Water for Elephants in 2017 Reading Challenge

May 31, 2011 Elise rated it liked it

I read this solely because I'd heard some good word-of-mouth reviews, and it lived up to them. It was a good old-fashioned character-driven story, a very classic love story/coming-of-age story with the background of circus life during the Depression. It wasn't anything revolutionary, but it was a very easy read (took me all of about three days) and it was entertaining enough. I would have liked a little more explanation of what some of the circus terms meant (many I could figure out as it went a ...more

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May 12, 2023 Shan ~A~ rated it it was amazing

Shelves: audio, romance, books-i-own, historical-romance, favorites, crime, back-to-school, borrowed-hoopla, virgin, pregnancy

Jacob Jankowski & Marlena

I had been putting off reading this book, and now I want to kick myself for waiting so long. It was a pleasantly surprising read. I honestly wasn't expecting all of the different elements it was packing.

The story is told from Jacob's pov at the age of 23 and the age of 90/93 and by the time we get to the end I feel that everything has come full circle.

Jacob loses his parents and all their possessions, and while dealing with his grief he just runs away from his life and ...more

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Sep 21, 2016 Michelle rated it liked it

Shelves: 2016-read

I'd have loved to have read this same story from Marlena's point of view, honestly. As a narrator, Jacob could get a little tedious after a while, and it did feel like Marlena's personality could use a little more fleshing out beyond the damsel act.

Gruen writes well and it was an interesting story overall, worth the read for sure. ...more

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