Sideshow U.S.A.: Freaks and the American Cultural Imagination

This was required reading for a graduate course on abject bodies. It was an amazing piece that opened my eyes to just what we do to freaks, and what freaks we are to them.

I wanted to like this book; I really did. The synopsis on Amazon was intriguing, and the subject matter had already captured my imagination. But rather than having the snap and sparkle of a sideshow, this book read like a leaden lecture, more suited to a grad school classroom. I found myself re-reading some sentences four and five times. Why didn't a good editor get ahold of this book and pare down the dense and sluggish passages that show up on every page? History and criticism don't have to feel like a visit to the dentist; they can read like a trip to the beach, and still get the point across. Kenneth Tynan and Bruce Catton come to mind... While the book contains much interesting information, I just don't think the destination is worth the trip. It's not that I'm dense; I have a master's degree myself, and I have read plenty of advanced textbooks. It's just that a book on sideshows should bring a certain amount of the magic and wonder of those shows to the reader, instead of feeling pretentious and cold. A good opportunity missed; you'd be much better served reading Marc Hartzman's "American Sideshow" or Joe Nickell's "Secrets of the Sideshows," both available on Amazon, and worth your money. But skip this one unless you just have to have every book on the subject, or you want an example of how not to write a book.

For me, this book was somewhat boring because the author seems to be showing off her intellect, rather than focusing on freaks. She did a fantastic job of using big words and analyzing every possible aspect of freak shows, the people involved, and what other people think about it. It's a well written book for someone who likes to read analytical opinions, and I understand that the opinions expressed were pretty correct, but as I said, it was boring to me. If you are one who can read "big words" and "big sentences" (more educated than me, and able to get the sense and meaning of long statements with big words without having to stop and go over what was being said or to look up the meanings of words)....you would most likely enjoy this book. You can see that the author is an intelligent and highly educated person.

Excellent and detailed history.Would highly recommend!

A great book that tackles well covered topics from a fresh perspective. Well worth a read for sideshow/carnival fans.

I ordered this book because of my thesis. I wasn't sure how exactly I was gonna include it, but it turned out great. Great info about sideshows. Thanks, I got an A and graduated

Recently I've read through a few books on sideshows and freaks (sort of side resarch for my next novel). Most are skimming histories of people and events. Adams has created something altogether different. Drawing on poststructuralist techniques, Barthes, theories of the leisure class, and methodologies of deconstructing narratives of the other (what "freak" would do all this!!??) she pursues the notion of freaks from appropriated nomenclature to social constructs, to name a couple avenues. You want to understand Browning's movie, then this is the essay.Her research drew upon many sources, often comprehensive, at other times less than complete. The problems are minor, some people in photographs or freaks who wrote about their positions are not mentioned, or a name might be missing in the index, or a photo clearly dated 1885 in the picture is listed as 1903. And on a broader level I suppose she could be faulted for falling into the same trap she critiques, that of denying her her subjects voices (kudos for mentioning Gayatri Spivak but what would she say about this?)But don't misread my finicky carping. This is an excellent book and one I'd recommend above all others I've seen for digging into our individual and collective psychologies. Read it and learn why the freaks say, "Gooble Gobble Gooble Gobble, we will make you one of us."

Superb book: it explores theories of the body, of primitivism, of Other-ness and also of Reception Theory. The latter was particularly enlightening, as it clearly showed that the way freaks have been portrayed, represented and written/talked about says more about the portrayer than the portrayed. At many points in this fascinating book, I shouted 'Yes! Yes!' because it is full of such excellent insights.