The arrangement of the eighty-one poems inside Circus Americana creates a story arc. The first two sections--''Not Getting Along'' and ''Bewilderment''--set the stage for the third section, ''Burned Out.'' The last two sections, ''Friends'' and ''I Love You,'' share incitements for enjoying more of the show. For you, my reader, I wish a sense of enlightenment (however false, however fleeting) and a little fun.