Feb 02, 2012 the movie water for elephants stays close to sara gruens beloved book particularly with the 1930s circus memories section. Answered questions 22 seen this book around at sales a lotfinally picked it up. It was the great depression and for jacob the circus was both his salvation and a living hell. Jun 02, 2006 in kidds the invention of wings, 2014, etc. A meticulously researched, fastpaced, engaging and ultimately very satisfying novel set mostly ina depression era travelling circus. 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. See more ideas about water for elephants, elephant book and award winning books. Read online water for elephants by sara gruen for free. Their two, completely separate personalities clash and collide. Jul 23, 2018 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. Dec 23, 2015 download and read water for elephants. Water for elephants is a historical novel by sara gruen, written as part of national novel writing month.
At the end of the novel, jacob exclaims, so what if im ninetythree. In the united states and canada, water for elephants was released theatrically in 2,817 conventional theaters. These book club discussion questions reveal important details about water for elephants by sara gruen. August goes on rages and rants of complete insanity due to the. The book ending was just kind of dry and i felt like the author did not really develop it. The movie water for elephants stays close to sara gruens beloved book particularly with the 1930s circus memories section. So i purchased the book and slowly began retreating. In the book, we see jacob as an old man in the nursing home throughout. Theres something endearingly oldfashioned about a love story involving a beautiful bareback rider and a kid who runs off to join the circus. His life wasnt always like this, however, because jacob ran away and joined the circus when he was twentyone. The alternating glamour and squalor of the circus world gruen expertly conjures may truly be one of the greatest shows. Sara gruens water for elephants captures the sounds, smells and sights of the circus.
Water for elephants has a happy ending for jacob, but not for many other characters. Water for elephants a depressionera circus provides the backdrop for sara gruens latest novel, water for elephants. Water for elephants water for elephants audiobook, by sara gruen. A novel by gruen, sara from amazons fiction books store. Sep 07, 2016 author, sara gruen is an excellent novelist.
Water for elephants is one of my most favorite books. What makes water for elephants more intriguing is a third character, reminding us why christoph waltz deserved his supporting actor oscar for inglourious basterds 2009. He jumps aboard a passing train and discovers he has landed on the train of a travelling circus. Water for elephants book ending vs movie ending showing. Oct 21, 2009 robert olen butler so much more than a tale about a circus, water for elephants is a compelling journey not only under the big top, but into the protagonists heart. While i enjoyed the movie with robert pattinson and reese witherspoon, the novel is far better. He plays the circus owner, who is married to the bareback rider and keeps her. Read water for elephants absolutely for free at readanybook. Winner of the 2007 bookbrowse award for most popular book. Books, stories, and novels like water for elephants by sara gruen.
What are the main conflicts in sara gruens novel water. How would the novel be different if gruen had only. Differences between water for elephants book vs movie page 1. Download and read online for free water for elephants by sara gruen. Sara gruen mines fertile territory in water for elephants. 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. As the headline suggests, were discussing the ending. Trust us, water for elephants is going to be one of the surprise hits of 2011. Book ending vs movie ending michael dec 21, 2011 03. But be warned, this isnt the order of events in the book. The prologue features a younger version of jacob, who works at a circus and.
Jacob, the books narrator and protagonist, worked as a vet and trainer of sorts at a circus. Because of this, water for elephants is one of those few magical times when a movie is better than the book it is based on, when all the little details that generally engender people to love a. The circus, the great depression, a complex elephant, equally complex love, the mists and twists of memory articulated in the utterly winning voice of a very old man whos seen it all. Sara gruen has written an utterly transporting novel richly full of the stuff of life. Is it primarily written for a female audience or will i. The only place the movie veers from the original is in its details of the older, current jacob. Water for elephants questions and answers discover the community of teachers, mentors and students just like you that can answer any question you might have on water for elephants. 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.
He is portrayed as a bit of a rebel, arguing with other residents, complaining about the food. The book the novel may have been initially kicked out in about a month, but sara gruens water for elephants bears all the hallmarks of a wellresearched work of historical fiction. In the book, jacobs narration takes place in his own mind. I hate being so enamored with a book and then a crappy movie version comes along and tarnishes it. Apr 27, 2011 the book the novel may have been initially kicked out in about a month, but sara gruens water for elephants bears all the hallmarks of a wellresearched work of historical fiction. The grand rapids press you need this elephant in your life. The story is told as a series of memories by jacob jankowski, a 93yearold man who lives in a nursing home. The climax of the the book, water for elephants, is when several survivors who were redlighted return to the circus during one of the shows. They discover beauty amidst the world of the big top, and come together through their compassion for a special elephant. Apr 22, 2011 because of this, water for elephants is one of those few magical times when a movie is better than the book it is based on, when all the little details that generally engender people to love a. Marlena is married to august, but she and jacob fall in love. The band starts playing very fast and the redlighters set all the circus animals loose. Is it primarily written for a female audience or will i like it. A brilliantly crafted and deeply moving novel, water for elephants is the tale of jacob jankowski, now in his nineties, who spends his remaining days fondly drifting through the memories of his early depressionera youth which was spent in the company of circus freaks, clowns and misfits.
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. In one plot, jacob is a young guy just starting out in the world. She demonstrates an exceptional aptitude for writing, and matthias, for a time, indulges her with reed pens, papyri, and other 16 c. Water for elephants has two plots going on, both starring the same main character, jacob. When jacob overhears a man at the assistedliving center confess to having been a water boy for the elephants in a circus, jacob knows the man is lying because jacob himself once worked. The last notes of water for elephants linger long after the book ends. How do the chapters about the older jacob enrich the story about jacobs adventure with the circus. Sara gruen uses her talent as a writer to bring that world alive for the reader.
I read water for elephants a few years ago and from time to time, i reread my favorite novels. Water for elephants is the touching story of jacob jankowski, a ninetythreeyearold man, who is reminded of his colorful past when a circus sets up next door to his assistedliving center. Find all the books, read about the author, and more. 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. 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. Ana is the daughter of matthias, head scribe to herod antipas, tetrarch of galilee. Water for elephants presents an unexpected romance in a uniquely compelling setting. 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. The charlotte observer novelist sara gruen sweeps her readers off their feet in the opening pages of water for elephants and doesnt let go until she deposits them at the end of her fantastic tale of passion, madness and fancy. The title, water for elephants, is almost a little inside joke with the reader once weve finished the book, that is. Water for elephants, 2007, sara gruen water for elephants is a historical novel by sara gruen, written as part of national novel writing month. Sara gruens arresting new novel, water for elephants, explores similar subject matter the pathetic grandeur of the depressionera circus. 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. Winner of the 2007 bookbrowse diamond award for most popular book.
Water for elephants is a love story, with a triangle at its center. He is particularly angry with one old man who says he once got the water for elephants in the circus. 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. Water for elephants is a fictional novel by sara gruen that is set in the depression. Use these book club discussion questions on water for elephants to lead your book clubs conversation on the story. Water for elephants was adapted into a major motion picture starring reese witherspoon, rob pattinson, and christoph waltz.
August is an antagonist and jacob is a protagonist. Aug 05, 2008 a meticulously researched, fastpaced, engaging and ultimately very satisfying novel set mostly ina depression era travelling circus. With gruens bestselling book as his source material here, lawrence concentrates on more domestic horrors missing in his other films. At the beginning of water for elephants, he is living out his days in a nursing home, hating every second of it. Robert olen butler so much more than a tale about a circus, water for elephants is a compelling journey not only under the big top, but into the protagonists heart. Water for elephants was released in theaters on april 22, 2011. Veterinary school student jacob meets and falls in love with marlena, a star performer in a circus of a bygone era. If you havent seen water for elephants or read the novel its based on, stop reading now.
Despite her often cliched prose and the predictability of the storys ending, gruen skillfully humanizes the midgets, drunks, rubes and freaks who populate her book. Water for elephants by sara gruen at the best online ebook storage. Water for elephants book club discussion questions and. Your story took me to place i could only dream of going. It follows the story of a young man whose circumstances are suddenly altered and who finds himself homeless and jobless. I was, for the first time in years, saddened to come to the end of this book. It wasnt a romantic, carefree decision, to be sure. August can be very friendly and sweet on the surface, but deep down he is a cruel and cold man.
They create a plan to completely ruin the circus for good. A veterinary student just shy of a degree, he was put in charge of caring for the circus menagerie. I liked the movie ending better, i like seeing all the pictures and montages of the family. As the sadistic august, waltz simmers with alternating charm and viciousness two qualities he perfected in his oscarwinning turn in inglourious basterds. Dec 11, 2011 water for elephants book discussion questions water for elephants moves between a story about a circus and a story about an old man in a nursing home. I fell in love with the picture you chose for your book the first time i saw it. Jacob is the main conflict in the book, water for elephants. Water for elephants is a book that can be read and reread, recommended and handed off between friends. To ask other readers questions about water for elephants, please sign up. Water for elephants book discussion questions water for elephants moves between a story about a circus and a story about an old man in a nursing home.
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