Life in a Mexican circus - the superficial glamour of greasepaint, costumes and illusion belies a gritty, hard-scrabble existence. Yet, rich interpersonal relationships and a strong community spirit keep the show on the road. Katie Hickman weaves a rich tale of a year spent with Circo Bell’s, sympathetically told - a tapestry of anecdote and character sketches. ( )

Reseña en español: https://boisde-merveilles.blogspot.mx/2018/04/travels-with-mexican-circus-katie_...

Travels with a Mexican Circus was originally titled A Trip to the Light Fantastic. Katie Hickman traveled with the Bell’s circus from 1989 to 1990, and published her book originally in 1993. In 2014 the book was published again with the new name.

Hickman is an English author, who learnt Spanish and decided to join a circus for her book. In the book we can learn about the everyday life of circus artists in Mexico, where, according to the book itself, is where there are (or were when she wrote it) the major number of circuses in the world. The book is interesting because besides showing how the life of circus artists is, it shows the Mexican culture from the eyes of a foreigner.

The stories of the performers are peculiar and interesting on their own right, if you are Mexican you probably know of someone with a dramatic story like those, but if not, you may think life is too hard in Mexico.

Besides her life in the circus, Hickman tells the reader of other experiences she had in the country, as visiting La Selva Lacandona, the monarch butterfly sanctuary in Michoacán, and Catemaco, the city of witches in Veracruz.

The book is well written, descriptive enough to let the reader imagine everything and to make you feel part of the circus, by the end of the book, despite there are several persons she met, I actually found myself fond of them and curious about what happened to them after Hickman left. Bell’s circus is a still running Mexican circus.

If you are interested in circuses, like me, or if you are looking for an interesting nonfiction memoir full of travel and the strong presence of Mexico, you should definitely read this book, I highly recommend it. ( )