ISBN: 9781565125605
Grade: A+
Recommended for: anyone and everyone
Rarely do I think a book is deserving of all its hype, but Water for Elephants is worthy of the hype and then some. This is also one of those rare books that is even better the second time around.
Water for Elephants is the story of Jacob Jankowski, a circus veterinarian, told in alternating time frames of present day and back in the 1930s. We meet the 90 or 93 year old Jacob living in a nursing home and learn about what his younger life was like and what led up to him joining the circus. Jacob was a veterinary student at Cornell when his parents were killed in an accident. His parents had spent every cent they had on his education, leaving him less than nothing after their passing. Not knowing what else to do, Jacob leaves vet school and starts walking until he stumbles upon a circus train. The circus is second rate at best, full of sleazy characters and less than ideal living standards. As if a tale of Depression era circus life wasn't enough, there's also a little romance.
The characters are so well rounded and written that you can easily picture them in your mind as you read. Sara Gruen did an amazing job researching circus life and her depictions are spot on perfect. She covers the good, the bad and the downright despicable conditions and abuse the animals and employees went through. Some people found the abuse to be too much, but it's nothing worse than what you would read in the newspaper. The romance is not overdone so as to only appeal to women and get the story shelved with the bodice ripper books.
Don't even think about asking to borrow my copy! It's so good that you should go out and buy your own copy. If anyone has read Ape House by Sara Gruen, let me know what you thought of the story.
