It seems to be Big Top month around here. Last week we looked at Bill Meissner’s carnival novel “The Wonders of the Little World.” This week we have a brave youngster who becomes a circus star before she is a teenager in a new novel by Minnesota-born Ellen Baker. And for the little ones, some good stories that teach about emotions.

(Courtesy of the author)

“The Hidden Life of Cecily Larson”: by Ellen Baker (Mariner, $28)

And with the warmth of that touch, all the possibilities of the world tumbled and strained and broke open, and Cecily’s tears flowed freely and were a relief and a joy, because in this moment she finally knew what it meant to be a human girl — not a performer, not an orphan, not someone trying desperately to prove her worth. She was just a human girl, full of frailty and doubt and hope and striving, and if all the forces of this same world would be stacked against her soon, she didn’t care, just right now, she didn’t care at all. — from “The Hidden Life of Cecily Larson”

Advances in science can be wonderful or lead down unexpected and sometimes painful pathways. That’s what happens to the characters in Ellen Baker’s wonderful new novel about mothers and daughters, women’s secrets, betrayal, lies, happiness, and an indomitable woman named Cecily Larson.

Ellen Baker, born in Grand Rapids, Minn. introduces her new novel “The Hidden Life of Cecily Larson,” Feb. 24 at Big Hill Books in Minneapolis. (Courtesy of the author)

Cecily is 94 when the story begins in 2015, a beloved member of the community of Itasca, Minn. Widow of a doctor, she has raised money for a hew hospital and served on committees. She loves her daughter Liz, granddaughter Molly and Molly’s son, a science-minded teen who is doing a special project about family. When Cecily is hospitalized and refuses to give a DNA  sample, her daughters take one while she is sleeping and send all three women’s DNA to Ancestry. Meanwhile, in North Carolina, Clarissa is hosting her alcoholic daughter, Kate, a former TV star who’s once again recovering from time in a rehab facility. Clarissa’s other daughter, Lara, is eager to have their DNA results posted.

When the tests come back, a chain of events leads the daughters in both families to question everything they have been told about who they are.

Baker, who was born in Grand Rapids, Minn., and lives in Maine, moves the story back and forth between the present and Cecily’s life in the 1920s and ’30s from the day she was dropped at the orphanage by her loving mother, through her years as a young circus bareback rider, to her love for a Black roustabout. When she discovers she is pregnant (this is not a spoiler), she is sent to a school for “wayward” girls because the courts at the time considered unmarried pregnant girls to be “feeble minded” and a white girl who had an affair with a Black man was considered hopeless. At a special home during late pregnancy, Cecily is given good food and everything she wants. Until her baby is born and she is told the child died. Later, after sleeping outdoors and without money, Cecily spends more than a year in a TB facility where she meets her charming future husband. Throughout her life she mourns her lost baby.

Author of the popular novel “Keeping the House,” Baker’s writing about the inner workings of a small circus and the performers is fascinating She is also careful to flesh out her secondary characters. Cecily’s daughter Liz is going through a breast cancer scare and Molly thinks she is still in love with her ex-husband.

“The Hidden Life of Cecily Larson” deserves a place on your spring TBR list for sure.

Baker, who also lived in Rhinelander, Wis., and Brookings, S.D., went with her father when she was 15 to meet writer Fred Manfred at his home near Luverne, Minn. After reading Baker’s writing, Manfred predicted she would be published by the time she was 30. When she was studying at the University of Minnesota she knew she wanted to be a writer of historical fiction. Her first book was “I Gave My Heart to Know This.”

The author will read at 2 p.m. Saturday, Feb. 24, at Big Hill Books, 405 Penn Ave. S., Mpls.

“Firefly Galaxy”: by Sarah Nelson, art by Estrellita Caracol (Barefoot Books; hardcover, $17.99; paperback $9.99)

This charming and poetic book by a Minnesota author and Argentina-based artist tells the story of kids in an unnamed South American country who can’t wait for the fireflies to come out at night. Finally, “There’s a sparkle/in the air -/a flicker here,/a flish-flash there.” Sofia captures one of the golden little lights, but she feels sorry for it and lets it go free while all the children pretend they are fireflies. Brief information about these magical little creatures is included, as well as ways to help fireflies, which are endangered.

“You Made Fun of My Sandwich”: by Jessica Pegis, illustrated by Harry Briggs (Free Spirit Publishing, $18.99)

Who wouldn’t want to read a book with such a funny title? When a classmate mocks their lunch, the storyteller’s imagination takes flight. The classmate doesn’t realize that sandwiches don’t know any words and can’t be insulted. But the real reason for bullying is that sometimes these kids come to school with no lunch or food they throw away. The story speculates that the bully is not truly mean, just hungry. A section for adults at the back of the book shares discussion questions to help children develop empathy and imagination.

“Molly Tells the World,” “Molly Finds a Way,” “Molly’s Great Discovery”: by Krista Weltner (Free Spirit Publishing, each $16.99)

This series of books, called Everyday Adventures with Molly & Dyslexia, is the author’s publishing debut. In “Molly’s Great Discovery,” she learns she has dyslexia and discovers it’s OK to ask for help. “Molly Tells the World” is about how she accepts and celebrates her dyslexia, and in “Molly Finds a Way” she and her friends have fun in the rain as they figure out how to accommodate Molly’s challenging condition. The series is based on the author’s experiences growing up with dyslexia. Free Spirit is a Minneapolis-based publisher.

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