place in our capital city of Hartford, Connecticut 15 years before I was born, I had heard and read about the fire throughout my life. No newspaper accounts, though, quite prepared me for the story presented here. Mr. O'Nan obviously did exhaustive research and interviews for this book. He actually makes the reader feel as though they are right inside the tent as the fire is raging. And the humanity felt afterward during the identification of the bodies and the investigation into how the fire started and who was responsible is very deeply felt. No detail is left out. At times, even, I felt I was told a little more than I needed to know. All in all, a fascinating read and a very well-written book.

Rating:
Summary: Fasinating History
Review: Until I read this book, I had only the basic information about the fire. With this book, I feel like I have personally got to know the people involved. I Highly recommend this book.

Rating:
Summary: The Circus Fire : A True Story
Review: The Circus Fire was an excellant book, my Aunt was killed in the fire and my Grandmother, Grandfather and Uncle were injured, it was interesting to read about the fire as I have heard stories about it during my childhood. Thank you Stewart O'Nan for bringing the history of this tragedy to my generation.

Rating:
Summary: A Remarkable Piece of Work
Review: This account of a ghastly event is extremely well researched and written. There is no hyperbole, no wringing of hands. The author simply lets the story tell itself through those who were there, for the most part.

Here is but a single stunning example, from p.109: "Several survivors said the one thing they will never forget about the circus fire as long as they live is the sound of the animals as they burned alive. But there were no animals." How much more effective that is, as prose, than the alternative method of saying the same thing.

Stories of individual selfishness and total selflessness abound, as they do in an accurate account of any great tragedy. The author does not omit either, so that the reader comes away with a feel for what it must have been like that hot July afternoon in Hartford, one month after D-Day.

I had misgivings about how well this could be told, before I read the book. Not now. I'd recommend this to any circus fan, to anyone who wants to read something really well written and thoroughly researched.

My only criticism is that the photos, many taken by amateurs, to be sure, are not well produced. I like the fact that they are on the pages where they fit, but in doing this on regular paper, details and drams are lost.

Rating:
Summary: History at it's Best
Review: O'Nan has done a great job in presenting this tragic episode in American history. Easy to read but extremely compelling (I read it in one evening). The author does a wonderful job in detailing minute by minute developments, heart wrenching but not too "gooey". In the league of other great disater histories such as McCullough's "The Jonestown Flood" and "The Perfect Storm". This story would make a wonderful movie.

Rating:
Summary: After 56 years a Masterpiece
Review: Stewart O'Nan has taken the research and the true-life stories of the survivors of the 1944 Hartford Circus Fire and created a true historical accounting of this tragedy, and a memorial to the 168 people who entered the tent that very hot day in July expecting a wonderful show,only to end that day in terrible injury or death. I was at the circus that July 6th, a five-year old who was saved by a then unknown benefactor, who scooped me up when my mother was pushed down and trampled upon as we were fleeing the fire. I am amazed that it took 56 years for someone to write this accounting of that terrible, hot, steamy July day. Stewart O'Nan.s book serves as both an historical document and a wonderful memorial to the 168 people who perished.Thank you Mr. O'Nan for a wonderful job

Rating:
Summary: Accurate, straightforward and clear
Review: "The Circus Fire" is perfect non-fiction. Mr. O'Nan has researched his story well and told it in a manner that does justice to the story and the victims, and serves less as a testament to his skillful writing than the eloquence of a great disaster. One common error in a book of this sort is a lack of illustrations, photos, maps, etc. Mr. O'Nan has recognized this and included wonderful maps, diagrams and plenty of photos; not just clustered in the middle, but interspersed throughout the narrative where they are needed and most appropriate. Though never a circus fan, and having been born a full five years after the disaster, I am very glad I now know about an event that was so memorable and traumatic a part of the lives of people I grew up around.

Rating:
Summary: disappointed
Review: I looked forward to this book ever since I read about it. I especially was looking forward to such a compelling story being told by one of our great contemporary authors. Having said that, I was truly disappointed as I plodded through this account of one of the more devastating human disasters of this century! Maybe it was just me, but it seemed that every chapter was like the "begats" the bible, meaning this book was " . . . and then this happened . . . and then this . . . and then this . . . and then" (you get the picture). It just seemed very pedestrian to me. I wonder if I am the only one who feels this way?

That said, it IS a truly remarkable story and it is surprising that it hasn't been written before. Right now, I am looking forward to reading "A Matter of Degree" by Massey and Davey to be published soon, which is also an account of the Hartford circus fire. In addition, I enjoy the links Amazon provides, and after reading about "The Winecoff Fire" and "The Texas City Disaster, 1947" as noted above, I have ordered and received them and will let you know how I liked them.

This book, "The Circus Fire", does provide all the facts and many, many great photos, but I just wish the story was told in a more interesting/readable fashion.

Rating:
Summary: This is the best book about a disaster that I have ever read
Review: I found this book to be extremely hard to put down. It is very exciting and well written. I really felt that I was there at the circus in Hartford, Connecticut on July 6, 1944!

Rating:
Summary: Excellence!
Review: This is an excellent book for those who love to read about disasters or for those who love the circus and have a need to know what really goes on behind the hoop-la.

When I first started reading this book, I expected to just read about 1 fire. To my great surprise, you just don't read about 1 fire, but many different types of disasters or accidents that have happened to the many different circuses, as well as some other events that the author thought the reader should know about.

This book is excellent! I plan on re-reading this book over and over. The pictures are great! It gives you a real feel for how people felt -- and how everything also happened to the animals (the sad tale of them all).

Bravo! to the author!