‘A Girl Made of Air’ by Nydia Hetherington

This is one of the many books released on 3rd September that I can recommend.

As a huge fan of Angela Carter’s ‘Nights at the Circus’, I’m always up for a book about the glamour and grit of life in a circus and this one promised much. The story of The Greatest Funambulist Who Ever Lived proved too much of a temptation for me so I had to read this ahead of publication on 3rd September.

The story follows a girl born into a circus family – her father tends the animals while her mother is a star attraction due to her act of swimming with crocodiles. Neglected by her parents, the girl (who is not given a name in the book) is taken under the wing of a flame-haired tightrope walker called Serendipity Wilson; from her, she learns the circus skills that will be central to her future and sets in motion events that will see her seeking a missing child and uncovering truths about her own past.

This book is told mainly by an older narrator who is reflecting on the events of her life while revisiting documents – letters, photos, a book page – that prompt her telling of the story. She is ostensibly telling her story to a journalist (the first chapter is a transcribed conversation) but – as the novel progresses – it becomes a written account interspersed with folk tales from the Isle of Man as told to the narrator by Serendipity Wilson.

There was lots to like in the novel, from the brushes with magic realism (as in the glow of Serendipity’s hair) to the cast of characters who – while not all nice – are certainly distinctive. I particularly liked Big Gen and Cubby, although they were all vivid and interesting, from tragic Marina to larger-than-life Serendipity. I loved the settings – the duality of the circus is especially well evoked, with its grim and earthy seediness set alongside its veneer of glamour. I also really enjoyed the snippets of the folk tales which made engaging diversions from the main narrative. The inclusion of tiny bits of history from the world outside the circus also worked really well – lots of the novel felt quite timeless, but the references to the Berlin Olympic Games and the Holocaust gave the story compelling historical roots.

Personally, I found the beginning of the book a little slow compared to the second half where the story really picked up its purpose and moved on to another interesting location (no spoilers!) However, the opening sections did explain the emotional ties (or lack of) between characters which are important to the rest of the novel.

Overall, I would recommend this as an engaging story with some excellent characterisation and setting choices. It doesn’t quite have the glorious grotesqueness of Angela Carter, but it does have an emotional pull that kept me reading.

I received a free copy of the book from NetGalley in return for an honest review.

If you’d like to buy a copy of this book (and it is a gorgeous hardback!), the link is below. I may earn commission on this at no extra cost to you.

Header photo with thanks to Miikka Luotio for sharing their work on Unsplash.