The great and only Barnum: The tremendous, stupendous life of showman P. T. Barnum by Candace Fleming
Published by Schwartz & Wade Books, 2009 This book is recommended for young readers from 8 to 14 Lexile Reading Level 980L (MetaMetrics) Awards
I am struggling with this book recommendation. In our blogs we are supposed to choose “the best of the best” and The Great and Only Barnum has won numerous awards as noted above. The author, Candace Fleming, is a meticulous researcher and compelling writer with many wonderful books to her credit. This is the third book I’ve read by her in recent weeks and all three were lavishly published with period details, illustrations, and photos that bring the stories to life. So why my hesitation? Because I hate this guy! I honestly can’t stand P. T. Barnum! Kirkus Reviews writes of the author, “much as she admires her subject, she does not flinch in revealing Barnum’s notable faults – his cruelty as a husband, indifference as a father, (the) exploitation of animals and the deformities and handicaps of human ‘curiosities’” (Kirkus Reviews, 2009). Let’s look more closely at some of the more egregious “faults” mentioned in the book. In 1835 Barnum bought an old slave woman named Joice Heth. Her owner claimed she was 161 years old, a claim Barnum was pleased to exploit even though it was later learned she was only about 80. He called her an “exhibit” and made as much as $1500 a week “displaying” her to paying customers. When she died, he saw another opportunity to make money and charged admission to her “dissection” (autopsy) in New York (p. 24-26). The author tells us that Barnum was not the only one profiting off of the misfortunes of people like Joice, but that doesn’t make this any less despicable. We learn the definition of the term “humbug” and that Barnum reveled in it. Fleming tells us a humbug is “something fake that is packaged and advertised so cleverly that people think it is real” (p. 54) and that was Barnum’s stock in trade. She tells us about one of Barnum’s most famous humbugs, “The Fejee Mermaid”. In 1842 Barnum made up a fake story and submitted it anonymously to the newspapers about how this “real-life mermaid” had been caught off the coast of the Fiji Islands and he displayed this nasty mummified half monkey/half fish to paying customers. The author tells us that Barnum wrote that he “delighted in having humbugged so many people. It was his life’s monument” (p. 82). So now we know that P. T. Barnum was a contemptible businessman; how was his personal life? Fleming tells us he wasn’t a much better person in private either. Barnum thrilled in providing entertainment for families with children, but largely ignored his own. His youngest daughter Pauline once said, “I always came second to show business’” (p. 79). He treated his wife Charity abominably: ignoring her, making fun of her, and having affairs (“friendships”) throughout their marriage. At last he caps a lifetime of disrespect by leaving the deathly ill woman at home and traveling to Europe. She dies two months after his departure, but when news reaches him in Germany he doesn’t trouble himself to rush home to his family; he sets sail for London where he meets and marries a woman 40 years his junior less than thirteen weeks after Charity’s death (p. 107). Great guy. Do you see my dilemma? However, I keep telling myself one doesn’t necessarily have to admire a character to appreciate a story about him. This book is wonderfully researched with a thorough bibliography of sources in the back. The author tells us that “most of the information…came directly from Barnum” himself (p. 144). Fleming provides us with links to “finding Barnum on the Web” (p. 145) in her source notes. Another very helpful section is provided of books that help the reader better understand “the nineteenth century’s acceptance of human exhibitions” (p. 145). I believe that there is insight there and while I realize that without displaying themselves, many of these people would have had almost no other way to make money, I still find their exploitation repugnant. I can’t bring myself to celebrate the success of people like Barnum who engaged in it. As I mentioned, Fleming’s books are always laid out so expertly. In addition to the many photos and period drawings in her book, she has reproductions of ads and playbills to lead us into the story. There are a collection of cards on page 121 of some of Barnum’s more famous sideshow subjects like Jo Jo, The Dog-faced Boy. She uses a technique throughout her book of a black box with white typeface to explain a particular subject more thoroughly. One such box is called “Little People in the Spotlight” where Fleming tells us that little people (midgets and dwarves) were popular celebrities dating back to the Egyptian times (p. 65). Often the author will calculate 19th century dollars into 21st century amounts so we better understand them. For instance, Barnum’s American Museum made $136,000 in 1853 which was equal to almost $3.5 million nowadays (p. 38). I think young readers, particularly those around 5th or 6th grade, would be interested in reading this book. I remember when I was in 5th grade I visited the Ripley’s Museum in St. Augustine, Florida. Back then, Ripley’s Believe it or Not! was in our newspaper and I used to read it. That’s an age where oddities and “believe it or not” stories can really intrigue and engage a child. As a classroom project, I would want to encourage a lot of discussion about Barnum’s methods. I can think of several questions to generate discussion with the kids: “How would you feel about being “humbugged?”. “Is it okay to trick someone to make money?” “Are some tricks alright if everyone knows they are fake?” “How would you feel if you were Joice Heth? “How would you feel about having P. T. Barnum for a father?” “What do you admire about P. T. Barnum?” Before reading this book I primarily thought of P. T. Barnum in terms of his circus, but Fleming doesn’t even begin to write about that aspect of Barnum’s life until page 100, almost two-thirds of the way through the book. In The Great and Only Barnum we read about the tragic death of Jumbo the elephant just a few pages after we first meet him. We smile at a lovely, happy picture of the elephant in London (p. 126) and then we see the poor creature dead after being hit by a train (p. 130). Young readers may remember hearing that the world-famous Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus closed in May 2017 after nearly 150 years which makes a timely connection to this book for discussion. An article in National Geographic would be an excellent starting point for a dialogue about what it means for a circus to close and what young readers think should become of these animals: http://news.nationalgeographic.com/2017/05/wildlife-watch-ringling-circus-animal-welfare-photography/ I think it will be hard for many young readers to relate to P. T. Barnum. Much of his life story is going to be so far removed from any of their experiences, but this is an entertaining biography that will probably capture their interest. This book also provides great elements for a current discussion with young readers about how to treat animals as well as our fellow human beings. How children feel about aspects of Barnum’s story would make for appropriate and interesting conversation. Resources: Daly, N. (2017, May 20). Why all of America’s circus animals could soon be free. National Geographic. Retrieved from http://news.nationalgeographic.com/2017/05/wildlife-watch-ringling-circus-animal-welfare-photography/ Fleming, C. (2017). Books. Candace Fleming – Author - Speaker. Retrieved from http://www.candacefleming.com/books/bk_barnum.html Fleming, C. (2009). The great and only Barnum: The tremendous, stupendous life of showman P.T. Barnum. New York: Schwartz & Wade Books. Kirkus Reviews. (2009, August 15). [Review of the book The great and only Barnum: The tremendous, stupendous life of showman P. T. Barnum]. Retrieved from https://www.kirkusreviews.com/book-reviews/candace-fleming/the-great-and-only-barnum/ Lexile Framework for Reading. (2017). MetaMetrics, Inc. Retrieved from https://fab.lexile.com/book/details/9780375841972/
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