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"It is easy to assume that this book is going to be a kind of titillating exploitative look at freaks, but that is not what it is at all. Mannix draws from his extensive carnie experience to create a tender and even sweet look at people who were not like others around them."

-- Frumious B

"Mannix's prose is informative and conversational, the stories are true (though he admits a few have questionable roots), and the many pictures are captivating, graphic, and ... well, freakish. I found the book so absorbing that I read it through in one sitting. There's a lot of history addressed"

-- Schtinky

Freaks
We Who Are Not As Others

Daniel P Mannix

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"I am convinced that the only people worthy of consideration in this world are the unusual ones. For the common folk are like the leaves of a tree, and live and die unnoticed."

— The Scarecrow of Oz, from The Marvelous Land of Oz by L. Frank Baum

During the lifetime of Daniel P. Mannix, freaks were the star attractions of sideshows — respected and revered by other carnival members. Daniel P. Mannix himself, unusually tall and awkward as a boy, always felt a kinship with others who didn't fit in and joined a carnival as a young man where he became a sword-swallower, fire-eater, and mentalist. He came to know and love carnival people and later wrote Freaks: We who are not as Others to quash the myths and misunderstandings about freaks, to celebrate their differences, to demonstrate the fullness of their lives, and to show that no matter what the external picture — tall, thin, fat, short, deformed, hairy, witty, or dull — underneath the human spirit burns triumphant.

Complete with stories and anecdotes of his time on the road, interviews, and historical references, Freaks: We who are not as Others also includes 82 astounding photographs and additional material from the author's personal collection.

Daniel P. Mannix worked in carnivals for three years and went on to become a best selling author, journalist, and lecturer who wrote and spoke on a wide range of subjects. Although he is well-known for his best-selling books about animals, Mannix was also attracted to the exploration and telling of stories many people shunned and his noir classics such as Those About to Die, The History of Torture, The Hell-fire Club, and Step Right Up! are also available through eNet Press.

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