Water for Elephants

By: Sara Gruen

Narrated by: David LeDoux, John Randolph Jones

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)

A disappointment

Would you say that listening to this book was time well-spent? Why or why not?

I was very disappointed in this novel, about which I had heard largely good things. The two lead characters were flat and uninteresting (although the narrator as an old man was quite well drawn, which only made his younger self seem so much more callow). The story was was not particularly compelling, and the writing itself was cliched and lackluster. This is the kind of novel that spawned the term

Would you ever listen to anything by Sara Gruen again?

I might, but only with trepidation.

What aspect of David LeDoux and John Randolph Jones ’s performance would you have changed?

LeDoux's voices felt all wrong for this - and there was way too much performing. He was particularly terrible as the villain of the piece, complete with sneers. Jones was much better - restrained, quite moving; LeDoux could learn a lot from him.

Could you see Water for Elephants being made into a movie or a TV series? Who should the stars be?

Although it's already been filmed, I can't muster up much interest in seeing it. But perhaps it will be a nice example of a film's being better than the book on which it was based.

Any additional comments?

I really did want to like this. If anyone is interested in circuses, I heartily recommend

I couldn’t get into it.

I’ve had this book in my library for quite some time... so I was happy when it started off good, but the as the book went on, it become depressing to listen to... I didn’t understand where this book was going, it felt like there was no plot or climax to the story. It was an ok listen but wouldn’t listen again.

WOW!!

What a book!! From the very first paragraph I was hooked. The author's descriptions of people, places, and especially the animals were incredible--I could see it all clearly in my mind. Both the narrators were great. I was truly sorry when the book ended.

Wonderful!

a great story and beautifully narrated. loved the two voices of jacob and all of the characters through the book. sometimes was hard to listen to the cruelty to rosie and imagining the awful lives of some of the animals especially the polar bear locked in a cage in the heat of a sweltering summer in america.

Disappointing Book

What did you like best about Water for Elephants? What did you like least?

The story, the idea of the book is genius, it is one of those that create an amazing memorable, literary experience. The way it was rendered, the presentation of this amazing story to the reader, made me want more and hate it for not getting it.

What was your reaction to the ending? (No spoilers please!)

I felt that the ending took me by surprise, but not because I wasn't expecting it or anything like that. It was very predictable, I just wasn't ready for it because I felt rushed into it. That, and the fact that it was so dull. I wanted more drama and even though there was some drama, again, I feel it was written in a rush and not developed properly.

What do you think the narrator could have done better?

The young Jacob was a talented reader with a clear and pleasant voice that I enjoyed listening to. The old Jacob was a bit hard to understand at times, but maybe that's just me. English is not my fist language.

Did Water for Elephants inspire you to do anything?

This book inspired me to do a better job at developing my characters and my plot, if I ever decide to write a book.

Any additional comments?

Overall I'm not sorry I listened to this. It had some information about life during the Great Depression and it was somewhat interesting.