Book of the Month is a monthly book subscription box. Each month, their editorial team picks out their favorite new hardcover books, and you can choose which one you want to receive on the first of the month for $17.99/month. You can also add up to two additional books for only $9.99 each. (This box was named one of the best subscriptions for avid readers in the 2025 Subscription Box Awards.).
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My BOTM Pick for March: Home of the American Circus by Allison Larkin; Retail $16.90
Back of Book Summary:
After an emergency leaves her short on rent, thirty-year-old Freya Arnalds bails on her lackluster life as bartender in Maine and returns to her suburban hometown of Somers, New York, to live in the house she inherited from her estranged parents. Despite attempts to lay low, Freya encounters childhood friends, familial enemies, and old flames—as well as her fifteen-year-old niece, Aubrey, who is secretly living in the derelict home. As they reconnect, Freya and Aubrey lean on each other, working to restore the house and come to terms with the devastating events that pulled them apart years ago.
My Summary
With a job behind the bar at a dive bar and a place to lay her head at a seedy motel-turned even seedier apartment complex, Freya Arnalds has been keeping things together in Maine. But when a burst appendix sends her straight into emergency surgery, the juggling act familiar to millions of Americans who scrape by each month comes to an end.
Evicted from her apartment and too weak from surgery to sling beers at the Thirsty Clam, Freya's only move is backward, back to Somers, New York, bedroom community of New York City, so-called "Cradle of the American Circus" and Freya's hometown.
Although she's been estranged from her abusive family for nearly a decade, Freya returns to the rundown home left to her in her father's will where she's forced to reckon with the demons of generational trauma and make peace with the woman she's become.
The Verdict
Is it too early to call Home of the American Circus my favorite book of the year from BOTM Club? The slower pace of Larkin's novel brought to mind that of Liz Moore's The God of the Woods — my 2024 fave and winner of the Book of the Month's annual Lolly award.
A Somers native, author Allison Larkin artfully weaves details of the town's claim to fame into Freya's story, juxtaposing the abuses of a circus elephant named Old Bet with those suffered by her main character. The metaphor could have easily been overwrought, but Larkin manages to strike the right balance with rich character development and a slower pace that allows you to sit with the sometimes painful and sometimes triumphant moments of Freya's life.
Value — Was This Box Worth It?
Was the May BOTM Club subscription worth it? That depends on what you're looking for in a subscription.
From a math perspective, this one comes in just a wee bit shy — the BOTM Club starts at $17.99, depending on your chosen subscription (the first month of a subscription is currently $9.99), and the hardcover of The Home of the American Circus is $16.90 on Amazon.
On the other hand, I've found a new author whose books I'm already digging into and a book I'm recommending to all my friends, so I'm calling that a win!
The Cost: $9.99 (This price is only for your first month).
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To Wrap Up:
Can you still get this book if you sign up today? Yes! But you will need to order it as an add-on.
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