October 23, 2008: Page Turners 7p.m.

Book: Water for Elephants by Sara Gruen

Discussion:

Several of our members returned this month for the discussion of Sara Gruen’s Water for Elephants. Many Page Turners had read the book before and enjoyed it, as the voting proved. Ten readers voted thumbs up, one thumbs down, and one thumbs sideways. To begin the discussion I asked those who did not vote up if they would like to share their opinions on the book. One found the narrative a bit implausible. She wondered why Jacob ran away after his parents died and their house was repossessed instead of staying with friends in his hometown. She also thought it was very convenient that he would find veterinary work straight out of school during the Depression, and it seemed even more fantastic that this work was with the circus. Some Page Turners liked this stretch of implausibility, thinking that it fit in well with the circus atmosphere.

It was also suggested that some of the circus history was inaccurate. One Page Turner worked for the publication Billboard in the 1950s, which covered the country’s circuses. The head of her department was an expert on circus history and imparted some of it to our fellow member. Another Page Turner revealed that she is from Hugo, Oklahoma, which shelters many circuses during the winter because of the relatively mild climate and profusion of open spaces for hosting circus animals. Having lived there for many years, this Page Turner told us of various friends of hers who were performers and of circus companies still in business today. We definitely had no lack of knowledgeable Page Turners at this meeting!

Another topic receiving much discussion was that of elephant temperament. Apparently it is not uncommon for mistreated elephants under stress to maim or kill their trainers. According to some of our experts, trainers in the past continued to use elephants until they had engaged in two or three acts of violence, and only employed female elephants. Now, companies have both male and female elephants, though they only take the females on tour, and retire an animal from performing after one violent incident. Conversely, elephants can also be extremely affectionate and gentle. One Page Turner shared a story of how an elephant once nuzzled her face, an endearing, albeit a hairy gesture. Apparently their temperaments can vary as much as a human’s can.

We also discussed circus movies such as The Greatest Show on Earth and Toby Tyler. According to the New York Times, Water for Elephants should be made into a movie in 2009. We also commented on the 2009 reading list and the book for next month. Copies of that novel, Hard Truth by Nevada Barr were made available, and flyers for upcoming programming were also distributed.