Water for Elephants

Did you ever find a book that you just couldn’t get into?  That’s how Water for Elephants was for me.  Geez, I think every book-lover I know has read it and has seen the movie but I still couldn’t get past the prologue.  Now that I have finished it, I can’t believe I had this problem!  The book is story-telling at its best.  Unique but believable characters, an intriguing setting (the circus), an interesting format (it’s told alternately by 23 year old Jacob and Jacob at 90), and a story that will knock your sox off.  A blend of love story, adventure story, and cultural study, once past Chapter 1, I couldn’t put it down.

Following the death of his parents, Jacob Jankowski drops out of college and life and accidentally joins the circus.  He becomes the veterinarian for Benzini Brother’s Most Spectacular Show on Earth.  It is “not” the most spectacular show on earth, but rather a Ringling Brothers wannabe during the depression era.  Through author Sara Gruen’s clear writing and thorough research, the magical, glamorous, seedy, and vicious underworld of circus workers is brought to life.  An Amazon editorial review explains “She has all the right vocabulary: grifters, roustabouts, workers, cooch tent, rubes, First of May, what the band plays when there's trouble, Jamaican ginger paralysis, life on a circus train, set-up and take-down, being run out of town by the "revenooers" or the cops, and losing all your hooch.”  Jacob falls headlong into this world and into love with the boss’s wife. 

As Jacob and Marlena’s relationship develops, along comes Rosie.  Rosie is an elephant purchased by Uncle Al, the despicable heartless owner of the circus.  Rosie is to be the financial savior of the circus but unfortunately she is under the tutelage of August, Marlena’s abusive husband, whose brutality does not endear him to the bull.  Rosie gets her revenge in a rather predictable ending.  I say predictable because Gruen builds the story like a house of cards as she provides bold hints of the big collapse. And big and glorious it is; a satisfying ending for both the 23 year old Jacob and the 90 year old Jacob.

If you would like to participate in a discussion of this book, please come to the MUSE group on September 27, at 6:30 in the Main Building of Kent State, East Liverpool.  Lemonade, although not the circus variety, and other circus fare will be served.  The program is free and open to the public.  Call or email Susan Weaver for more information:  330-382-7432, sweaver@kent.edu.    

MUSE Fall 2011

So after a very short summer, we are ready to convene the next MUSE season.  The reading choices are listed below.  Each meeting is in the Dean's Conference Room in the Main Building of Kent State University at East Liverpool and begins at 6:30.  MUSE is sponsored by the campus Library and is free and open to the public.  Refreshments are always served, often the food is in keeping with the theme of the book.  This definitely means that circus food will be on the menu for the September meeting!  What should it be?  Popcorn? Cracker jacks? Lemon shakes?  Elephant ears? Cotton candy?  Candy apples?  Come to the meeting and see!

September 27, Water for Elephants by Sara Gruen

The brutish and enticing world of the circus is revealed to the reader by two versions of Jacob Jankowski; Jacob at 90 years of age (or maybe 93) and Jacob at 23.   Jacob lives and collides with a menagerie of animals and seedy human characters as he falls in love with the boss’s wife.   This novel has a bit of everything; adventure, mystery, fictional memoir, love story, and historical account.  Read it before the DVD is released on November 1!

October 25, The Thirteenth Tale by Diane Setterfield

The Thirteenth Tale is a haunting mystery perfect for Halloween reading.  It is the story of octogenarian Vida Winter, a best-selling British author and Margaret Lea, the young antiquarian bookseller and amateur biographer whom Ms. Winter has chosen to write her life story. The problem is that Ms. Winter has spent her life telling stories -- including 19 different versions of her background and childhood. In the end, both women have to confront their pasts and family secrets…as well as the ghosts that haunt them still.

November 9, UnBroken: A World War II Story of Survival, Resilience, and Redemption by Laura Hillenbrand

Unbroken is the true story of Louie Zamperini, a juvenile delinquent-turned-Olympic star-turned-war hero. During a routine search mission over the Pacific, Louie’s plane crashes into the ocean.  Along with his friend Phil, the pilot, he survives gunfire, sharks, and starvation on a tiny raft, only to be rescued and thrown into a Japanese prison camp. Louie’s ordeal during the war and his struggle to return to civilian life are moving tributes to the Greatest Generation.  This inspiring read serves as a reminder, to all of us, of what US veterans have endured and sacrificed for the safety of our nation.