Barnum : an American life

by Robert Wilson

Paper Book, 2019

Publication

New York : Simon & Schuster, 2019.

Collection

Call number

Biography B

Physical description

x, 341 p.; 25 cm

Status

Available

Call number

Biography B

Description

"P. T. Barnum was the greatest showman the world has ever seen: the cocreator of the Barnum & Bailey Circus and the man who made worldwide sensations of Jumbo the Elephant, General Tom Thumb, and the "Swedish Nightingale," Jenny Lind. He was the champion of wonder, joy, trickery, and "humbug." He was, as Barnum argues, one of the most important Americans of the nineteenth century. Nearly 125 years after his death, the name P. T. Barnum still inspires wonder. Robert Wilson's vivid new biography captures the full genius, infamy, and allure of the ebullient showman. From birth to death, Phineas Taylor Barnum repeatedly reinvented himself. He learned as a young man how to wow crowds, and built a fortune that placed him among the first millionaires in the United States. He also suffered tragedy, bankruptcy, and fires that destroyed his life's work, yet willed himself to rebuild and succeed again. As an entertainer, Barnum courted controversy time and again throughout his life--yet he was also a man of strong convictions, guided in his work not by a desire to deceive but an eagerness to thrill and bring joy to his audiences. He almost certainly never uttered the infamous line, "There's a sucker born every minute," instead taking pride in giving crowds their money's worth and more"--… (more)

User reviews

LibraryThing member knightlight777
Bio of the great American showman P.T. Barnum. The book was interesting enough and I learned things about him that I was surprised as we only see caricatures of him as something of a huckster.

The real Barnum comes off more as a upstanding type who led an almost charmed life with his successes
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albeit off of what today we would probably refer to as spin. He certainly made a fortune, lost it, than made it again even bigger. It was never really equated to today's dollars but it might have put him up in the billionaire status.

I was somewhat surprised to see his circus venture came later in life and really his museums and traveling individual shows were most of his life. An interesting man in interesting times.
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LibraryThing member Beamis12
I doubt there are many people who have never heard of Barnum. Even if nothing else is known about the man, his longest lasting legacy, his circus, would be known. Long before the circus, his touring with nature's oddities, real or not, was his first endeavour. This brought him into the public eye,
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where many considered him a con man. A mermaid, a woman said to be George Washingtons nurse and 116 years old were his introduction to the public. This book fills in the blanks, how he got from there to becoming in his later life, altruistic and a sponsor of many worthy projects that benefited many.

He was a master at advertising, publicity, knew just how to play the newspapers. Yes, he conned many, but keep in mind they had no tv, so this was amusements that were accepted. He toured with the little general Tom Thumb, and the singer Jenny Kind. He made fortunes, lost fortunes, fire would wild out his house, his businesses, many more than once. He remade himself, time and time again. i truly felt for his wife and children, though there would be heartbreak there as well. He never stopped, going from this to that, even in his seventies.

The author, I felt, showed the good with the bad, letting the reader decide how they felt about this man. Flawed, complicated with many mistakes and start overs, but one has to admire his business acumen. His keeping his pulse on what people wanted to see, which he was more than happy to provide. His cavalier attitude towards animals was off-putting at times, and these were difficult parts, but again the author gave it to us straight. Ultimately, he gave much to his home town, among them a public library, church and hospital. This was a very interesting read.

The narrator was Arthur Morey and I give his narration four stars as well.
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LibraryThing member daffodilsandpoppies
"Barnum" was a very detailed and interesting book about the life of the greatest showman on earth. Unfortunately, it was a slog to read because Wilson had to pack in as many details as possible. I found myself skipping over passages here and there. Without those details, however, readers would be
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left without a full grasp of who Barnum was as man, a friend, a family man, and, above all, a crafty businessman. There was was so much to learn about Barnum and his place in history. Taken in small chunks at a time, you'll enjoy learning about the showman
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Language

ISBN

9781501118623
Page: 0.3072 seconds