When I was a child, going to a circus with wild animal acts was a rite of passage. These days, it's an act of complicit cruelty.

What do we lose without wild animal acts at the circus? Absolutely nothing, except the opportunity to be haunted and heartbroken.

the juniors were acting different because they are now the seniors. They even had T-shirts made. I don't know who plans these things.

I hate to witness animals in captivity - or see circus elephants paraded down the streets. When animals are caged, it's a loss of what they are.

At the end of the day, I'd love to see children stop begging their parents to go to the circus. That's what would make me most happy.

I think younger readers connect so readily to animal characters because they share a certain vulnerability, particularly when it comes to adult humans, who can be a rather unpredictable lot.