Bernado Rominski

After Bernado's gypsy family is murdered by Nazi soldiers, Zelda, the gypsy who took him in, is also killed. Bernado moves on to live on his own in an old abandoned house but gets caught one day stealing a blanket. After hearing his story, the policeman who catches him is sympathetic and sends him to an orphanage where he believes Bernado will be well looked after. However, the reverse is the case when Bernado sees the awful living conditions there. He also experiences sexual abuse at the hands of Father Mark, but on one such encounter, he stabs the priest with a nail just below his eye and escapes from the orphanage. After some time on the streets earning at building sites, Bernado gets invited to join a circus. Here he performs with the talented dogs he started training after his escape from the orphanage. From working at the circus to purchasing a rundown casino in Italy with his savings, Bernado has a lot in store for him, and yet, this is only the beginning.

Bernado's Circus by James A Calderwood was a fascinating read. It had the right amount of elements typical of a fictional story-adventure, thrill, drama, friendship, sex-enough to keep different types of readers engaged. With a progressive plot, I got to experience the main character, Bernardo, and his life from his pre-teen years to his grand lifestyle as the father of six.