EVELYN SCALA SCHREIBER
Writing her own family’s epic history in the Circus
Fiction
THE PRIVATE GIRL
Rights and awards
Rights
Germany
Norway
Russia
Sweden
Awards
Evelyn Scala Schreiber is a journalist and reporter who has worked for several Swedish newspapers. A prestigious Fulbright scholarship led to a master’s degree in journalism at Columbia University in New York City. Now she’s back in Sweden, writing about, among other topics, American politics, when she is not writing fiction.
Evelyn had long planned that someday she should write down her family’s epic circus history, but life got in the way. Then, when the pandemic hit, she found herself in a cabin in northern Sweden with little to do, and started doing research for fun. As she began piecing together the story, Evelyn realised what she thought was a pleasant way to pass time was something much bigger; it’s not just about a circus family, but about a time in European and American history where little is known; the unique, closed off world of the circus and the often-forgotten people within it. She found strong and mould-breaking women in the circues who were pioneers in the fight for women’s liberation, but who never made it into the history books. Writing her family history as a thrilling historical series has allowed Evelyn to fill in certain gaps in the story, but at its core, this is her family history, and it’s a vibrant adventure spanning almost a century.
The Private Girl is Evelyn Scala Schreiber’s debut novel and the first part of the Circus Trilogy, a series based on the author’s own family history. It is a story about marginalization, freedom and sisterhood, about a woman who decided to sacrifice everything for love – and the circus.
Quote
“First of all, the book is excellent, especially for a circus enthusiast. This is the most accurate depiction of the circus in Sweden at the end of the 19th century that has been written in our country in many years. What you describe is the circus according to the continental tradition, with circus dynasties functioning much like Europe’s royal houses. These circuses were named Schreiber, Gautier, and Houck. What I particularly appreciate in the book is your precise depiction of the circus’s passion, discipline, pursuit of perfection, tolerance for the unconventional, society’s prejudices, and the need to maintain a distance from the private sphere. At the same time, circuses depended on being seen and heard and were constantly under the authorities’ scrutiny.
In my lectures, I often highlight that women have frequently been in charge of circuses. Now I have another name to add to this list: Bertha Schreiber.”
Jan Näsström, Director of the Swedish Circus Academy
Bibliography the Circus Trilogy
2026 – The Circus Princess (Cirkusprinsessan), novel
2025 – The Private Girl (Privatflickan), novel
Author photo
Gabriel Liljevall For photo rights please contact the photographer at info@gliljevall.se