{"product_id":"9781616200701","title":"Water for Elephants","description":"\u003cp\u003eThough he may not speak of them, the memories still dwell inside Jacob Jankowski's ninety-something-year-old mind. Memories of himself as a young man, tossed by fate onto a rickety train that was home to the Benzini Brothers Most Spectacular Show on Earth. Memories of a world filled with freaks and clowns, with wonder and pain and anger and passion; a world with its own narrow, irrational rules, its own way of life, and its own way of death. The world of the circus: to Jacob it was both salvation and a living hell.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eJacob was there because his luck had run out-orphaned and penniless, he had no direction until he landed on this locomotive \"ship of fools.\" It was the early part of the Great Depression, and everyone in this third-rate circus was lucky to have any job at all. Marlena, the star of the equestrian act, was there because she fell in love with the wrong man, a handsome circus boss with a wide mean streak. And Rosie the elephant was there because she was the great gray hope, the new act that was going to be the salvation of the circus; the only problem was, Rosie didn't have an act-in fact, she couldn't even follow instructions. The bond that grew among this unlikely trio was one of love and trust, and ultimately, it was their only hope for survival.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eSurprising, poignant, and funny, \u003ci\u003eWater for Elephants\u003c\/i\u003e is that rare novel with a story so engrossing, one is reluctant to put it down; with characters so engaging, they continue to live long after the last page has been turned; with a world built of wonder, a world so real, one starts to breathe its air.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Algonquin Books of Chapel Hill","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":47041902641392,"sku":"9781616200701","price":14.95,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0737\/7593\/9824\/files\/9781616200701_p0.jpg?v=1763854338","url":"https:\/\/shop-qa.barnesandnoble.com\/products\/9781616200701","provider":"Barnes \u0026 Noble (DEV)","version":"1.0","type":"link"}