Circus

"Circus" by Alain Edward Nourse is a science fiction tale from the 1960's that examines what happens when different worlds collide. This story centers on Jefferson Haldeman Parks, an alien stuck on Earth because his warp drive broke down. Parks is desperate to get back home. His journey consists of seeking out Morgan, a writer, to help him fix his ship, while struggling against closed minds and disbelief. He tries to explain who he is and how his advanced technology works, but people, including powerful figures, just don’t believe him. As Parks faces being alone and not understood, the story asks big questions about what we choose to believe and how hard it is for people from different places to truly understand each other.