Circus World (novel)

The collection comprises the following short stories:

• "The Tryouts" (1978)
• "The Magician's Apprentice" (1979)
• "The Second Law" (1979)
• "Proud Rider" (1979)
• "Dueling Clowns" (1979)
• "The Quest" (1979)
• "Priest of the Baraboo" (1979)

All of the stories are set a century or more after O'Hara's Greatest Show, Earth's last circus, took to the star road and brought the circus to the stars (see City of Baraboo). The show was stranded on the planet Momus after the City of Baraboo's hyperlight drive was sabotaged by an insane entrepreneur, and the ship barely made it to a planet that can support Terran life-forms. The culture which developed is a direct outgrowth of circus arts, customs, and disciplines.

"The Tryouts" is the story told by newsteller Boosthit of the arrival on-planet of Ashley Allenby, an ambassador dispatched by the galactic government to establish diplomatic relations with Momus's government ... not realizing Momus does not have a government in the sense most people think of it, being at best a simple democracy.

"The Magician's Apprentice" tells the story of a teenage girl with esper powers (as possessed by most magicians on Momus; a few of the members of the show had been so gifted) learning her craft from the greatest magician on the planet, who is not enthused at the idea of a female apprentice.

"The Second Law" tells the tale of how Momus establishes an ambassador to deal with the centralized galactic government — a genuine challenge to a world that has no government of its own, and only one law which deals with living on the planet.

"Proud Rider" is the story of the head of an equestrian family fighting to preserve the family's skills instead of moving into mundane business as haulers. The way he chooses? Create a new circus. However, he faces serious opposition from the fortunetellers, whose most senior seer has a vision of Momus's culture being destroyed by the troops sent by the galactic government to preserve Momus from the predations of the Nuumian Empire, an ambitious Klingon-style world with designs on the planet, in which the infant show plays a major role.

"Duelling Clowns" features a verbal challenge to the senior clown of Momus by an upstart. The verbal duel is conducted as a series of puns ranging from the exquisite to the awful.

"The Quest" is the story of the war waged against Momus by the earlier-mentioned villainous species, using a large mercenary unit to attempt to subvert the world and establish a puppet ruler. Many circus arts are used by the people of Momus to resist the invasion, but following the capture of a major mercenary leader, it is the fortunetellers who find the key to winning the war.

"Priest of the Baraboo" tells the story of how the descendents of O'Hara's Greatest Show return to the star road, told from the point of view of the priest of the City of Baraboo II. (It must be noted here that the term "priest" has nothing to do with religion. It is a corruption of the Pendiaan word fhreest, meaning "historian." The profession was established by "Warts" Tho, the alien from Pendia who had signed on with O'Hara in the first book of the trilogy to keep the show's route book — a daily logbook similar to the captain's log of a sailing ship — the way O'Hara wanted it done, so the show would not lose the language and customs that make a circus different from other traveling entertainments.)