Water For Elephants by Sarah Gruen – 335 pages
Book Blurb:
Orphaned, penniless, Jacob Jankowski jumps a freight train in the dark, and in that instant, transforms his future. By morning, he’s landed a job with the Flying Squadron of the Benzini Brothers Most Spectacular Show on Earth. By nightfall, he’s in love. In an America made colourless by prohibition and the Depression, the circus is a refuge of sequins and sensuality. But behind the glamour lies a darker world, where both animals and men are dispensable. Where falling in love is the most dangerous act of all…
My review: 4 stars
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This book offered a new face to the circus and the people that make it what it is. Many stereotypes were dismantled and some were confirmed. Jacob, the main protagonist, tells the story from his memories (now 93) of his youthful days of being an “almost vet”. Tragic circumstances leads him to joining the circus, finding a family there and having a beautifully symbolic relationship with Rosie the elephant. Well-done character development and descriptions of Depression era America fill these pages.
Quotes I liked:
When you are five, you know your age down to the month. Even in your twenties, you know how old you are. I’m twenty-three you say, or maybe twenty-seven. But then in your thirties, something strange starts to happen. It is a mere hiccup at first, an instant of hesitation. How old are you? Oh, I’m–you start confidently, but then you stop. You were going to say thirty-three, but you are not. You’re thirty-five. And then you’re bothered, because you wonder if this is the beginning of the end. It is, of course, but it’s decades before you admit it.”
-“Keeping up the appearance of having all your marbles is hard work, but important.”
-“I want her to melt into me, like butter on toast. I want to absorb her and walk around for the rest of my days with her encased in my skin. I want.”
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I really enjoyed this story, especially since the Ringling museum is quite close by, and I have always been a fascinated with the historical aspects of the circus.
Sara Gruen made history come alive in this book with the characters in the story and the sense of place. I loved the photos that were at the beginning of each new chapter, too.
Thanks for the comment Lori. I never knew there was a Ringling museum. I’ll have to add it to my bucket list!