Circus Mirandus

Analyze the different tickets children use to enter Circus Mirandus. How do these tickets function as symbols of hope and possibility? What do they reveal about the circus’s philosophy?

Explore the symbol of Ephraim’s bootlace. What does the bootlace mean to Gertrudis? Why does she react so negatively to it?

How do Gertrudis’s childhood experiences influence her behavior as an adult? How does the flashback narrative complicate her portrayal in the present narrative as unkind and rigid?

What does Jenny’s character arc suggest about the relationship between academic intelligence and imagination? Analyze specific examples from the text in your response.

How do Ephraim and Gertrudis operate as character foils? What do their opposing characteristics reveal about Circus Mirandus’s mission to instill faith in wonder and magic in children?

What does Victoria contribute to the story? How does her character impact the characterization of Ephraim, Gertrudis, and the Lightbender?

Jenny concedes that the firetruck must be Jean the elephant if Micah says it is. Analyze this moment through the lens of Imagination Versus Rigidity. What does it reveal about the extent of Jenny’s transformation?

Explore the theme of family legacy in Circus Mirandus. How is Micah’s experience at Circus Mirandus shaped by his grandparents’ legacies?