{"product_id":"the-wonders-of-the-little-world-9781622882526","title":"The Wonders of the Little World","description":"\u003cp\u003e \"A storyteller with remarkable gifts.\" \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e--Kurt Vonnegut, Jr. \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e \u003ci\u003e \u003c\/i\u003e\u003ci\u003e The Wonders of the Little World \u003c\/i\u003eis a compelling novel that, like a journey down the midway of a colorful carnival, is filled with mystery and magic, surprise and wonder.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e Estelle Esmeralda, a fortune teller in a suffocating, small-scale carnival, is unable to predict her own future, much less discover where her missing husband has gone. With their precocious eleven-year-old daughter riding along, Estelle sets out on a road trip to search for Tony, a charismatic tightrope walker who disappeared suddenly on a quest to rectify his past.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e Interspersed between Estelle and Tony's chapters are secret journal entries by the spunky Ariel, who fills the pages with creative observations about her life within the unique and sometimes puzzling confines of the carnival.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e \u003ci\u003eThe Wonders of the Little World\u003c\/i\u003e will delight the reader like a free-wheeling thrill ride that leads straight to the heart. With its unforgettable main characters trying to discover their place in the world, the story explores the thin lines between truth and lies, between who someone is and who they want to be. Part road trip across 1960s America, part love story, and part illumination of a family struggling to heal itself, this novel immerses the reader into a world that is not only entertaining but also moving and, ultimately, enlightening.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eBill Meissner's prose is simultaneously a subtle and high-wire act, and his story-telling talents are on full display in \u003ci\u003eThe Wonders of the Little World\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e. This new novel is both haunting and lovely as Meissner brings this gallery of irresistible, compassionately rendered carnival characters to life. And to a way of life: unique, nomadic, and most of all, emotionally riveting at every stop along the way.\u003cp\u003e -- Jack Driscoll, author of 20 Stories: New \u0026amp; Selected \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eBill Meissner is such a beautiful writer. I admire his voice, his eye for detail, and his gentle humor, and \u003ci\u003eThe Wonders of the Little World \u003c\/i\u003emight be his best novel yet. I was hooked from page one, and ready to follow Ariel, Estelle, and Tony wherever the road might take them. There's wonder and magic in these pages.\u003ci\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e -- Shannon Olson, author of \u003ci\u003eWelcome to My Planet: Where English is Sometimes Spoken\u003c\/i\u003e \u003ci\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003ci\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eRegarding Meissner's previous novel, National Book Award winner Tim O'Brien stated, \"Meissner has the storyteller's gift for creating living characters, living speech, living emotions, living drama. He knows the workings of the human heart.\"\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eBinding Type:\u003c\/b\u003e Paperback\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePublisher:\u003c\/b\u003e Stephen F. Austin University Press\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePublished:\u003c\/b\u003e 01\/31\/2024\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eISBN:\u003c\/b\u003e 9781622882526\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePages:\u003c\/b\u003e 290","brand":"Bill Meissner","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":43600344416437,"sku":"9781622882526","price":21.25,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0473\/0804\/6492\/files\/img_c5d617b2-3b8a-4866-b89c-6d78d6ef92bd.jpg?v=1707207757","url":"https:\/\/pastforward.org\/products\/the-wonders-of-the-little-world-9781622882526","provider":"Past Forward","version":"1.0","type":"link"}