Water For Elephants

by Sara Gruen

A gritty tale of a traveling circus during the 1930s. The stock market has collapsed, prohibition is in full effect and the desperation of the times colors the experiences of a young vet fallen on hard luck. The book is filled with interesting writing and great descriptions of the squalor, filth and moral ambiguity of what amounts to a traveling band of vagrant desperate for food and shelter. The circus lore is interesting and the story is captivating. The self imposed class war within in the circus and the bonds formed between the people and animals is an interesting commentary on society. Unfortunately the story is frequently interrupted with the crass little scenes that seem to be so trendy in popular books. Although ome of these debaucheries may have occured in the circumstances described in the book, having the nasty little details spelled out is annoying and unnecessary.