Paradise on the Pike - by Sarah Angleton (Paperback)

About the Book

German immigrant Max is a zookeeper at Hagenbeck's Animal Paradise at the 1904 World's Fair where people are on display, exotic animals run free, and a grisly murder threatens the future of the exhibit, the Fair, and the woman he loves.

Book Synopsis

1903

Twenty-year-old Max Eyer is still reeling from his father's recent death when a mysterious stranger's offer to buy the family farm outside of Hamburg, Germany presents to him and his mother an unexpected opportunity to make a fresh start in America.

Welcomed by his uncle's bustling family in St. Louis, Max finds employment on the grounds of the upcoming 1904 World's Fair, where he is hired as a zookeeper at Hagenbeck's Animal Paradise on the Pike. Max's enchantment with the trained animals shows, ostrich rides, and water sliding elephants is rivaled only by his fascination with Shehani, a beautiful Sinhalese woman who captivates the crowds of fairgoers by dancing among the lions.

However Max's paradise unravels when a grisly discovery leads to an accusation of murder against the woman he loves. His efforts to uncover the truth may save her, but in this fantasy land of the fair where palaces are temporary, animals roam free, and people are on exhibit, will his own dreams be shattered by an ugly reality?

Review Quotes

"Paradise on the Pike is a rich and deeply researched foray into the St. Louis World's Fair of 1904. Its appealing main character and exciting plot draws readers in, and its mastery of World's Fair history lends a sense of solid realism." -Steve Wiegenstein, author of Land of Joys