Water for Elephants

Engrossing, astounding and at times disturbingly startling. This novel takes its reader into the captivating world of circus life in the 1930's. When the protagonist Jacob encounters a tragic loss, he leaves his ivy league vet training early to hop a train into a life filled with misfits and beauties. When he falls in love with Marlena, the show's star performer and wife of the horrifically abusive and psychotic animal trainer, he finds himself silently suffocating in a world where compassion is cast aside.

This was an incredible read and an even more impressive literary feat. The research performed by Sara Gruen in order to be able to demonstrate the world and timeframe in which Jacob finds himself is so vivid that you smell the cotton candy, hear the horses stomping and see every little wrinkle and hair on Rosie's (the elephant) skin.

Not for the faint of heart as some of the animal encounters are difficult to read but should you be searching for a historical read with a glimpse into a different time and way of life while intertwined with a unique and beautiful story-line this is the book for you.

The Road

The Road by Cormac McCarthy tells of a post-apocalyptic world where father and son fight not only for survival but for a glimmer of hope. Set amidst a landscape seemingly devoid of all compassion, structure, sustenance, and humanity the two struggle along while leaning on, and at times held up by, the bond that they share.

While McCarthy's work is a quick and simple read, the setting descriptions and continual pull at the heart-strings keep the reader interested and hopeful. In a world where all is lost, the indistinguishable love between father and son casts a flickering ray of light across a barren and horrific backdrop.

For the Love

"A loveless world is a dead world, and always there comes an hour when one is weary of prisons, of one's work, and of devotion to duty, and all one craves for is a loved face, the warmth and wonder of a loving heart." Albert Camus