The show must go on! by Kate Klise ; illustrated by M. Sarah Klise
Two mice and a crow, who travel with a circus, cleaning up the spilled popcorn after every performance, come to the rescue when a greedy con artist takes over the management of the circus. Book #1 in The Three-Ring Rascals series

Escape!: the story of the great Houdini by Sid Fleischman
A biography of the magician, ghost chaser, aviator, and king of escape artists whose amazing feats are remembered long after his death in 1926.

The great and only Barnum: the tremendous, stupendous life of showman P.T. Barnum by Candace Fleming ; illustrated by Ray Fenwick
Biography of P.T. Barnum, showman and founder of the Barnum & Bailey Circus. Readers can visit Barnum's American Museum; meet Tom Thumb, the miniature man (only 39 in. tall) and his tinier bride (32 in.); experience the thrill Barnum must have felt when, at age 60, he joined the circus; and discover Barnum's legacy.

The Magician's Apprentice by Kate Banks ; illustrated by Peter Sís
When sixteen-year-old Baz becomes apprentice to a powerful but kind magician, he makes a long journey across the desert and into the mountains, ultimately discovering himself by learning to dispel illusions.

Wonder horse: the true story of the world's smartest horse by Emily Arnold McCully
A fictionalized account of Bill "Doc" Key, a former slave who became a veterinarian, trained his horse, Jim Key, to recognize letters and numbers and to perform in skits around the country, and moved the nation toward a belief in treating animals humanely. Includes an author's note.

The Boundless by Kenneth Oppel
Aboard "The Boundless," the greatest train ever built, on its maiden voyage across Canada, teenaged Will enlists the aid of a traveling circus to save the train from villains. Also available as an audiobook

The floating circus by Tracie Vaughn Zimmer
In 1850s Pittsburgh, thirteen-year-old Owen leaves his younger brother and sneaks aboard a circus housed in a riverboat, where he befriends a freed slave, learns to work with elephants, and finally comes to terms with the choices he has made in his difficult life.