From the author of Big Fish comes this haunting, tender story that weaves a tragic secret, a mysterious meeting with the Devil, and a family of charming circus freaks recounting the extraordinary adventures of their friend Henry Walker, the Negro Magician. 

In the middle of a dusty Southern town, in the middle of the twentieth century, magician Henry Walker entertains crowds at Jeremiah Musgrove’s Chinese Circus. Though not the world-famous illusionist he once was, Henry, with his dark skin and green eyes, is still something of a novelty to the patrons who pay a dime to see his show. Most of the patrons, anyway.

DANIEL WALLACE is the author of Big Fish, Ray in Reverse, and The Watermelon King. His stories have been published in many magazines and anthologies, including the Yale Review, the Massachusetts Review, Shenandoah, Glimmer Train, New Stories from the South, and The Best American Short Stories. His illustrated work has appeared in the Los Angeles Times. He teaches at the University of North Carolina and lives in Chapel Hill.





"Daniel Wallace is busy re-writing the South and race and magic and love, and I'm delighted to be along for the ride. This novel is ten times more enjoyable than Cirque de Soleil."
— Randall Kenan, author of The Fire This Time

"In his new novel, MR. SEBASTIAN AND THE NEGRO MAGICIAN, Daniel Wallace once again amazes, dazzles and surprises, proving without a doubt that he is one of the most imaginative and original writers of our times. Bravo!"
— Fannie Flagg, New York Times bestselling author of Can't Wait to Get to Heaven

"Mr. Sebastian and the Negro Magician is a brilliantly constructed rollercoaster ride of a novel: there's a surprise and a thrill around every bend. With a magician's deft touch, Daniel Wallace draws you into a richly conceived world of wonder and illusion, and at the end leaves you breathless and amazed, wondering how did he do that?"
— Sara Gruen, New York Times bestselling author of Water for Elephants

"Daniel Wallace has given us a wholly realized novel -- inventive, richly layered, witty, touching, dextrous, and engrossing from beginning to end. Here is a book that will leave its magical imprint on your heart."
— Tim O'Brien, author of The Things They Carried

"Daniel Wallace has written a glorious novel that shimmers, thrills and twists like carnival glass. You will be in awe of this story with turns so surprising, you'll feel like a kid at his first circus. Daniel creates a world suspended in time with a family of characters you can't forget. Dreamy. Magical. Haunting."
— Adriana Trigiani, author of the New York Times bestselling Big Stone Gap series