Blue Ribbons and Burlesque: A Book of Country Fairs

Once you start reading Charles Fish's Blue Ribbons and Burlesque (A Book of Country Fairs), it's hard to stop. The book starts with "Magic" and ends when "The Curtain Falls." In between we are introduced to "Animals: Power," their "Speed and Show," "Feats of Skill and Daring," "Freak Shows," and "Girlie Shows," to name a few of the chapters I found most entertaining. On almost every page Fish blends into the text black and white pictures he took himself. Not only is Fish an accomplished wordsmith, he is also a talented photographer. He catches people and events at just the decisive moment when a story is most clearly and dramatically told. With each chapter I looked first at the pictures and then went back to read the entertaining story. It is hard for me to say which I enjoyed more, pictures or text, because Fish brought not only his wry observations to his writing, but also a genuine sense of humor revealed in many of the photos. A deep sense of humanity lives on every page of this book -- real people living their lives, some as performers, others as observers. With his camera in hand Fish watches them all, tells their story, and captures that brief period in Vermont history when a country fair brought a little "magic" into the lives of salt-of-the-earth New Englanders. Blue Ribbons and Burlesque is more than a coffee table diversion, although this would be enough to justify its existence. Fish gives us a chance to reflect with him on what we have lost when country fairs with strange and unusual people, magnificent animals, games of chance, cotton candy, Ferris Wheels, bumper cars, and old fashioned merry-go-rounds took us out of the humdrum of daily life and brought the exotic to our back door, even if only for a week. Then, as Fish says, "Kitchens, tack rooms, and bedrooms sported new blue ribbons, and giant teddy bears had new homes. Thudding hooves and roaring engines still echoed, but faded as the weeks wore on." Thanks to Charles Fish's remembrance and all those photographs he saved for many years, the blue ribbons and burlesque can be revived and relived, with pleasure and perhaps nostalgia for days gone by and a life that did not find its center in a television set. Highly recommended.

This book is easy to read and has glorious photos of bygone county fairs. An excellent selection for those interested in the history and feeling of the old fairs.

Though these state fairs were slightly before my time, yet I found the book fascinating. Fish's photographs and prose are a joy. Highly recommended

These black and white photos, along with the recollections of the author, conjure up an intriguing look back at country fairs - something that goes well beyond the simple nostalgia that one might expect from such a collection. The photos are touching and powerful, and reveal elements of both the human and animal condition in regards to such fairs. Things like the burlesque shows may be a thing of the past, and these photos perhaps show why as Fish looks at both the girls on show and those who watched them with a detached and objective eye. A fine book altogether - especially for those interested in photo-realism or historical archives. The images speak on a number of levels...which is, in the end, the measure of a good photograph.