Roll up, roll up! A history of the circus from Ancient Egypt to the present

Linda Simon’s compact and colourful circus history is, in many ways, a jewel of a publication. It is hard to say anything new about the circus because almost impossible to uncover quotes and stories that cannot be found in other books. The circus itself — disregarding the circus of ancient Rome — is a modern form and so the stock of images available for this type of illustrated history is quite limited and well known. But here are some interesting photographs of ceramic Mexican acrobats, and an Egyptian fresco of a female contortionist which back up one of Simon’s themes: using the body as a spectacle is an ancient impulse, of which the circus as we know it is just one manifestation.

Simon writes about the various phases of circus history in a dense, rich prose — enlivened by some superb chapter-headings, quotes and anecdotes. Here is an eclectic and well-chosen compilation of responses to, and illustrations of, the circus.