“I know what you’re thinking.”
People might say that to you — but do they, really? Yes, their guess might be close but you’ve had different experiences and a unique background, and they’re not you. Friends might deduce what you’re thinking but, unlike the twins in the new novel, “One of Us” by Dan Chaon, they’re not in your head.
Wherever they ended up, it would be better than before.
Truth be known, Eleanor Lambkin wasn’t surprised when neither she nor her twin brother, Bolt, made it to the end of the Orphan Train line without being adopted. At thirteen, they were not particularly pretty children and because they’d been able to hear one another’s thoughts since they were small, she knew Bolt wasn’t very bright.
She wasn’t sure what was awaiting them at the end of the line so when the train stopped in Shenandoah, Iowa, and a Mr. Jengling of the Jengling Emporium of Wonders said he’d take them, she was relieved. Even the circus was better than living with that creepy “Uncle” Charlie, who snatched them up when their mother died and who really wasn’t related.
And so Eleanor and Bolt settled in with their new siblings, among them a three-legged woman, a fat man-baby, a boy with long hair covering his body, a “miniature woman,” and a very tall Chinese man. Their new father was kind, there was always food, their new siblings seemed welcoming, and the work wasn’t too harsh.
Eleanor knew that Bolt liked it there, as the Emporium traveled throughout the Midwest, South Dakota, Nebraska, and Iowa. She wasn’t so sure about living with freaks, though.
As soon as she saw an opportunity, she was leaving, with or without Bolt.
Charles Lambkin, Chuck, C.M, whatever he called himself these days, was on the hunt. Those children were stolen from him and so was his chance to make money. A little murder, a little acting, he’d have those kids back.
It wouldn’t be long…
As a fan of the circus-novel genre, you probably have some expectations. Magic, for sure, maybe something foreboding and lots of weirdness. You’ll have all that fulfilled with “One of Us,” but with a difference. This novel is less dark, more snark.
Indeed, author Dan Chaon will make you snort sometimes with sentences that sneak up on you with catch-you-quick cleverness, and a bad guy who’s gleefully awful. More fun: it’s easy to forget that there are two threads running parallel here; there you are, enjoying half of the tale, transported to a dusty field in 1915, listening to “freaks” doubling as carnies, when Chaon abruptly switches gears through chapters. It ratchets up the adrenaline every time.
Every. Time.
Readers of this genre will love “One of Us” most, but those who are circus history or sideshow history fans will (surprise!) appreciate the authenticity and real people that Chaon adds here. So step right up, see what’s inside the Big Top — and if you’re in need of a good, creepy novel soon, this is worth the thought.
“One of Us” by Dan Chaon c.2025, Henry Holt $28 288 pages