Exploring Top Books of Shelfari

Good characters, a good story and some nasty imagery combine to make The Freakshow one of the most fun reads I've had in a long time. I can't wait to see what Smith does next, though it's going to be very hard to top The Freakshow! -- Dread Central (dreadcentral.com)

Freakery: Cultural Spectacles of the Extraordinary Body

Freakery: Cultural Spectacles of the Extraordinary Body

Giants. Midgets. Tribal non-Westerners. The very fat. The very thin. Hermaphrodites. Conjoined twins. The disabled. The very hirsute. In American history, all have shared the platform equally, as freaks, human oddities, their only commonality their assigned role of anomalous other to the gathered throngs. For the price of a ticket, freak shows offered spectators an icon of bodily otherness whose difference from... (more)

Fire Eating: A Manual of InstructionBen Mack

Fire Eating: A Manual of Instruction

by Ben Mack, Benjamin Garth

Monsters : human freaks in America's gilded age : the photographs of Chas. Eisenmann

Monsters : human freaks in America's gilded age : the photographs of Chas. Eisenmann

by Charles Eisenmann

Called "monsters" by the medical profession, the subjects of this photographic collection made their living appearing in circuses, side shows, and living museums across America from the 1880s through the 1890s. Photographer Charles Eisenmann captured the images of these unusual people within his New York studio apartment. Originally released in 1979, this new edition includes the 80 original images and background... (more)

Modern Primitives (Re/Search)

Modern Primitives is the Bible of Body Modification, including tattoo, piercing, and scarification. An amazing 30-page interview with Fakir Musafar, as well as in-depth interviews with Ed Hardy, Lyle Tuttle, Leo Zulueta, Bill Salmon, Vyvyn Lazonga and other tattoo giants is featured. This book describes non-tribal people who felt and responded to strong "primitive" urges. A classic; this is the first book to... (more)

American Sideshow

by Marc Hartzman

A fascinating look into the history of the American sideshow and its performers. Learn what's real, what's fake, and what's just downright bizarre. You've probably heard of Tom Thumb. The Elephant Man. Perhaps even Chang and Eng, the original Siamese twins. But what about Eli Bowen, the legless acrobat? Or Prince Randian, the human torso? These were just a few of the many stars that shone during the heyday of... (more)

Geek Love

by Katherine Dunn

Geek Love is the story of the Binewskis, a carny family whose mater- and paterfamilias set out–with the help of amphetamine, arsenic, and radioisotopes–to breed their own exhibit of human oddities. There’s Arturo the Aquaboy, who has flippers for limbs and a megalomaniac ambition worthy of Genghis Khan . . . Iphy and Elly, the lissome Siamese twins . . . albino hunchback Oly, and the outwardly normal Chick,... (more)

Memoirs of a Sword Swallower

by Daniel Pratt Mannix

Memoirs of a Sword Swallower is Daniel P. Mannix's autobiography as a sword-swallower with a traveling sideshow, illustrated with photos from the 30s and 40s taken by the author. An example of Classic Americana, this book offers a portrayal of a vanished world of working-class performance artists who earned a living by their unique bodies and imaginations. Stars include the Fat Lady, the human beanpole, the... (more)

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Tags: sideshow

The Freakshow

by Bryan Smith