Water for Elephants by Sara Gruen

This book introduced me to a world that I had never encountered: that of the traveling circus. We meet Jacob Jankowski when he is 90 years old - or 93 - he isn't exactly sure. From there Jacob narrates two plot lines; that of his struggles with aging in a nursing home and his experience working for a traveling circus during the Great Depression at the age of 23. The majority of the story focuses on the younger Jacob. After studying at Cornell's veterinary school, Jacob learns his parents were involved in a fatal accident and he is left with no money. He leaves his final exams without filling in one answer and decides to run away. After jumping onto a train in the middle of the night, a train which turns out to be that of the Benzini Brother's Most Spectacular Show on Earth, his fate his sealed. He begins to work for the circus - a society in and of itself, filled with it's own politics and class struggles.

I was completely swept away by the enchanted world Gruen introduced me to. It reads easily and I was completely sucked in, yet it also informs like a history lesson. Gruen explains that she spent four and half months researching and "acquiring the knowledge necessary to do justice to this subject" of the traveling circuses in America in the 1920's and '30s.

While the overall story was heart-warming, there were aspects of it that really disturbed me. I can handle a lot of raw fiction but when Gruen detailed some of the animal cruelty that was involved in these circuses, it was truly heartwrenching. However, these instances are few and far between and looking back, they add a lot to the plot and understanding of the story. Didactically, Gruen's story emphasizes the importance of empathy and understanding, toward both people and animals. Rosie, an elephant who joins the circus is probably my favorite characters that is an animal out of any book. She is so fascinating because of her personality and spunk - and eventual heroism. Some of her actions in the book are taken directly from other elephants in circus history during the depression - Topsy and Old Mom - which makes it all the most fascinating.

I would recommend this book to anyone who enjoys a great story or reads for escapism. Gruen's imagery makes this world come alive in a way that is so real you won't want to put it down. Also, as I mentioned before, they began filming for the movie Water for Elephants in May of 2010, with it's release scheduled for 2011. I'm really looking forward to the movie.

Publisher: Algonquin Books of Chapel Hill

Year of First Edition: 2006

With 335 pages, this book puts me at 1,681 pages for the 2010 Summer Reading Challenge .