The Magic Misfits

It is late at night, and a shadowy figure chases Carter Locke through the train yard. Carter intends to jump into the moving train to escape, but he is carrying a satchel and worries that he won’t make it because the train is gaining speed. The multi-colored train cars remind him of pulling an endless string of colored scarves from a hat: the first magic trick that his now-deceased father ever taught him. Carter carries a special wooden box in his satchel, and he checks to make sure that it is secure. The pursuing man orders Carter to stop running, threatening to catch him no matter where he tries to hide. Carter moves to jump into a yellow car that reminds him of a trapped bird in a cage. The man grabs the satchel and pulls Carter to the ground, but Carter moves fast and escapes with his bag, leaping onto the back of the train. Taking in the view from the top of the train, Carter says farewell to the town and Ms. Zalewski. Just as dawn arrives, he climbs into a train car and falls asleep.

The narrator provides the details of Carter’s backstory to explain why he is on the run. Carter once had a happy life with his parents, and his father liked to do magic tricks. One day, his parents left him with a babysitter and never returned. Carter was sent to live with a family friend named Sylvester “Sly” Beaton, whom Carter called “Uncle Sly.” Uncle Sly was a fraudster who used magic tricks to con people out of money, but Carter didn’t see any magic in the practice. Although Carter didn’t admire Uncle Sly, he learned much from him and soon discovered that he had a talent for magic. Carter’s deft hands made him particularly good at making items disappear and reappear, and he even perfected Uncle Sly’s coin trick using ice cubes. On Carter’s birthday, Uncle Sly forced him to perform card tricks in the street for money, but Carter enjoyed how his tricks entertained the people.

Carter realized that Uncle Sly was using his sleight-of-hand skills to steal items from people. Since Uncle Sly was always on the run from the law, he and Carter never stayed in one place too long. Carter longed to stay in one place and have a real home. He carried all his belongings in a leather satchel containing his magic trick supplies, a spare pair of socks, and a sealed wooden box with the engraved initials “LWL.” Uncle Sly left him alone for long periods, and Carter used this time to practice his tricks. However, Uncle Sly soon began asking Carter to come along on his cons and asked him to start stealing from people. Carter refused, so Uncle Sly made him the lookout while he used a shell game to trick people into giving him money.

One day, while Uncle Sly was using the rigged shell trick, a man became angry when he flipped over the shells and realized the deception. He tried to attack Uncle Sly, but he and Carter ran away before the police could catch them. Carter ran back to the halfway house where they were staying, which was run by a kind woman named Ms. Zalewski. She told him about how her family had migrated from Poland and Russia. She wore a diamond necklace, her only family heirloom. Uncle Sly returned and told Carter that he must steal the necklace because the street con didn’t work. Carter refused despite Uncle Sly’s threats. Later, Uncle Sly showed Carter that he had stolen the necklace. When Carter protested, reminding him of Ms. Zalewski’s kindness, Uncle Sly grabbed him violently. Carter used the same sleight-of-hand trick to steal the necklace back. He took off running with his satchel, returned the necklace to Ms. Zalewski, and dashed to the train station.

The novel returns to the narrative present. The train stops in a quaint town called Mineral Wells, and Carter sees that the circus is in town. A small red car arrives at the train lot, and a group of sad-faced clowns exit the vehicle and begin loading cargo into a train car. Carter has never liked clowns, but these clowns give him a particularly strange feeling, and he knows that they’re up to no good. The clowns run out of space, and worried that the police might arrive, they decide to store the rest of the cargo at the Grand Oak Resort. Hearing their mention of the police, Carter decides to get away from the area.

Carter is starving, and the closer he gets to the circus tent, the smells of the sweet and savory carnival treats make his mouth water. When he checks his bag, he realizes he has no money and remembers Uncle Sly’s promise that he would have no qualms about stealing once he was starving. A sign says, “WELCOME TO B. B. BOSSO’S CARNIVAL SPECTACULAR!” (36), and Carter enters the midway, keen to explore the sights and sounds of the circus. Trying to escape the smell of food, Carter enters the sideshow tent, which advertises the Tattooed Baby and the Two-Headed Woman. As Carter walks through the tent, he sees that every attraction is fake and is reminded of Uncle Sly’s schemes. As he exits the tent, Carter notices that the other patrons are fooled by the various displays, and Carter remembers that most of what people think is magic is just “misdirection,” which involves distracting the audience with one thing while doing something else. Though the sideshow does not seem magical to Carter, his meeting with Mr. Dante Vernon will feel miraculous.

The narrator explains that the first time Carter meets Mr. Vernon, it feels like destiny. It is the first time that Carter dares to believe that magic might be real. Carter sees a man in a black top hat and cape performing coin-vanishing tricks amidst the crowd, and the scene captivates him. Curious about the trick, Carter approaches the man and asks. The man claims to be using magic, but Carter rebuffs him, asserting that magic doesn’t exist and that everything about the carnival, including the games, is rigged. After explaining how the milk bottle game is rigged, Carter asks the man if he uses coins to complete the trick. Impressed at Carter’s knowledge, the man introduces himself as Mr. Vernon. Carter wonders what kind of con Mr. Vernon is running, but the old man assures him that he doesn’t steal from people and only does tricks for the sheer enjoyment of it.

Mr. Vernon thinks that Carter is quite cynical. Carter tells Mr. Vernon he knows a few tricks and swipes his watch. Mr. Vernon is impressed, but he, in turn, swipes Carter’s satchel without the boy noticing. When Carter gets upset at the idea that Mr. Vernon is a thief, the man assures Carter that they both live by the same code. Mr. Vernon warns Carter that some unsavory characters run the carnival and might try to exploit his talents. He encourages Carter to think carefully about any decisions he makes, and then he produces a deck of cards and tells Carter to pick one. When Carter pulls the card, the entire deck begins flying at him. Mr. Vernon disappears, and Carter is left holding an ace of spades with the letter “V” inside the spade.

Carter wants to spend more time with Mr. Vernon, recognizing how different he is from Uncle Sly. Carter wants to understand more about doing magic that is not intended to achieve fraud. Stashing Mr. Vernon’s card in a special pocket inside his sleeve, he searches for food. As he watches the families stream out of the carnival tent, he wonders what it would be like to have a real family. Carter scavenges for food in the garbage can and finds a corndog, popcorn, and cotton candy. Just as he finishes his meal, Walrus, the strongman from the sideshow, snatches him up and drags him to a trailer.

Walrus uses a magic word to unlock the door, and it opens to reveal a lavishly decorated room. Inside are several other sideshow members, including the Spider-Lady and Tattooed Baby. A clown is shaving a large man wearing an emerald ring, and Carter realizes that the man is B. B. Bosso, the carnival’s owner. Walrus explains that one of the guard clowns spotted Carter stealing food from the trash. Carter argues that eating trash isn’t stealing, but the clown reveals that he has been watching Carter since he disembarked the train. They search Carter’s belongings and determine that he isn’t a thief. Carter claims he must get home soon, but Bosso knows he’s lying. Bosso offers Carter a job, claiming that he can provide him with a home, a family, and a source of income. Carter remembers Mr. Vernon’s warning and asks Bosso for time to think about the offer. He vomits when he leaves the trailer. The chapter ends with a tutorial on performing a simple coin trick. The instructions include pictures illustrating the technique, and the narrator explains that the best way to improve one’s magic trick skills is to practice constantly.