I absolutely loved Water for Elephants! 
 Sara Gruen did a wonderful job organizing this story. The way that she interwove Jacob's memories with his present was simply break-taking. I loved how realistic it was because Jacob was getting older and had trouble separating the past from the present. I loved all of the characters, and the way that their relationships with Jacob evolved, and how characters, like Walter, who I thought would kind of just fade into the background, stood out in remarkable ways. 
 I loved the whole circus theme, and the way that we as readers got to see the circus' underbelly, it was raw and incredibly violent even at times, and at other times the atmosphere was so friendly and flamboyant. The contrast was really interesting to see, and in a way I think it paralleled August's character a little bit, but I don't want to give anything away. ;P 
 I mostly wanted to read this book before the movie came out to be honest. I had heard that it was a fantastic book, and so I wanted to make sure I got to read it before I watched the film. I'm pretty excited to see how the book is translated on screen, and I simply cannot wait to see it. :) 
 This book was amazing, if you're even thinking about reading it just a little...do it! You seriously won't regret it! :)