At the turn of the twentieth century, the FitzGerald Brothers’ Circus was the largest in Australia, and although it was in operation for a relatively short period (from 1888 to the premature death of both Tom and Dan FitzGerald in 1906), it was the first to define a specifically Australian national identity and to use this as a selling point for its early operations.

Circus scholarship has been bedevilled with historical accounts that offer copious descriptive detail but little analysis of the wider context in which circuses operated. Gillian Arrighi's meticulously researched study is not one of these. Instead, she complements and builds upon the approach of a growing body of scholarship (such as Brenda Assael's The Circus and Victorian Society (2005)) that uses circus as a lens through which to consider wider cultural movements. Deftly positioning the circus as a popular entertainment form that both reflected and began to define the developing nation, Arrighi provides a wealth of information, both on the day-to-day operations of the circus and on the cultural context in which the FitzGerald brothers operated. Her book also addresses questions about why circus mattered to Australian society at the turn of the century.

The study provides a chronological account, focusing on particular circus seasons and tours in Australia and New Zealand, and offers fascinating detail on the acts and personalities involved. Each chapter has a different focus, positioning the circus's entertainments within discourses of empire, national identity and colonial ambition. Following an introductory chapter, the second chapter explores how the FitzGeralds’ enterprise negotiated and positioned itself as an Australian circus at a time when the nation was beginning to define itself as such. After analysing both the acts presented at the Circus and the advertising surrounding these performances, Arrighi concludes that its early success was due to the sense of community it was able to engender in its local patrons. Financial prosperity led to the acquisition of exotic animal acts, and the employment of an increasing number of women performers, which, Arrighi argues in chapter 3, contributed to an increased social status. Chapter 4 details a change in the nature of the principal acts presented by the FitzGerald Brothers’ New London Company, and considers how this alteration reflected wider changes in the cultural and political relationship between Australia and Great Britain. Chapter 5 focuses on the presentation of animal acts, and provides an illuminating discussion of the circus's dealings with the German reformist animal trainer Carl Hagenbeck. In addition to providing trained-animal acts to many international circuses, Hagenbeck also disseminated an influential ethos of training and presentation through his so-called ‘gentling’ method, which replaced the exercise of force upon an animal with careful observation of its behaviour. In a context where the trade in exotic animals was global, Arrighi argues that the FitzGerald brothers’ decision to trade on the Hagenbeck name was significant.

In chapter 6 the author examines FitzGerald's Circus at the turn of the twentieth century and, again through close readings of the acts presented and examination of advertising, she demonstrates convincingly how this circus can be considered emblematic of modernity, including, for example, discussions of the seduction and transgression exemplified in performances by women. Chapter 7 addresses the Australian love affair with sport and the circus's connection to elite athletic performance. Through a fascinating account of sumo wrestling acts this chapter also provides a discussion of national identity in the context of an increasing interest in (and fear of) Japan.

The only quibble to be made about this lively and readable study is the lack of a concluding chapter to draw the many threads of Arrighi's research together. This book makes a valuable contribution not only to circus history, but also to cultural history in its unpicking of the complex relationships between an ephemeral entertainment form and the community that supported it.