num_pages: 384
description: The acclaimed author of A Prayer for the Dying brings all his narrative gifts to bear on this gripping account of tragedy and heroism-the great Hartford circus fire of 1944.Halfway through a midsummer afternoon performance, Ringling Brothers Barnum and Bailey Circus's big top caught fire. The tent had been waterproofed with a mixture of paraffin and gasoline; in seconds it was burning out of control, and more than 8,000 people were trapped inside. Drawing on interviews with hundreds of survivors, O'Nan skillfully re-creates the horrific events and illuminates the psychological oddities of human behavior under stress: the mad scramble for the exits; the hero who tossed dozens of children to safety before being trampled to death. Brilliantly constructed and exceptionally moving, The Circus Fire is history at its most compelling.
language: English
title: The Circus Fire: A True Story of an American Tragedy
titlecomplete: The Circus Fire: A True Story of an American Tragedy
genres: Historical, True Crime, Audiobook, History, Crime, 20th Century, Survival, Tragedy, American History, Nonfiction
ratings_count: 2580
places: Hartford, Connecticut
publisher: Anchor