Circus Mirandus: Chapters 19–24

by Cassie Beasley
Ten-year-old Micah Tuttle, with the help of his friend Jenny Mendoza, tries to find and enter a magical circus to convince the Lightbender to save his dying grandfather.

Here are links to our lists for the novel: Chapters 1–7, Chapters 8–13, Chapters 14–18, Chapters 19–24, Chapters 25–36
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Full list of words from this list:

words only definitions & notes
  1. spiteful
    showing malicious ill will and a desire to hurt
    Micah eyed the entrance, and his hopes dissolved. It looked spitefully boring.
  2. tethered
    confined or restricted with or as if with a rope or chain
    Now they were tethered to the ground with ropes and stakes in a field that was probably going to be a baseball diamond when the recreation department got rid of the King Kong-sized inflatable gorilla in the outfield.
  3. pennant
    a flag that usually tapers and is longer than it is wide
    The tents, the fluttering pennants, the meadow—the circus looked like it had been waiting for him all along.
  4. predecessor
    one who goes before you in time
    It means that whoever the current Lightbender is will probably be related to the old one. He might even have heard of your grandfather from his own predecessor!
  5. tender
    something that can be used as an official medium of payment
    She was already arguing with Geoffrey about the definition of the words “legal tender for all debts.” Apparently, they were stamped on the five-dollar bill in her hand.
  6. fanfare
    a gaudy outward display
    No other children stood near the tent, and if not for the distant shouting and laughter, Micah might have thought the circus was closed. It seemed like there ought to have been more fanfare surrounding the place he had wanted to see for so long.
  7. imposing
    impressive in appearance
    Now that he was facing this imposing tent, Micah wondered if he should have asked more questions.
  8. stalactite
    a cylinder of calcium carbonate hanging from a cave roof
    Some of the animals had their own habitats, like the miniature hippopotamus in his mud wallow or the bright blue bats hanging upside down from stalactites on the tent’s ceiling, but most of the creatures roamed.
  9. wallow
    a puddle where animals go to roll around
    Two long-haired goats and an iguana shared a magazine near the hippo’s wallow while the iguana flipped the pages with its tongue.
  10. plaque
    a tablet that commemorates a person or achievement
    The plaque on the side of the tank said, Fish: A rare specimen courtesy of Ephraim Tuttle. He ran his fingers over the shiny plaque, tracing his grandfather’s name.
  11. aerial
    existing, living, growing, or operating in the air
    “Well, she couldn’t do much against an aerial assault,” Jenny said thoughtfully. “Unless she can fly, too.”
  12. chide
    scold or reprimand severely or angrily
    “When we have special guests,” she chided, “you don’t send them away. It’s not done. It’s not professional.”
  13. vanity
    low table with a mirror where one sits while dressing
    The only chair in the room had been pushed under a flowery mirrored vanity that looked more like something Aunt Gertrudis would use than a powerful magician.
  14. mahogany
    a reddish-brown wood commonly used to make furniture
    A tall mahogany bookshelf curved around one side of the room.
  15. humble
    low or inferior in station or quality
    He looked down at the bootlace with a fond expression on his face. “I remember, of course. Can you perform the same magic with this humble lace that Ephraim could?”
  16. hunker down
    crouch or squat into a low position
    Chintzy hunkered down on her perch as if she were settling in for a long sulk, but as soon as the Lightbender turned his back, she squawked, “You know something about Victoria, don’t you?”
  17. abominable
    unequivocally detestable
    After wasting almost ten years of her life at Circus Mirandus, Victoria Starling had concluded that children were abominably foolish creatures.
  18. witless
    lacking sense or understanding or judgment
    She had never been as witless as most children; she had had her ambitions at least.
  19. ambition
    a cherished desire
    But it had taken her far too long to realize that those ambitions were too small for her.
  20. trappings
    ornaments; embellishments to or characteristic signs of
    The circus had offered her the trappings of power, and child that she was, she had mistaken them for the real thing.
  21. aria
    an elaborate song for solo voice
    Her parrots sang arias.
  22. squander
    spend thoughtlessly; throw away
    Someone with her skills squandering their time to make a tent full of children, most of whom were unremarkable in every way, happy? It was absurd.
  23. abstraction
    a concept or idea not associated with any specific instance
    She had heard the Head talk about their purpose a thousand times before—“giving hope” and “fostering belief”—but out in the real world those abstractions weren’t making any difference that really mattered as far as she was concerned.
  24. delicate
    easily hurt
    Circus Mirandus was by far the largest group of magical individuals in the world, but there were others. And some of those others were concerned with things much more worthwhile than the delicate feelings of children.
  25. whim
    a sudden desire
    With a wider world calling and the other performers constantly nagging her to spend more time catering to the whims of her audience, Victoria made up her mind.
  26. asset
    a useful or valuable quality
    But, if possible, she was going to take one particularly valuable asset with her.
  27. modest
    humble in spirit or manner
    “You have always been less than modest about your talents. I had assumed it was a failing of youth.”
  28. ignorant
    unaware because of a lack of relevant information
    I am not as ignorant of the world beyond our gates as you seem to believe.
  29. trill
    sing or play alternating with the half note above or below
    Victoria held out one hand and trilled a series of diamond pure notes.
  30. elegant
    refined and tasteful in appearance, behavior, or style
    One of the silver swans swooped toward her. It was a beautiful creature, fatly elegant with platinum wings and a graceful neck.
  31. marrow
    network of connective tissue filling the cavities of bones
    They stared helplessly up at her, standing on thin air, and the manager was chilled to his marrow by what he saw in her face.
  32. pulverize
    make into a powder by breaking up or cause to become dust
    This voice pulverized the very air.
  33. billow
    rise and move, as in waves
    The Man Who Bends Light stood in the tent’s entrance, and his coat billowed as though caught in a rising wind.
  34. devastation
    the feeling of being confounded or overwhelmed
    Mr. Head knew the moment the Man Who Bends Light made his decision. Resolve replaced the devastation in his features.
  35. ironic
    displaying incongruity between what is expected and what is
    Magic. Faith. Mr. Head thought it ironic that Victoria had never made the connection. Nobody had ever touched magic without believing that they might be able to do so.
  36. subdued
    quieted and brought under control
    It was as frosty cold as it had been when the Lightbender had first given it to him, but he was feeling so subdued after learning about his grandmother that he had forgotten to drink it.
  37. lush
    produced or growing in extreme abundance
    He drank in the lush sight. Flowering vines swayed over the pool from the branches overhead, and a tiny waterfall splashed down into it from the rocks above.
  38. disoriented
    having lost your bearings
    It wasn’t like waking up from a dream this time, maybe because he was trying hard to focus. He was disoriented by the shift.
  39. encompass
    include in scope
    Micah waved his arms to encompass the whole of Circus Mirandus. “It’s perfect and amazing and...and it’s everything. You can save him somehow. If you would just come back with me, if you saw Grandpa Ephraim, you would help. I know it!”
  40. maintain
    keep in a certain state, position, or activity
    And I try not to leave Circus Mirandus. I maintain the illusions that keep us hidden from the world.
Created on Tue Nov 01 21:32:28 EDT 2022 (updated Fri Sep 08 14:34:29 EDT 2023)

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