Water for Elephants by Sara Gruen

Synopsis from the Publisher:

An atmospheric, gritty, and compelling novel of star-crossed lovers, set in the circus world circa 1932, by the bestselling author of Riding Lessons.

When Jacob Jankowski, recently orphaned and suddenly adrift, jumps onto a passing train, he enters a world of freaks, drifters, and misfits, a second-rate circus struggling to survive during the Great Depression, making one-night stands in town after endless town. A veterinary student who almost earned his degree, Jacob is put in charge of caring for the circus menagerie. It is there that he meets Marlena, the beautiful young star of the equestrian act, who is married to August, the charismatic but twisted animal trainer. He also meets Rosie, an elephant who seems untrainable until he discovers a way to reach her.

Beautifully written, Water for Elephants is illuminated by a wonderful sense of time and place. It tells a story of a love between two people that overcomes incredible odds in a world in which even love is a luxury that few can afford.

Review: After a tragic personal loss, vet student Jacob Janowski makes an impulsive decision to jump aboard a moving train, which so happens to belong to Benzini Brothers Most Spectacular Show on Earth. He quickly becomes the circus’s go-to vet and finds himself drawn to Marlena, a beautiful equestrian performer who is always married to the show’s mentally unbalanced animal trainer.

I had heard so many good things about Water for Elephants that I was finally excited to read it for my monthly book club. Gruen does a spectacular job setting the scene and giving Jacob enough depth that you immediately care about him. However, I found Jacob’s initial introduction to the circus a bit slow, but once he finds his footing among the other working men and performers, the book picks up again.

Jacob’s romance with Marlene doesn’t feel like a central plot, but rather Jacob’s journey from unexpectedly becoming an orphan to becoming a man. I was totally fine with this because, to be honest, I found Marlena to be the most underdeveloped character in the entire novel.

Even Rosie the elephant had more personality (and was a total badass, if you ask me). Marlena felt one-dimensional and bland, and I had a difficult time figuring out why Jacob fell in love with her.

That being said, the book has plenty of sad, distressing moments (there is some animal abuse, which I found difficult to read), but it was a journey I’m glad I took. I found myself emotionally attached to so many of the characters, and I was thrilled to find Gruen created a “villain” who was complex and believable.

I have to admit, the romance threatened to knock this down a star in my mind, but the last few chapters more than made up for it, and I found myself a bit teary-eyed as I reached the last page. Jacob was a wonderfully fleshed-out character, and Water for Elephants is a book I feel will stick with me for some time.

This movie was adapted into a movie in 2011 starring Reese Witherspoon and Robert Pattinson!