"Water for Elephants" provides enchanting view into big top

critic of the book AND movie...

Cover says everything...

If you haven't read it... go for it... as well of seeing it... you won't regret it...!!

Great writers have long been drawn to the American circus, seduced by the bright lights, grandiose pageantry and dazzling daredevilry of this larger-than-life setting where anything is possible.
Sara Gruen is among the latest novelists to tackle this institution and the result is “Water for Elephants,” a highly successful and moving narrative that has rendered readers and critics alike defenseless against the big top’s spellbinding allure. Interest in the novel, which was released in 2007, has been revived lately by last month’s release of a feature film based on the book.
So much more than a tale about a circus, “Water for Elephants” is told from the dual perspectives of Jacob Jankowski at two different times in his life. At age 23, he is a Cornell University veterinary student cast aimless and adrift by a family tragedy, who hops aboard a train that fatefully happens to be carrying the Benzini Brothers “Most Spectacular Show on Earth.”
He is soon assigned the responsibility of caring for the show’s impressive collection of animals and it is within this literal zoo of people and animals alike that he falls into the venerable orbit of August, the show’s alluring but cruel animal trainer.
Against his better judgment, Jacob eventually falls for the show’s striking star, Marlena, an equestrian performer extraordinaire whose marriage to August is marred by his abusive and unloving ways. It is these developments that provide the novel’s central narrative as Jacob struggles to survive and protect Marlena and her animals from August’s shocking cruelty.
Seventy years later, he resides in a nursing home lamenting the curses of old age as he is triggered into flashbacks of his youth beneath the big top by the recent arrival of a touring circus.
Gruen intertwines fear, sadness and joy into a singularly moving experience in which the weaving and winding of memory and love are expressed in the disarming storytelling of this very old man.
Any circus has more than its fair share of interesting personalities and Benzini Brothers’ is no exception, a quality that makes it the perfect setting for Gruen to showcase her immense ability to develop believable and compelling characters. She writes with a simple but beautiful style and her descriptions of the squalid, filthy and brutish circumstances in which Jacob finds himself pull few punches.
According to the author’s note at the end of the book, many of the compelling anecdotes in the story were based upon real events recorded in the diaries of old time circus performers.
Thus, “Water for Elephants” is a rare breed of novel that boasts the winning combination of being both entertaining and informative. 

It may not be “The Greatest Show on Earth” but the film adaption of the novel is also worth a look.
The big question going into the movie was whether or not “Twilight” fan favorite Robert Pattinson was ready to step into the weighty starring role of Jacob. The answer is a resounding yes; he actually does very well here using his trademark reserve and robust youth to his advantage.
Reese Witherspoon is also competent as Marlena. She is sure to hold the audience’s attention even if she doesn’t always live up to her character’s captivating nature. Audiences are not likely to question the age difference between her and the 10-years-younger Pattinson as the chemistry between them is engaging and believable.
The best performance in the movie, however, belongs to Christopher Watz, whose impassioned turn as August truly steals the show by providing haunting and energetic menace.
True to the book are the movie’s spectacular visuals. The set designers and costumers have definitely outdone themselves in their efforts to bring this traveling 1930s era spectacle to life. The movie’s circus environments feel whimsical and old-fashioned, a refreshing quality in this era of in-your-face visual effects.
Rosie, the film’s namesake elephant who shares more human characteristics and feelings than many of the circus’ humans, is simply beautiful – as is the movie’s message about the things animals can teach us about how to treat one another. In short, “Water for Elephants” is a fantastic adaptation that does this great story justice. 

Summer vacation is the perfect time for a trip to the circus, and readers should take advantage of the opportunity to read this engrossing novel while the equally fantastic movie is still in theatres.
The combined pleasure of being able to experience the two so close together should provide even the laziest of summer readers with ample incentive to finish this amazing novel. However, most won’t need it because this amazing story, which is equal parts adventure, mystery, fictional memoir, romance and historical account, has something for everyone.

source: Arapahoe Herald via Pattinson World