comment on structure

The novel is written in twenty-five chapters and includes a short prologue. The prologue serves to build suspense by introducing a murder, which was committed by someone Jacob, the narrator, cares about. The prologue also sets up an air of mystery as Jacob confesses that he has not spoken about his time in the circus for many years because he had witnessed this murder. The reader is therefore alerted that they will be the first to hear this story, giving the appearance of privilege that sets the mood for the rest of the novel. With the first chapter, the reader is introduced to an elderly man, who is deeply unhappy with his current circumstances, creating a situation in which his past takes on a sense of romance that again adds to the mood of the novel. By the time the story of Jacob's time in the circus begins, there is such a buildup of suspense that the reader is anxious to drink in every word of the following chapters.