Discover new books on Goodreads

See if your friends have read any of Sara Gruen's books

0 ratings | 0 reviews | avg rating:0.0

more photos (1)

Sara Gruen’s Followers (7,193)

Sara’s Bookshelves

to-read (0)
currently-reading (0)
read (0)
did-not-finish (0)

Sara’s Friends (65)

Toni

3,629 books | 290 friends

Jen

270 books | 16 friends

Donna Foster

8,045 books | 5,001 friends

Debra K

2,766 books | 3,652 friends

Jason

4,862 books | 1,269 friends

James

6,266 books | 2,504 friends

Karen

5,974 books | 99 friends

Ayustika (That Bibliophilic Cauldron)

1,430 books | 445 friends

More friends…

Sara Gruen

Goodreads Author

Born

Vancouver, Canada

Website

http://www.saragruen.com

Twitter

saragruen

Genre

Historical Fiction, Literary Fiction, Contemporary

Member Since

July 2015

URL

https://www.goodreads.com/saragruen

edit data

Sara Gruen is the #1 New York Times and USA Today bestselling author of five novels: AT THE WATER'S EDGE, APE HOUSE, WATER FOR ELEPHANTS, RIDING LESSONS, and FLYING CHANGES. Her works have been translated into forty-three languages, and have sold more than ten million copies worldwide. WATER FOR ELEPHANTS was adapted into a major motion picture in 2011 starring Reese Witherspoon, Rob Pattinson, and Christoph Waltz, and then into a smash Broadway musical, currently running at the Imperial Theatre, written by Rick Elice and PigPen Theatre Co. and directed by Jessica Stone.

She lives in Western North Carolina with her husband and three sons, along with their dogs, cats, horses, birds, and the world’s fussiest goat. ...more

Learn more
Ask the Author

Sara Gruen is currently not accepting new questions.

Popular Answered Questions

If you could live in another period of time, when would it be? Why?

Sara Gruen I'd love to live temporarily in all kinds of different time periods (if I got to pick and choose my circumstances, of course--everyone kind of assumes…moreI'd love to live temporarily in all kinds of different time periods (if I got to pick and choose my circumstances, of course--everyone kind of assumes that if they went back in time they'd be a Lady Mary and not a Daisy in the kitchen, but the reality is most of us would have been Daisy in the kitchen or a fish wife on the docks). But my completely non-exciting answer is that I would choose to live in the here and now, because I would not have made it to my first birthday without antibiotics, and I think things like central heating, air conditioning, indoor plumbing, and kitchen/laundry appliances are most excellent. I cannot imagine going outside and stirring a great pot of boiling lye once a week to do the family's laundry, but I can tell you that my tolerance for dirty clothes would be a lot higher. (less)

flag

18 likes · like
1 comment

What is your research process like, and how do you check your work for historical accuracy? Can you describe an instance when you decided, for dramatic or plot purposes, it was better to overlook historical precedent?

Sara Gruen Research is one of my very favorite parts of the writing process. It’s also why you’ll never see me set a book in Sudbury, Ontario, in the middle of w…moreResearch is one of my very favorite parts of the writing process. It’s also why you’ll never see me set a book in Sudbury, Ontario, in the middle of winter!

I love that I can find something that fascinates me--and that I hope will fascinate others--and immerse myself in it until I feel I know it well enough to write not just about it but from within it, if that makes sense. I have to create a fictional world in my head that I pass into when I'm writing, and because I also hope to transport readers there, all the details have to be in place. Although I no longer enter the world of "At the Water's Edge" to write, I still know every cobweb in the Fraser Arms, every floorboard that creaks, the earthy, oppressive smell of the Anderson Shelter.

I incorporate real incidents into my novels all the time. It's the interesting little nuggets I've never heard of that fascinate me the most, and I think readers like taking away odd little bits of knowledge as well. It's also true that when I'm blending fact with fiction, sometimes the lines do blur. If I want to include something historical that almost works but not quite, I remind myself that I’m a novelist and can take a little creative license. For example, in “At the Water’s Edge,” I incorporated every Nessie sighting that happened up to the time of the novel, and reimagined the most famous one, the “Surgeon’s Photo,” as the Colonel’s photo in my book. I also incorporated a few wartime incidents, like the Royal Observer Corps sighting of the monster and the bombing in Foyers, although in both cases I changed the year.

I’m very careful about accuracy, and during my initial research make contacts with museums, historians, and others so I can ask questions and verify things that come up as I'm writing the story. I also have a point person to read the final text for accuracy. I can’t say history was my thing in school, because it seemed dry and somehow disconnected from real life, but now that I’m learning about it by unearthing WWII installations, unwittingly tromping around among undetonated 70-year-old bombs, and crawling under abandoned circus wagons, it feels very much alive! (less)

flag

17 likes · like
2 comments

See all 8 answers from Sara Gruen…

Combine Editions
Sara Gruen’s books

Average rating: 4.08 · 1,861,661 ratings · 81,820 reviews · 14 distinct works • Similar authors

	Water for Elephants 4.12 avg rating — 1,725,635 ratings — published 2006 — 274 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	At the Water's Edge 3.69 avg rating — 85,574 ratings — published 2015 — 67 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Ape House 3.51 avg rating — 30,688 ratings — published 2010 — 75 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Riding Lessons (Riding Lessons, #1) 3.47 avg rating — 11,833 ratings — published 2004 — 56 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Flying Changes (Riding Lessons, #2) 3.76 avg rating — 7,737 ratings — published 2004 — 36 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	The Sara Gruen Collection: Water for Elephants - At the Water's Edge - Ape House 4.33 avg rating — 196 ratings — 2 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Water for Elephants, Ape House, Riding Lessons, Flying Changes 4.11 avg rating — 36 ratings — published 2005	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	もう一度あの馬に乗って 3.67 avg rating — 3 ratings	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Sara Gruen Novel Collection 3 Book Set it was amazing 5.00 avg rating — 1 rating	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Rare Sport Rugby - 50 anni di speranza - 1^ ed. 1979 - GRUEN, SARA - The Easton Press, Norwalk, Connecticut - 2008 it was amazing 5.00 avg rating — 1 rating	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars

More books by Sara Gruen…

Series by Sara Gruen

Riding Lessons (2 books)
by

Sara Gruen (Goodreads Author)

3.59 avg rating — 19,570 ratings

Over at Amazon, the book editors are celebrating 25 years of curating the latest and greatest titles for Amazon Books. To mark the...

Polls

What will be our August 2017 Open Pick?

Remember, if you vote for a book and it wins, you are implicitly promising to read the book and participate in the discussion. The poll will be open through June 30th. (Note: You can change your vote at any time prior to the closing of the poll.) Discussion will begin August 1st.

The Essex Serpentby Sarah Perry

8 votes, 42.1%

Erasure by Percival Everett

5 votes, 26.3%

The Plot Against America by Philip Roth

4 votes, 21.1%

To Rise Again at a Decent Hour by Joshua Ferris

1 vote, 5.3%

Ape House by Sara Gruen

1 vote, 5.3%

Winegarden by Anthony Ferner

0 votes, 0.0%

19 total votes

comments and details

More...

Topics Mentioning This Author

topics	posts	views	last activity
Books I Want To T...: Water for Elephants - NO SPOILERS	22	128	Feb 10, 2008 01:21PM
The Book Challenge: Heather's 2008 Challenge	111	317	Dec 07, 2008 08:15AM
The Next Best Boo...: Advice for newbie?	19	147	Dec 30, 2008 06:52PM
The Book Challenge: Jennifer's 2008 Book Challenge	70	311	Jan 01, 2009 10:20PM
The Next Best Boo...: Group Read Nominations for February IS CLOSED!	95	584	Jan 28, 2009 08:35PM
The Next Best Boo...: March's Group Reads are.......	257	898	Mar 15, 2009 11:53AM
Challenge: 50 Books: Frankie's 50 April 2009 - April 2010	8	159	May 16, 2009 06:50PM
The Next Best Boo...: Adam's 2009 Reading Goal	23	363	Jun 14, 2009 07:15AM
The Next Best Boo...: OFFICIAL SPRING CHALLENGE - 2009	6381	9064	Jun 14, 2009 02:57PM

More…

Sara’s Friend Comments

Comments (showing 1-1) post a comment »

date

newest »

message 1: by Donna

Nov 24, 2017 08:04PM

Sara, thank you for accepting my friend request on Goodreads.

reply | flag

Sara Gruen’s Followers (7,193)

Add New
Videos

Sara’s Bookshelves

Sara’s Friends (65)

Sara Gruen

Goodreads Author

Learn more
Ask the Author

Popular Answered Questions

Combine Editions
Sara Gruen’s books

Series by Sara Gruen

Related News

Polls

Topics Mentioning This Author

Sara’s Friend Comments

Sara Gruen’s Followers (7,193)

Add NewVideos

Sara’s Bookshelves

Sara’s Friends (65)

Sara Gruen

Goodreads Author

Learn moreAsk the Author

Popular Answered Questions

Combine EditionsSara Gruen’s books

Series by Sara Gruen

Related News

Polls

Topics Mentioning This Author

Sara’s Friend Comments

Add New
Videos

Learn more
Ask the Author

Combine Editions
Sara Gruen’s books