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!