Water for Elephants by Sara GruenMy rating: 4 of 5 stars
I typically read "hyped" books well after the hype calms down so I can resist the noise and form my own opinion. I was given Water for Elephants as a gift back in 2007, so in this case, the waiting period has been a *bit* longer than I intended. I enjoy my engagement with lit-social media, but in this case, it may not have been a good thing. One of the "bookTokers" I follow half-heartedly (because I find his "reviews" rather ego-swollen, even though I mostly agree with him) did a quick video about the biggest "plot twists," based on his audience's feedback. He mentioned that he didn't really feel this one had a plot twist, but it was more just a part of the plot. What bothers me is that I now had this in mind the ENTIRE time I was reading the book.
Plot twist or no, I'll say that I think I would have preferred to do without the part of the book that enables the so-called plot twist at the end. I don't think it added much, and the real story was gritty enough. I don't like to use the spoiler tag, so I'm hoping that's vague enough for those who haven't read it, and will make sense to those who have.
It is a great read -- I sped through it basically in two days when I had a chunk of time to read. The characters are vivid and the story is compelling as is the historical context of a depression-era circus. The shifts between time periods work (not an easy move to do well), and there are some really beautiful and human moments. I was prepared for more of a tear-jerker given what I've heard over the years, so I was surprised to have had only two moments of deep sadness, and one of them I saw coming, so I braced myself for it. What I suspected would be the tragedy of the novel was not, so I guess on that front I was pleasantly surprised.
I personally did not need what I call the "catch-up" chapter (Chapter 25), but I can also see that it would be necessary for some. I'm usually happy to have some loose ends left to weave together in my imagination. All in all, however, this is worthy of a lot of the acclaim it received and I'm glad I (finally) read it!
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