[CLUTCHFANS BOOK CLUB] June\July 2012 - Water for Elephants

I'll go ahead and make an executive decision and call the first book of the ClutchFans Book Club to be Water for Elephants by Sara Gruen. It's cheap as an e-book and should be readily available in your library or at a used book store for those on a limited budget. It seemed like this book was where the popular sentiment lay.



Some tentative rule suggestions to make this book club run reguarly. I like the idea of at least a month for a book. Some of us have busy lives or are reading other things or some combination of those things. Let's see if a month is enough or if we need to stretch it to a book every two months. Since we're already well into June, we'll give everyone until the end of July to read this book and post their thoughts and have a discussion before we move on to the next book.

Selecting the next book has always been the biggest pain in the ass in every book club I've ever joined (as well as who hosts, but that doesn't apply here :grin. About two weeks before the end of the month, start suggesting books you'd like to read for the next book club. We'll take the top 8 or so suggestions and create a weeklong poll to decide the next book. Hopefully a moderator can then modify the thread title to the winning choice on the 1st of the month (or we create a new thread). Then we start the whole book discussion, book selection process again.

This is a SPOILER free for all, so feel free to discuss whatever you want from the novel. The book title is in the thread title, so don't come in the thread unless you've READ THE BOOK. The point of this thread is to have a discussion about Water for Elephants, and I don't want to have keep clicking Spoiler buttons to see what people have said.

Here are some official Reading Group Discussion questions that they have posted online and in a lot of copies of the book:

I'm going to spoiler tag this one time, since some of you will come into this thread not expecting any spoilers, but this is the last one. You have been warned.

Spoiler

1. To what extent do the chapters concerning the elderly Jacob enhance the chapters recounting the young Jacob's experiences with the Benzini Brothers circus? In what ways do the chapters about the young Jacob contribute to a deeper understanding of the elderly Jacob's life?

2. How does the novel's epigraph, the quote from Dr. Seuss's Horton Hatches the Egg, apply to the novel? What are the roles and importance of faithfulness and loyalty in Water for Elephants? In what ways does Gruen contrast the antagonisms and cruelties of circus life with the equally impressive loyalties and instances of caring?

3. Who did you, upon reading the prologue, think murdered August? What effect did that opening scene of chaos and murder have on your reception of the story that follows?

4. In connection with Jacob's formal dinner with August and Marlena in their stateroom, Jacob remarks, "August is gracious, charming, and mischievous" (page 93). To what extent is this an adequate characterization of August? How would you expand upon Jacob's observation? How would you characterize August? Which situations in the novel reveal his true character?

5. August says of Marlena, "Not everyone can work with liberty horses. It's a God-given talent, a sixth sense, if you will" (page 94). Both August and Jacob recognize Marlena's skills, her "sixth sense," in working with the horses. In what ways does that sixth sense attract each man? How do August and Jacob differ in terms of the importance each places on Marlena's abilities?

6. After Jacob puts Silver Star down, August talks with him about the reality of the circus. "The whole thing's illusion, Jacob," he says, "and there's nothing wrong with that. It's what people want from us. It's what they expect" (page 104). How does Gruen contrast the worlds of reality and illusion in the novel? Is there anything wrong with pandering to people's need for illusion? Why do we crave the illusions that the circus represents?

7. Reflecting on the fact that his platitudes and stories don't hold his children's interest, the elderly Jacob notes, "My real stories are all out of date. So what if I can speak firsthand about the Spanish flu, the advent of the automobile, world wars, cold wars, guerrilla wars, and Sputnik --- that's all ancient history now. But what else do I have to offer?" (page 110). How might we learn to appreciate the stories and life lessons of our elders and encourage people younger than ourselves to appreciate our own?

8. Looking at himself in the mirror, the old Jacob tries "to see beyond the sagging flesh." But he claims, "It's no good. . . . I can't find myself anymore. When did I stop being me?" (page 111). How would you answer that question for Jacob or any individual, or for yourself?

9. In what ways and to what degree do Uncle Al's maneuvers and practices regarding the defunct Fox Brothers circus reflect traditional American business practices? How would you compare his behavior with that of major businessmen and financiers of today? What alternative actions would you prefer?

10. As he lies on his bedroll, after his night with Barbara and Nell, Jacob cannot empty his mind of troubling visions and he reflects that "the more distressing the memory, the more persistent its presence" (page 143). How might the elderly Jacob's memories corroborate or contradict this observation? What have been your experiences and observations in this regard?

11. In his Carnival of the Animals, Ogden Nash wrote, "Elephants are useful friends." In what ways is Rosie a "useful" friend? What is Rosie's role in the events that follow her acquisition by Uncle Al?

12. After Jacob successfully coaches August in Polish commands for Rosie, he observes, "It's only when I catch Rosie actually purring under August's loving ministrations that my conviction starts to crumble. And what I'm left looking at in its place is a terrible thing" (page 229). What is Jacob left "looking at," how does it pertain to August's personality and Jacob's relationship with August, and what makes it a "terrible thing"?

13. How did you react to the redlighting of Walter and Camel, and eight others, off the trestle? How might we see Uncle Al's cutthroat behavior as "an indictment of a lifetime spent feigning emotions to make a buck" (in the words of one reviewer)?

14. After the collapse of the Benzini Brothers circus and Uncle Al's having "done a runner" (page 314), Jacob realizes, "Not only am I unemployed and homeless, but I also have a pregnant woman, bereaved dog, elephant, and eleven horses to take care of" (page 317). What expectations did you entertain for Jacob and Marlena's --- and their menagerie's --- future after they leave the Benzini Brothers circus? How do the elderly Jacob's memories of Marlena and their life together confirm or alter those expectations?

15. At the end of the novel, Jacob exclaims, "So what if I'm ninety-three? . . . why the hell shouldn't I run away with the circus?" (page 331). What would you project to be the elderly Jacob's experiences after he runs away with the circus the second time? How does his decision reflect what we have learned about his early years?

16. Sara Gruen has said that the "backbone" of her novel "parallels the biblical story of Jacob," in the book of Genesis. On the first night after his leaving Cornell, for example, Jacob --- as did his biblical namesake --- lies "back on the bank, resting my head on a flat stone" (page 23). In what other ways does Water for Elephants parallel the story of the biblical Jacob? How do the names of many of the characters reflect names of characters in the biblical account?

17. In the words of one reviewer, Water for Elephants "explores . . . the pathetic grandeur of the Depression-era circus." In what ways and to what extent do the words "pathetic grandeur" describe the world that Gruen creates in her novel?

Happy Reading!

 

It's a really good book and a quick read. If you need a breather when you slog through the last of the Martin series, it's not a bad option. That or as a palate cleanser when you finish Dance with Dragons.

 

I assumed this would be for the actual book we pick every month or so, and we'd start a new thread for each book. We can have goodreads conversations on that board or in the What are you reading? thread.

I've got family in from out of the country and haven't had any time yet to play around on goodreads yet, but it intrigues me a lot. I'd love to post feedback on books and possibly get hits on other books that I might like based on similar tastes by other readers. It seems a much more efficient tool than clicking on Amazon, viewing a book I liked, and seeing what others bought who also bought that book. Although that method has led me to some new authors and outstanding novels.

I've got to finish Art of Racing in the Rain, then I'm on to Water for Elephants. Looking forward to rereading it.