Doctor Dolittle’s Circus

Doctor Dolittle’s Circus was published in 1924 and follows directly from Post Office. The doctor and his animals have finally returned to England and find the Puddleby cottage almost empty of money, so the doctor signs up for a season with the Blossom Travelling Circus, partly to earn passage home but mainly because the Pushmi-pullyu, his two-headed exotic animal from the first book, has become a sideshow attraction.

The novel is largely about the small ethical conflicts of working with a Victorian-era circus. The doctor objects to how the animals are treated. He liberates an exhausted seal named Sophie who is trying to get home to her family. He saves the trained horse and rebuilds the foxhunt sequence so the foxes can win. There is a long episode of his trying to organize a humane animal welfare reform inside the circus itself. Some critics rank this one near the top of the series for its moral seriousness. Others find the social commentary slows the adventure. Either way the doctor’s voice is unmistakable.