The Traveling Circus

Gr 2-4--Family adventures begun in Travels with My Family (2006) and On the Road Again (2008, both Groundwood) continue for Charlie, younger brother Max, and their parents. This time they are off to Croatia after Charlie discovers an old postcard under the stove. With a dreamy, artistic mother and a slightly spacey father, Charlie and always-hungry Max are free (sometimes unbelievably so at the ages of roughly 12 and six) to engage in zany, episodic encounters with the local environment and personalities. Fascinated by a language with almost no vowels (they head to the island of Krk), Charlie narrates fishing attempts gone wrong, labyrinths with scary hermit "minotaurs" in the center, goats used as traffic control, and war-torn villages. Charlie's voice and humor lighten even the darker moments, and his interaction with, and eventual appreciation of, even the quirkiest characters will guide young readers by example. VERDICT While the picaresque format precludes either a complex plot or any significant character development, this fun romp, with a lovable narrator and enhanced by Gay's charming pencil drawings, is recommended for children graduating from beginning readers to chapter books.--Katherine Koenig, The Ellis School, PA