When I used to work at Borders Books backin 2006, I remember seeing this out on the new arrivals shelf. It seemed interesting and after reading the description on the back decided against it. It didn't seem like a book I would like. Years later in 2011, I saw the movie trailer for this book that I previously poo-pooed and immediately became intrigued. My first thought was "Wait a second, this is about an old circus?! SWEET!" How could I have missed that 5 years ago? Idiot moment on my part, I guess. Last week, I was in need of a book to read and downloaded it on my trusty Kindle! In 5 seconds (I am still amazed at this piece of technology) I was on the Benzini Bro's Circus train. I could not put this book down.
I will not give anything away for those of you interested in seeing the movie or reading it, but my goodness, Sara Gruen can write! I laughed out loud, I cried while reading on the elliptical machine at the gym (multiple times) and was completely swept off my feet by Jacob Jankowski and the dear and precious Rosie. It has officially made it's way to my top 10 favorite books of all time!
MOVIE REVIEW:
I of course saw the movie last night and loved it! It was pretty true to the book with of course a few minor changes that weren't a big deal. One thing that I found interesting was that they combined two characters in the book into one. Uncle Al runs the Benzini Bro's Circus and August is the ring leader. The movie put this character into one and it actually works really well! Keep in mind that there are a few parts that I had a tough time watching when it comes to the animals, but it's all fake. No animals were harmed in the making! I give the movie my stamp of approval and definitely recommend it!
FUN FACTS:
The author of the book did a lot of research while writing the book and included some true happenings in the story. For instance, there was an elephant that would remove its stake, walk over and drink the lemonade, then walk back and put the stake back in the ground pretending that nothing happened. There was a circus that had a hippo and when the hippo died, they replaced the water tank with formaldehyde and displayed a dead hippo for a few weeks. There was also an elephant who actually killed his abusive trainer after he flicked a lit cigarette into its mouth.
This book really tugged on my heartstrings and it now holds a special place in my heart. It is right up there with Harry Potter and Outlander! I feel that I could go on and on about it, but you should really pick it up and experience the magic for yourself.
