Water for Elephants

By: Sara Gruen

Narrated by: David LeDoux, John Randolph Jones

Length: 11 hrs and 26 mins

Publisher's summary

An atmospheric tale of life and love in a Depression-era traveling circus.

Nonagenarian Jacob Jankowski reflects back on his wild and wondrous days with a circus. It's the Depression Era and Jacob, finding himself parentless and penniless, joins the Benzini Brothers Most Spectacular Show on Earth. There he meets the freaks, grifters, and misfits that populate this world. Jacob introduces us to Marlena, beautiful star of the equestrian act; to August, her charismatic but twisted husband (and the circus' animal trainer); and to Rosie, a seemingly untrainable elephant.

Beautifully written, with a luminous sense of time and place, Water for Elephants tells of love in a world in which love's a luxury few can afford.

©2006 Sara Gruen (P)2006 HighBridge Company

Critic reviews

• Book Sense Book of the Year Award, Adult Fiction, 2007
• Audie Award Finalist, Fiction, Unabridged, 2007

" Water for Elephants resembles stealth hits like The Giant's House, by Elizabeth McCracken, or The Lovely Bones, by Alice Sebold, books that combine outrageously whimsical premises with crowd-pleasing romanticism. . . . With a showman's expert timing, [Gruen] saves a terrific revelation for the final pages, transforming a glimpse of Americana into an enchanting escapist fairy tale.” ( New York Times Book Review)

"Just like a circus, the magic of the story and the writing convince you to suspend your disbelief." ( Booklist)

"Gruen skillfully humanizes the midgets, drunks, rubes, and freaks who populate her book." ( Publishers Weekly)

Excellent narration

This is a wonderful book, and also one of the best narrations I've encountered in an audiobook. The two narrators are excellent actors, and I was quickly engaged in both. The humor in the book was brought out extremely well by the narrators, and I laughed a lot while listening. In the last three hours, I could not stop listening - but now that it's over I'm sad to be done with it.

audio pageturner

This story is mesmerizing. I found myself staying longer on the treadmill or just sitting in the car in the garage to finish a chapter. The use of multiple actors to capture the different ages during naration was very effective.

Entertaining but a bit lacking

What made the experience of listening to Water for Elephants the most enjoyable?

The narration was spectacular and really sold the book. The story was made complete through the older gentleman re-telling his years on the circus. I cried within the first 30 minutes.

How would you have changed the story to make it more enjoyable?

I would've liked more depth in the characters and the plot. It seemed for the most part one dimensional and as much as I enjoyed the older man, the story didn't really make me root for his younger self or his relationship with Marlina.

Which character – as performed by David LeDoux and John Randolph Jones – was your favorite?

The elderly man. He made me laugh, cry, feel angry and sad for how some treat their seniors. But that one character kept me listening.

Was there a moment in the book that particularly moved you?

I liked how the elderly man made it to the circus and the end result of that. I also enjoyed his friendship his bunkmate and the dog.

Any additional comments?

I thought the beginning was really moving and grasped my attention, but then near the end of the story there were pieces at the plot that I didn't like and thought could have been developed more. I think the book is worth listening to. It is pretty short, the narration is great, but afterwards I'm left wanting a bit more...

a great listen !!!

I just finished this book this morning , Christmas Day, on my way to work at a hospital. This was , for me , one of the best books I've even listened to. and perfect timing that I finished now. it definitely had my attention for the entire book.
so good !!

Much better than the movie

Reading this along with the book is a good choice. I wouldn’t stop reading this book. It only took me a week to read it and it’s been awhile since I read a book that took so little effort to get through because it’s so good. The ending made me cry with happiness and I hope I does for you too.
The only thing I didn’t like though is every chapter music would start to play on top of the vice narrator and I wouldn’t be able to hear them at times. That’s why I gave the performance a 4. It wasn’t their fault. Probably some newbie editor.

Beautiful coming of age and aging story with a side of romance

This story was truly a pleasant surprise. The performance was riveting. Wonderful book. Highly recommend

Unexpected pleasure

I wasn’t sure if I would like this book, because it isn’t my usual read. I was pleasantly surprised throughout the book. I was captivated. I don’t want to give away the end, but when it was over I couldn’t stop smiling!

A lovely love story

set against the harsh realities of the traveling circus. The brutality of a few individuals shapes the misery of animals and humans alike. The comraderie amongst the different factions is touching. And the narrator's description of old age is at once humorous and poignant. This is a wonderful read.

Great narration

I loved this story but the show stealer is really John Randolph Jones with a completely mesmeric narration of the older character. There are some memorable characters, as one would expect in the midst of a 1930s travelling circus. The ending was a bit too cutesy for me and I didn't really buy it, which is why I stopped short of the 5 stars, but its still a quite delightful novel and I would recommend it very highly.

Excellent comment on elderly life

This book gives an excellent insight in to elderly life. A well researched book with wonderfull anecdotal information about the circus life of old, a sad comment on how we treat the elderly and the meaning of life for an elderly person. An extrememly good read.