Water for elephants is a rich surprise, a delightful gem springing from a fascinating footnote to history that absolutely deserved to be mined. At what point in his life did he seem to be the happiest. With robert pattinson, reese witherspoon, christoph waltz, paul schneider. Sara gruens book, water for elephants, was a runaway best seller an internationally acclaimed novel told as the reminiscences of an old man, jacob, about his experiences with a depressionera circus where he witnessed the brutalities inflicted on people and animals alike. Should the murderer in water for elephants be punished. Cant say ive ever been curious enough about its workings to read a book revolving around one, but i am so glad i did because it was sooo much more than that. Surprising, poignant, and funny, water for elephants is that rare novel with a story so engrossing, one is reluctant to put it down. Based on the book by sara gruen, water for elephants is the story of jacob jankowski who as an old man is recounting the tale of when he first. A veterinary student just shy of a degree, he was put in charge of caring for the circus menagerie. Water for elephants is a story about an elderly man, jacob, who recalls an adventure in his younger years. I hate being so enamored with a book and then a crappy movie version comes along and tarnishes it.
Books that defined a generation water for elephants. Water for elephants is one of my most favorite books. The truth is, it is summer and i am desperate for a distraction away from my recent obsession with greys anatomy reruns fueled by netflixs instant queue. Veterinary school student jacob meets and falls in love with marlena, a star. The story is told by its main character, jacob who is now confined to.
These book club discussion questions reveal important details about water for elephants by sara gruen. It follows the story of a young man whose circumstances are suddenly altered and who finds himself homeless and jobless. Her works have been translated into fortythree languages and have sold more than ten million copies worldwide. In the sections of the book set in the present, when jacob is in his 90s, he makes a big deal about his age and seems really upset by it. Water for elephants is an enchanting pageturner, the kind of book that creates a world that engulfs you from the first page to the last. In one plot, jacob is a young guy just starting out in the world. We personally assess every books quality and offer rare, outofprint treasures. Trust us, water for elephants is going to be one of the surprise hits of 2011. Pdf water for elephants book by sara gruen free download. The story is told as a series of memories by jacob jankowski, a 93yearold man who lives in a nursing home. It was adult, and it was realistic, and i loved it. Although i wanted more emotion between marlena and jacob, its a romantic story, full of action, love for animals and a magnificent circus.
When jacob jankowski, recently orphaned and suddenly adrift, jumps onto a passing train, he enters a world of freaks, drifters, and misfits, a secondrate circus struggling to. Winner of the 2007 bookbrowse award for most popular book. An atmospheric, gritty, and compelling novel of starcrossed lovers, set in the circus world circa 1932, by the bestselling author of riding lessons. Jacob janowskis luck had run outorphaned and penniless, he had no direction until he landed on a rickety train that was home to the benzini brothers most spectacular show on earth. The movie water for elephants stays close to sara gruens beloved book particularly with the 1930s circus memories section. The second is when the younger jacob is trying to join the circus and it is presented as a veteran. Download and read online for free water for elephants by sara gruen. Asian and african elephants are endangered by poachers, deforestation, and an uninformed public about these risks which could result in extinction of. Read water for elephants absolutely for free at readanybook. So i purchased the book and slowly began retreating. Winner of the 2007 bookbrowse diamond award for most popular book. Water for elephants by sara gruen at the best online ebook storage. Water for elephants was adapted into a major motion picture starring reese witherspoon, rob pattinson, and christoph waltz. Use these book club discussion questions on water for elephants to lead your book clubs conversation on the story.
Water for elephants is a historical novel by sara gruen, written as part of national novel writing month. It stars reese witherspoon, robert pattinson, and christoph waltz the film was released in the united states on april 22, 2011. Water for elephants is fun, sweet and thrilling and will pull you into the mysterious life of the circus so far that you wont want to leave. Water for elephants by sara gruen is a must read a story about a 90yearold man remembering his days with a circus during the great depression. An atmospheric, gritty, and compelling novel of starcrossed lovers, set in the circus world circa 1932, by the bestselling author of riding. Water for elephants thesis statements and essay topics. With lines of startling beauty, haunting and evocative scenes and finelydrawn characters who dance off the page, readers can dip in and out of the novel, immersing themselves in jacobs memories. Enhancements were made to more precisely measure materials read in k2. Blackandwhite photographs of real american circus scenes from the first half of the century are interspersed throughout the. Stories similar to water for elephants books, stories, and novels like water for elephants by sara gruen. A national bestseller in canada and a new york times bestseller in the united states, this is a book destined to become a beloved fiction classic. Subscribe to the oprahs book club newsletter sign up for the oprahs book club newsletter get more stories like this delivered to your inbox get updates on your favorite shows.
I decided to not watch the movie when i heard it was coming out simply because i didnt want to possibly ruin the experience id had with the book if the movie wasnt uptopar. Free download or read online water for elephants pdf epub book. On our first date, my husband took me to see tod brownings freaks, a 1932 horror film with a distinctly diane arbus feel. I read water for elephants for our book club, and i expected it to be as slow, dull, and superficial as most of the other books we have read. Cast in credits order complete, awaiting verification.
Only days before graduating from vet school in 1931, young jake learns his parents have died and left him penniless. It was the great depression and for jacob the circus was both his salvation and a living hell. Overall, water for elephants was a book that grabbed me from the beginning. Jacob jankowski, a retired veterinarian living out his days in an assistedliving facility, drifts in and out of his memories. Set in the 1930s, a former veterinary student takes a job in a travelling circus and falls in love with the ringmasters wife. Sara gruen has a voice to rival john irvings, and i am hopelessly, unabashedly in love with this book. The first edition of the novel was published in may 26th 2006, and was written by sara gruen. Water for elephants is a book that can be read and reread, recommended and handed off between friends. Water for elephants is a 2011 american romantic drama film directed by francis lawrence and written by richard lagravenese, based on sara gruens 2006 novel of the same name.
Water for elephants has two plots going on, both starring the same main character, jacob. Water for elephants, 2007, sara gruen water for elephants is a historical novel by sara gruen, written as part of national novel writing month. I fell in love with the picture you chose for your book the first time i saw it. Jacob is the moral center of the book, recognizing and, where possible, preventing those cruelties, and in the. Water for elephants was a completely different read for me. A thousand splendid suns, memory keepers daughter, etc.
He jumps aboard a passing train and discovers he has landed on the train of a travelling circus. The first signals the first time jacob comes close to admitting that he had been in the circus. Based on the acclaimed bestseller, water for elephants presents an unexpected romance in a uniquely compelling setting. The concept of bringing water for elephants is mentioned in association with distinct instances in the book. The book was published in multiple languages including english, consists of 335 pages and is available in paperback format. Read free book excerpt from water for elephants by sara gruen, page 1 of 7. The only place the movie veers from the original is in its details of the older, current jacob. Water for elephants was adapted into a major motion picture starring reese witherspoon, rob pattinson, and. Sara gruens very readable novel is a story of impossible love set in the circus world during the 1930s and is set to be made into a blockbuster film starring robert pattinson and reese witherspoon. Find all the books, read about the author, and more.