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Circus Shoes Paperback – Import, September 1, 2006

by Noel Streatfeild (Author)

4.5 247 ratings

Part of: The Shoe Books (6 books)

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After the death of the aunt they had been living with, Peter and Santa, orphans, join their Uncle Gus, who works as a clown in the circus

Product details

Publisher ‏ : ‎ Jane Nissen Books (September 1, 2006)
Language ‏ : ‎ English
Paperback ‏ : ‎ 314 pages
ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 1903252253
ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-1903252253
Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 10.6 ounces
Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 6.22 x 0.98 x 8.5 inches

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4.5 247 ratings

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4.5 out of 5

247 global ratings

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InTheStars

An enduring favorite book from my childhood that I'm passing on to ...

Reviewed in the United States on May 12, 2017

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An enduring favorite book from my childhood that I'm passing on to my daughter. Perfect for the middle school age girls (or boys).

One person found this helpful

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Heidi Tandy

Another of the wonderful SHOES books

Reviewed in the United States on May 23, 2000

Do you remember when the Meg Ryan character walked into Tom Hanks' FOX BOOKS store and the customer asked about the "Shoes" books, and a monologue about the wonders of Noel Streatfeild's "Shoes" books ensued, touching on Dancing Shoes, Ballet Shoes, and Skating Shoes, which is absolutely wonderful? That scene made me break down crying, because I had never heard anyone other than myself talk about these terrific books, and the fact that it is tragic that they are mostly out of print and hard to find. This book is a wonderful story of working hard for a goal, and accomplishing it, or at least getting on the road to achieving a reasonable, yet magical, goal. If you want a great book for your favorite elementary school girl, buy this one - then buy the other "Shoes" books (and get a copy of Tennis Shoes for your favorite boy too!)

18 people found this helpful

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Constance Reader

A book like no other

Reviewed in the United States on April 9, 2014

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I'm a fan of Streatfeild's /Shoes/ books from way back: I had Ballet and Movie when I was a kid in the 80s, and have read a few more since then. This book is different from any of the others. In general, Streatfeild is pretty gentle with her protagonists. While a character might be grouchy and untalented (cf Jane in /Movie Shoes/) the author still grants that child with some saving graces. Not so Peter and Santa, the orphans of /Circus Shoes/. Due to their being raised by an idiot aunt, they have reached the ages of 11 and 12 as complete idiots, a fact that Streatfeild points out several times per chapter. There is something sadly hilarious about how stupid and talentless these kids are. They have nothing--literally, nothing--besides their love for each other. They suck at school and lack any sort of street smarts. They have no physical abilities; 12-year-old Peter literally cannot catch a slow lob. They have trouble relating to other human beings all of whom, they've been taught, are beneath them. They are colossal snobs, a trait that shines through in everything they do, including how they dress, talk, and walk. In short, they are practically irredeemable. But Streatfeild is not as cruel as all that: she kills the idiot aunt and sends Peter and Santa to the one atmosphere that could possibly kick them into shape.

When they go "tenting" with their uncle Gus, a true "artiste," they learn the values of circus folk: hard work and more hard work. Pride is taken only in perfect accomplishment. Everyone is equal, and no one is grander than anyone else. Most importantly, the circus people tell Peter and Santa, in no uncertain terms, the things they need to hear, that they are, in fact, idiots. However, they are not inherently idiots. Only the idiotic things they learned from their aunt make them stupid, and correspondingly, if they choose to open their minds, they can learn not to be idiots.

For a kids' book, it's pretty long, because Streatfeild shows Peter and Santa learning everything there is to know about big top life. There are pages and pages dedicated to putting up and taking down the big top. Even more space is dedicated to animal training and psychology, along with some good discussions of various types of acrobatics. And of course, we also see the performances through Peter and Santa's eyes: the first time they ever see the circus, and then, later, when they've learned something about it, more in depth understanding of the art.

Despite their obvious deficiencies, the reader is constantly rooting for the kids. Not, as in the other Shoes books, for the kids to achieve the professional artistic success toward which they have worked for so long, but simply for the kids to join the human race. When Peter learns to ride a horse, it's a great relief, because it's troubling he literally cannot do anything else and, as a reader, you don't want to believe that he's that useless. When Santa learns that she must practice with a will in order to become a true performer, it's a fitting cap to end the softness that characterizes her life up until that point. We're talking about a kid who takes almost 200 pages to realize that she can braid her hair to keep it out of her face.

The only possible ending to this story is for Peter and Santa to transform, completely, in circus performers, but Streatfeild, as she does, saves this climax for the very, very, very ending of the book (there's no denouement), nearly breaking the reader's heart as s/he contemplates how badly Peter and Santa will suck at anything else they set their hands to.

8 people found this helpful

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deborah h. bryant

my very favorite streatfield book

Reviewed in the United States on October 7, 1999

this sweet story of two children who go to live with their uncle in the circus community is a look into a way of life many never see. as a child it fascinated me and as an adult i still have it on my list of "to reread books". if you can find it you will not be disappointed!

19 people found this helpful

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Chrijeff

Nowhere to go

Reviewed in the United States on June 23, 2015

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Peter and his sister Santa, aged 12½ and 11, have lived ever since they were babies with their father’s sister, their Aunt Rebecca, who took them in after their parents were killed in a railway accident. Aunt Rebecca was once lady’s-maid to a duchess, and absorbed many of her ways of thinking, but even the annuity the duchess left her isn’t enough for the threesome to live as she feels they should. There’s no money for boarding school or even a proper tutor, and Peter and Santa have grown up dreadfully ignorant—and worse, they’ve been persuaded that they’re “too grand to know anybody.” They’ve never seen a pantomime, a play, a circus, or even a moving picture; they’ve never known other children; they’ve never been to the country, or the seaside, or even been allowed to walk alone in nearby Battersea Park. But when Aunt Rebecca suddenly dies and her annuity ends, they’re faced with the possibility of being sent to separate orphanages—and since each is all the other one has, they can’t tolerate the thought. Then they remember that they have an uncle they’ve never met, one who sent Aunt Rebecca a card each year at Christmas, though she seems to have lumped him in with the rest of the world as not being grand enough to associate with. His name turns out to be Gus, and he’s “tenting” with Cob’s Circus, which is scheduled to play at Bridlington. Peter and Santa have no more idea of what circus life is than the man in the moon, but they know that this is their father’s brother; surely he’ll take them in, just as Aunt Rebecca did. So they run away to find him.

Cob’s is literally a whole new world for them. They meet other children, German, Russian, and French, as well as many grown-up “artistes” and Ben Willis, the horsemaster. They go to school—a different one every few days—for the first time. They learn that they’re nowhere near as “grand” as Aunt Rebecca led them to think—their grandfather and father were gardeners! They find, too, that one of their new friends, Alexsis Petoff, is being pushed by his father to join the family high-school-horse act, even though what he truly wants is to be an aerialist. Then, as the tenting season comes to a close, Uncle Gus begins to talk of technical schools and getting them into offices. But by this time they know, like him at their age, that the circus is where they belong, even if they only stay there long enough to train to be a groom and a gymnasium teacher. The thought of a life in offices fills them with despair, and they wish they could do something to help Alexsis, who, like them, is being pressured to do something for which he has neither heart nor gift. But how can two children, not yet old enough to live on their own, persuade the adults that they really do know what they want?

Small circuses like Cob’s are more or less extinct today, but much of the lingo and the training, the putting on of the show itself, the logistics of travel and making ready for travel, are probably unchanged. Since most children are fascinated by circuses (even if they’re afraid of clowns!), they should enjoy this story.

7 people found this helpful

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Denise Collet

Circus shoes

Reviewed in France on July 5, 2014

Verified Purchase

Ce livre ne correspond pas au modèle que j'avais demandé. J'avais choisi un livre broché !!! Je fais avec !!!

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Acchu

book was damaged on arrival

Reviewed in India on May 11, 2014

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On opening the package I found the book in a very damaged state. Please be more careful in packing your products.

RC

Another great Noel Streatfeild book

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on May 29, 2013

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I read Ballet Shoes, White Boots, Theatre Shoes and Tennis Shoes when I was young and bought them all for my daughter a few years ago. We both love the books and realised this one had slipped below our 'radar', so I had to order it straight away and it didn't disappoint! These are just lovely, feel good books about times, sadly long gone.

2 people found this helpful

Mrs R.

Good book

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on May 9, 2021

Verified Purchase

Great memory

Amazon Customer

It came within the predicted time.

Reviewed in Canada on February 16, 2020

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