Literary Devices in The Circuit
Symbolism, Imagery, Allegory
Setting
Except for the first couple of paragraphs, this entire story takes place in California. (By the way, we could go on forever about California in this book. And we do—just check out the "Themes" se...
Narrator Point of View
When it comes to storytelling, Francisco has it in the bag—this is his show, start to finish, told in his own words. Luckily for us, he's a pretty detailed guy, ready to share all the ins and out...
Genre
One of the coolest things about this book is that it's based on real events. Actually, the main character, Francisco, is a version of the author, Francisco Jiménez. Jiménez says that Francisco's...
Tone
Here's the situation: Francisco goes through a ton of rough stuff. We're talking so much rough stuff that almost every life experience he has includes a major downer. So it's no surprise that when...
Writing Style
Tell It Like It Is: Francisco's Clear and Detailed StyleSometimes being completely up-front is the way to go, and when it comes to Francisco's storytelling style, he's candid as can be. Give the ki...
What's Up With the Title?
As a title, The Circuit references all of the moving around the characters do in this book. After all, a circuit is basically a journey that goes around and around—and then around some more. And...
What's Up With the Ending?
You know the kind of endings where you get your hopes up really high just to have them smashed to smithereens? Well that's what we've got in The Circuit. Yep, this ending is a huge downer. But bef...
Tough-o-Meter
Here's the deal: for the most part, this book is a pretty easy read. Jiménez keeps the sentences on the simple side and there's enough action to make this book a breeze to get through. But there a...
Plot Analysis
California Dreamin'When Francisco and his family decide to move their digs from California to Mexico, everyone is on board (literally: they take a train). But seriously, Francisco's family is ready...
Trivia
Get this: all of Francisco's experiences are based on the real life events of the author, Francisco Jiménez himself. No need to make up drama in this book. (Source.)Jiménez wrote a children's boo...
Steaminess Rating
No steaminess here, Shmoopsters—we don't even get any flirting in this book. In The Circuit we've got some piping hot beans and a beating sun that'll make you sweat bullets, but no sexy steam. So...
Allusions
Mexican Revolution (11.9-13)Cantinflas, a famous Mexican movie star (1.13-14)