MY PAINTED SMILE (a Novel)

After his mother’s suicide, young Victor’s father sells him to the Pogey O’Malley Circus, an 1870s traveling wagon show populated by a lothario sword swallower, warring Siamese twins, an Alligator Boy, the world’s strongest woman, and a narcissistic lion tamer. Among these friends and enemies, Victor stumbles through muck and heartbreak on his improbable rise from stable boy to celebrated clown.

But Victor’s deepest longing is for the ringmaster’s daughter, a dazzling acrobat already entangled with her French trapeze partner. As his unrequited love turns to obsession, Victor’s pursuit veers into lies, betrayal, and increasingly dangerous spectacles.

By turns tender and unhinged, My Painted Smile is the story of a young man trying to earn love by becoming someone extraordinary, even if it ruins him.

Some Nice Things People Have Written About The Work:

“Writing with the heart and humanity of classic literature, Matthew Binder delivers a tender, captivating portrait of circus life, love, and art—reminiscent of Jacques Tati and Emmanuel Bove.” - Babak Lakghomi, author of South