posted on 18 Jul 2018

Houdini and the Five Cent Circus by Keith Gray

I am probably a bit too dismissive of people who can perform extraordinary physical feats such as being able to climb Everest, break world athletic records or escape from underwater cages where they have been imprisoned with multiple locks. I can’t help thinking that they might have been better employed using their energy and skill for more worthwhile purposes! On the other hand, the sheer tenacity and determination to succeed, particularly in difficult circumstances, can inspire some really thrilling stories.

Harry Houdini’s rise from rags to riches to become a celebrity escapologist is definitely one of these. I would imagine that most adults would recognise his name and using it has even become shorthand for describing how people can wriggle through complex negotiations and difficult challenges. I am not so sure that children know about him, so this interesting fictional book based on his early life might fill a gap their general knowledge.

Erik Weisz is a penniless immigrant growing up in Appleton, a small Wisconsin town and has  developed the extraordinary skill of lock picking from an early age. The story opens with one memorable night when his friend, Jack dares him to open the locks of every shop in the high street. If he succeeds he expects to be allowed to join and perform in Jack’s amateur Five-Cent Circus. Much to everyone’s astonishment, he manages to complete the dare and is suitably reprimanded but not punished.

I’m not sure whether this story is based on factual history but I don’t think that really matters. All books published by Barrington Stoke are ‘crammed with ingenious design and editorial tricks to ensure an accessible read’. It is believable and immediate because it uses plenty of dialogue between the three friends, Erik, Jack and Mattie, the girl who recounts the story. Right from the start we can see that Erik is an embryonic showman:

‘He wanted them to see every shop door along College Avenue flung wide open. He wanted them to gawp and wonder at what he’d done. If Erik ran, he’d never see the looks on their faces. And they’d never know it was him who’d done his amazing thing’.

His reputation and status grows when the local sheriff asks him to unpick the padlock on some handcuffs because the key is lost. His success focuses attention of peoples concern for better security and his employer is very pleased to be selling a record number of locks as a result.

When Jack gives Erik and Matti some free tickets to see a real circus he is inspired to stay behind and ask the magician how he does his amazing tricks. He isn’t too keen to reveal his professional secrets but instead recommends that he reads a book: ‘The Memoirs of Jean Robert- Houdin’. 

As you might expect, Erik’s exploits are also noticed by some wily criminals who can see how they might exploit his skills. The subsequent exciting and dangerous adventure is at the heart of the story and certainly adds to his celebrity status.

Erik’s father, Rabbi Weiss, decides that he needs to join the rest of his family who have been living far away in Milwaukee but not before he has given a great performance in the Five-Cent Circus with his Appleton friends where he confidently pronounces:

‘I am Erik Houdini, the King of Escape’

And the rest is history.

 

Karen Argent

July 2018