The Book of Records

Simon receives a book of records for a traveling carnival, sent to him by a bookseller named Martin Churchwarry. Churchwarry felt prompted to buy the book but didn't believe it was meant to belong to him; instead, he found a name inside and traced one of the descendants to Simon. Believing the book was meant for him, Churchwarry sends it, and Simon soon becomes obsessed with puzzling together the mystery of his family. The book represents a door to the past, particularly as the novel is written, with lines from the book coming to life in the past storyline, giving meaning to names and dates (such as Amos, Evangeline, and the town of Charlotte). The book ultimately brings the past and the present together, uniting the descendants of Evangeline, Amos, Peabody, and Ryzhkova, to break the curse that has plagued them over the...