Water for Elepants, by Sara Gruen

This book was recommended to me from a lot of people! I really liked it to. I liked how it was  set up in the present day with flashbacks. It almost reminded me of Nicholas Spark's "The Notebook", with the setting being in a assisted living place, the main character being elderly and his remembering of the past, of one huge event that pretty much changed his life. I think it was written very well, and from what I read, looking into the author, this first draft of this book was written for NaNoWriMo, or National Novel Writing Month, which is held in November.
Anyways, this is a really good book, full of a lot of history about the circus and the 20's. At the end of the book there was an interview with Gruen, and she talks a lot about the research she did for the novel, and how many anecdotal stories were used and why. That is one of my favorite parts of the story; a lot of it is based on real stories that real circus people told her when she was researching! It is still a fictional piece of work, but to know that some of this stuff happened, someway, somehow, just makes even more interesting.
This book has already been made into a movie starring Robert Pattinson as the main character, Jacob, and Resse Witherspoon as the love interest, Marlena. I am not to sure about how the book will translate onto the big screen, especially Witherspoon as Marlena, because in my head, as I read the story, I just couldn't picture her in that kind of role. But I try not to put to much stock into movies made from books; they seldom ever make the mark. I do however try to go in with an open mind.
The novel itself was really engaging, I could hardly put it down. I read it in 2 days actually, and was really sad that I read it so quickly, because I just didn't want it to end. But i really liked the ending. I really didn't expect it, and it was just a good way to end it. I give this book an A for being a fun, exciting read that I just couldn't put down! I highly recommend it, just as it was recommended to me! And even though movies from books are not my favorite, I am looking forward to seeing what makes it into the film and what doesn't!

What I Read, How I read and Why.

I love reading. I just recently got my Bachelors's Degree in English, so needless to say I spend most of my college career reading and writing about what I was reading. I spent a lot of time reading a lot of things that I didn't really want to, but I was also introduced to a lot of authors and styles I never would have even looked at. One of my favorite classes was my senior seminar class on American Short Stories. I really admire short stories because so much is accomplished in a so few pages.
I read ALL the time, anywhere and everywhere, which I think sometimes annoys my boyfriend! But I usually always carry a book on me, up until lately that is. I got a Kindle for my birthday, so now that basically never leaves my side. Whenever I have down time at work I read, I read during my lunch and breaks, and I read during breakfast and every night before bed I read at least a chapter or two.
I read anything and everything. I like fiction mostly. I like losing myself in a book.
Some of my favorite books are:
Pride and Prejudice, by Jane Austen. I have read it at least 5 times and it never gets old. It is an amazing book.
A Prayer for Owen Meany, By Washington Irving. I read this in my freshman college English class. It took me a while to realize that it was what the movie Simon Birch was based of off, but it was so much better than the movie. This book is where I started noticing symbolism in books.
All the Harry Potter books. I am a Harry Potter nerd!!!!! Goblet of Fire is my favorite of the series.
White Oleander, by Janet Fitch. Every time I read this book, I notice something new, something I didn't see before. Love it.

The Art of Racing in the Rain, by Garth Stein

What a GOOD book! This is a story about a dog named Enzo, told through the perspective of Enzo. It is a touching, heartwarming, sad, funny, lovely book. It is a pretty quick read, and I don't know if it is because it was so good and I just couldn't down, or because it was told through a dog's perspective, and the vocabulary is simple and easy to read. We follow Enzo through his puppy-hood to his adult life, and his owner's life as well. His life as a dog is pretty good, but his owner's life is not. His owner's name is Denny. Denny gets married, has a kid, is a race car driver, and a lot goes down with all of that. His wife gets sick, there's a huge custody battle between the in-law's for his daughter, is offered amazing jobs doing what he loves, there is so much to love about Denny and his character. Enzo is just a dog, so he is limited in a lot of the things he sees, such as in the court room. Dogs are not allowed in court rooms, so all he can do is speculate what is going on. But on the other hand, the things that Enzo knows, and how he describes and explains them, is great. Enzo watches a lot of TV, and he and Denny watch a lot of Denny's racing tapes, and when Enzo talks about racing techniques and the people who race and how they do it and what Denny has taught him, even if you are not a race car fan, you can't help but eat up everything Enzo says because he is so passionate about it.

There are a lot of metaphors throughout the novel, most of them are racing ones, which makes sense, since Enzo grew up with an owner who was a race car driver. The biggest one is the actually the title, the art of racing in the rain. This is talked about a lot, how to do it, how to do it well, and so on. It is these metaphors that help drive the book (hehehe no pun intended) to what Enzo wants to achieve, and kind of alludes to what is going to happen in the end when it is all over....

As I said, Enzo watches a lot of TV, and at one point in his life, he watched a show about reincarnation, basically. So Enzo believes that when he dies, as long as he has done his duty as a dog, which these duties are given to him by his family, and what he thinks he needs to do. So everything Enzo does is meant to help him become a better man, which is what he will become when his life ends. He will begin a new life as a man, as a human, with thumbs and lips and a tongue. So all he can do right now is soak up everything he can, while he can, and take that with him when it is his time to move on. With all that said, one can guess where the end of the story leads to. It is a sad ending, but it does end on a good note, and while you may be sad at the end, you will still smile, and be happy.

This is a great book, a great "I need a good pick-me-up, make me cry, make me feel good" book. This book really does it all. You laugh a whole lot, you cry a little bit, and you just feel better at the end. Enzo is so honest and I guess in a way innocent, because he knows no other way to be. Its a nice change, really. A+ to this book! Read it now!!!!

Keeping Faith, by Jodi Picoult

This book was a typical Jodi Picoult book and even though it is a book full of religious references, and I am not the most religious being, it was still an interesting story and as always well written. The story follows a little girl who seems to be able to perform miracles, and this of course causes all kinds of outrage and controversy between the the media, Catholic church, and parents, who are in the middle of a divorce. As part of the Jodi Picoult style, there is a huge court case, and it is the court scenes are the critical points of the story. The mother, Mariah, of the little miracle worker, Faith (so aptly named), gets involved with a romance with someone she is not supposed to, be as well as her daughter being there for her, this relationship is a saving grace for her.

All the characters are developed pretty well. I had some issues with the little girl, Faith, who is 7, having such a critical role in her mother's well being. This kid was keeping her mother together, and I felt that most 7 year olds would not know how to deal with that kind of pressure. But, on that note, the relationship between Mariah and Faith was really nice and there is no reason to think that maybe Faith really did understand what her mom needed. 

This was a good book, not one of my favorite Picoult books, but I did like it. It took me a long time to read, and I am not sure if that is because of the religious elements that I just don't have enough background in to relate to or understand completely. I give this book a B and there are still so many Picoult books I want to read, I just hope they are a little more compelling then this one.