Ahh that lovely glow one basks in after just having finished a good book. When, just for a little while, you’re straddling the chasm between the real world and the world of the book, glad to have made it through the story’s adventures unscathed, but also a little sad it’s over.
I’ve just finished Water for Elephants by Sara Gruen, and thoroughly enjoyed it. The story follows Jacob, a Cornell-trained veterinarian who finds himself somewhat accidentally joining a circus after tragedy disrupts his life. There he meets and inevitably falls in love with Marlena, a performer, and becomes entangled with the diverse cast of supporting characters one might expect from a book about a Depression-era circus. There’s a cranky dwarf, a schizophrenic menagerie boss, a heartless ringmaster, and of course the titular elephant.
The meat of the story takes place in the meticulously-researched world of the circus, which is a good thing. Much less strong and convincing are the occasional forays into the modern world, where the story is ostensibly being told by a crotchety, elderly Jacob from his miserable place in a nursing home. Like The Aviary Gate, another book which intertwines excellent historical fiction with a less stellar modern-day subplot, I felt like these passages were little more than diversions, stealing valuable page time from the story I really cared about.
I didn’t want to see Jacob the cantankerous old man, I wanted to see Jacob the brave and sensitive circus vet. I didn’t want to hear about the kindly nurse giving Old Jacob extra fruit at lunch, I wanted to watch the growing tension between Jacob and Marlena (and Marlena’s husband, the schizophrenic menagerie boss).
Thankfully, the rest of the book was more than engrossing enough to merit sticking around through the less interesting parts.
The only thing that bothered me other than the somewhat unrealistic ending (I can’t quite decide whether I buy it or not – I want to, but both the ending of the present-day plot and a couple of loose ends with the earlier-days plot were wrapped up a bit too tidily) was that Gruen never revealed the truth behind her title. A few times it’s mentioned and implied that “carrying water for elephants” is some sort of joke played on rubes, but it’s never explained. It seems like such an interesting tidbit that I’m annoyed we never get to learn what it means, if indeed it means anything at all.
There is one more thing that I can’t decide how I feel about: apparently the book’s being made into a movie (yay!) which has just wrapped up filming (yay!!) and stars Reese Whitherspoon (yay!!!) and Robert Pattinson (wait… What?) Yes, everyone’s favorite sparklepire will be playing Jacob in the film adaptation. I just… I don’t know. I can’t blame him for Twilight, after all I’m sure it’s been one helluva paycheck, but I just don’t know whether I’ll b able to put Edward the Effervescent aside to allow him to become Jacob.
Here’s hoping, I guess!
{ 6 comments… read them below or add one }
I. Loved. That. Book. I got it for my stepmother for Christmas one year and accidentally ended up with two copies. So I kept the 2nd copy and read it. I am interested in seeing the movie despite RPatz’s involvement. I am not sure I’ll buy Reese Witherspoon as Marlena tho. She doesn’t fit my mind’s eye as being small enough to be her. I imagine it will have a very similar narrative structure as “A league of Their Own.”
I think I’d buy Reese as Marlena long before I’d buy RPatz as Jacob. He’s just far too much of a pretty boy, IMO. Of course, I’m a big Reese fan, in general, and she’s good at playing female characters who are both pretty and strong. I’ve never seen RPatz as anything other than Edward the Cold-and-Glittery and his brief stint at Hogwarts, so I can’t speak to his acting chops on anything that isn’t magic and/or broody.
Yay! I read that book too, glad you liked it. I loved it. I’m not sure how I feel about the movie though. Maybe you, Jess, and I can make a movie date to see it when it comes out and evaluate.
That would, indeed, be awesome.
Fair on the Reese points. Mr. P has a regular movie role in something coming out soon, so that may indicate his capability to, yanno not sparkle. I think Jacob’s a plenty brooding character. He’s got melodrama down to a science and just goes over the top pretty often. Based on that and RPatz’s resume, they are a good fit
Fair enough. Jacob is definitely mopey enough, so I suppose you’re right. We shall see!