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Set during the Great Depression, Water for Elephants tells the story of Jacob Jankowski, a 23 year old man who runs away to join the circus after a personal tragedy. Employed as a veterinarian in the Benzini Brothers Most Spectacular Show on Earth, he faces a number of challenges in finding his place in the hierarchy of the traveling circus.
The story is presented as a series of flashbacks by elderly Jacob, now living in a nursing home. He finds his life at 93 intolerable, fleeing the curses of old age by escaping to his memories of life with the circus as a young man.
A colorful and engrossing portrait of an era, Water for Elephants humanizes the unusual characters who populate the circus. According to the author, many of the anecdotes used in the story were based upon real events, culled from the diaries and personal histories of old-time circus performers.
After twelve weeks on the New york Times Hardcover bestseller list, the paperback edition became a major hit on summer reading lists in 2008.
Mass Market |
Last Week/ Weeks on List |
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| 1. | The Appeal John Grisham, Dell, $7.99, 9780440243816 |
1/6 |
| 2. | The Official Scrabble Players Dictionary, 4th Edition Merriam-Webster, $7.50, 9780877799290 |
3/39 |
| 3. | T Is for Trespass Sue Grafton, Berkley, $7.99, 9780425224847 |
2/5 |
| 4. | Marley & Me John Grogan, Harper, $7.99, 9780061687204 |
4/5 |
| 5. | The Audacity of Hope Barack Obama, Vintage, $7.99, 9780307455871 |
5/8 |
| 6. | The Pillars of the Earth Ken Follett, Signet, $7.99, 9780451166890 |
6/62 |
| 7. | Dead Until Dark Charlaine Harris, Ace, $7.99, 9780441016990 |
7/13 |
| 8. | Ender's Game Orson Scott Card, Tor, $6.99, 9780812550702 |
9/14 |
| 9. | Duma Key Stephen King, Pocket, $9.99, 9781416552963 |
/5 |
| 10. | Leonard Maltin's 2009 Movie Guide Leonard Maltin (Ed.), Signet, $9.99, 9780451224682 |
10/2 |
Trade Paperback Fiction |
Last Week/ Weeks on List |
|
| 1. | The Shack William P. Young, Windblown, $14.99, 9780964729230 A man's relationship with God is changed when his daughter is abducted. |
1/32 |
| 2. | The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao Junot Diaz, Riverhead, $14, 9781594483295 The bestselling sci-fi journey from the Dominican Republic to the U.S. and back is now available in paperback. |
2/17 |
| 3. | A Thousand Splendid Suns Khaled Hosseini, Riverhead, $16, 9781594483851 Splendid characters and plot indeed, once again set in Afghanistan, by the author of the wondrous The Kite Runner. |
3/5 |
| 4. | Out Stealing Horses Per Petterson, Picador, $14, 9780312427085 A widower's recollections of a day with his childhood friend. |
4/35 |
| 5. | The White Tiger Aravind Adiga, Free Press, $14, 9781416562603 Adiga's darkly comic debut novel looks at India's class struggles. Winner of the 2008 Man Booker Prize for Fiction. |
5/11 |
| 6. | The Elegance of the Hedgehog Muriel Barbery, Europa Editions, $15, 9781933372600 Barbery's novel, a major bestseller in Europe, is a September Indie Next List Notable title. |
6/17 |
| 7. | Water for Elephants Sara Gruen, Algonquin, $13.95, 9781565125605 An indie fave about a traveling circus comes to paperback. |
7/90 |
| 8. | The Road Cormac McCarthy, Vintage, $14.95, 9780307387899 A barren, post-apocalyptic landscape is the foreground, and background, for this Pulitzer Prize-winning novel. |
12/86 |
| 9. | The Best American Short Stories 2008 Salman Rushdie, Heidi Pitlor (Eds.), Houghton Mifflin, $14, 9780618788774 A brilliant collection of the year's best short fiction. |
11/13 |
| 10. | Run Ann Patchett, Harper Perennial, $14.95, 9780061340642 An intimate domestic drama from the author of Bel Canto. |
9/22 |
| 11. | The Hearts of Horses Molly Gloss, Mariner, $13.95, 9780547085753 A young woman gets to live a cowboy's life during World War II. |
10/6 |
| 12. | Loving Frank Nancy Horan, Ballantine, $14, 9780345495006 Horan's fictionalized account of Frank Lloyd Wright and Mamah Cheney's love story is now available in paperback. |
8/38 |
| 13. | World Without End Ken Follett, NAL, $22, 9780451224996 Follett brings us back to Kingsbridge, the setting of his bestselling Pillars of the Earth. |
14/12 |
| 14. | In the Woods Tana French, Penguin, $14, 9780143113492 French's debut novel is a gripping story of the murder of a child in a suburb of Dublin. |
13/32 |
| 15. | Revolutionary Road - Debut Richard Yates, Vintage, $14.95, 9780307454621 Yates' highly regarded 1961 novel is now a major motion picture. |
/1 |
| ON THE RISE | ||
| 19. | Shadow Country Peter Matthiessen, Modern Library, $16, 9780812980622 Matthiessen's epic novel is the winner of the 2008 National Book Award. |
Trade Paperback Nonfiction |
Last Week/ Weeks on List |
|
| 1. | Dreams From My Father Barack Obama, Three Rivers, $14.95, 9781400082773 An elegant memoir of race and place from the president-elect. |
2/110 |
| 2. | Three Cups of Tea Greg Mortenson, David Oliver Relin, Penguin, $15, 9780143038252 An American's effort to open 50 schools across rural Pakistan and Afghanistan. |
1/100 |
| 3. | Team of Rivals Doris Kearns Goodwin, S&S, $21, 9780743270755 The prize-winning historian studies Lincoln as the ultimate manager and motivator. |
3/30 |
| 4. | The Audacity of Hope Barack Obama, Three Rivers, $14.95, 9780307237705 The president-elect's vision of hope for the future of our country. |
4/53 |
| 5. | Marley & Me John Grogan, Harper, $13.95, 9780060817091 Irresistible, funny, and finally available in paperback! |
5/34 |
| 6. | The Omnivore's Dilemma Michael Pollan, Penguin, $16, 9780143038580 A hard-boiled look at the food chain. |
6/70 |
| 7. | Musicophilia Oliver Sacks, Vintage, $14.95, 9781400033539 Sacks looks at the affect music can have in our daily lives. |
7/14 |
| 8. | Animal, Vegetable, Miracle Barbara and Camille Kingsolver, Steven Hopp, Harper Perennial, $14.95, 9780060852566 The Kingsolver family moves to a rural Virginia farm and vows to eat locally for one year. |
11/35 |
| 9. | Our Dumb World The Onion, Little Brown, $17.99, 9780316018432 In a world gone haywire, The Onion pokes fun at our secret fears and ignorance! |
9/7 |
| 10. | The Old Farmer's Almanac 2009 Old Farmer's Almanac, $6.95, 9781571984531 The annual almanac of weather, astrology, calendars, gardening tips, home remedies, and more. |
12/9 |
| 11. | Eat, Pray, Love Elizabeth Gilbert, Penguin, $15, 9780143038412 The author's yearlong search for spiritual meaning. |
10/101 |
| 12. | The World Almanac and Book of Facts C. Alan Joyce (Ed.), World Almanac, $12.99, 9781600571053 The dependable reference guide, updated for 2009. |
8/5 |
| 13. | The Nine Jeffrey Toobin, Anchor, $15.95, 9781400096794 Supreme Court watcher and analyst Toobin takes us behind the veil to reveal (some of) the mystery of the high court. |
/15 |
| 14. | The Zookeeper's Wife Diane Ackerman, Norton, $14.95, 9780393333060 The true story of the zookeeper who hid hundreds of Polish Jews during WWII, based on diaries of the wife. |
15/17 |
| 15. | A New Earth Eckhart Tolle, Plume, $14, 9780452289963 This follow-up to The Power of Now is an Oprah Book Club pick. |
/45 |
| ON THE RISE | ||
| 26. | The Middle Place Kelly Corrigan, Hyperion, $14.95, 9781401340933 A moving, often humorous memoir of surviving cancer and the bonds of family. |
Hardcover Fiction |
Last Week/ Weeks on List |
|
| 1. | The Story of Edgar Sawtelle David Wroblewski, Ecco, $25.95, 9780061374227 A masterful debut novel of a mute boy's coming of age in rural Wisconsin. This July Indie Next List Great Read is now an Oprah Book Club title. |
1/29 |
| 2. | The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society Mary Ann Shaffer, Annie Barrows, Dial, $22, 9780385340991 This wonderful, poignant novel is the number one August Indie Next Great Read. |
2/22 |
| 3. | A Mercy Toni Morrison, Knopf, $23.95, 9780307264237 Morrison's remarkable novella of a daughter sold into slavery is a November Indie Next List Remarkable Read. |
3/7 |
| 4. | The Private Patient P.D. James, Knopf, $25.95, 9780307270771 The latest masterful novel featuring Adam Dalgliesh is a December Indie Next List Great Read. |
5/6 |
| 5. | The Hour I First Believed Wally Lamb, Harper, $29.95, 9780060393496 This new novel by the bestselling author of I Know This Much Is True is the #1 December Indie Next List Great Read. |
4/7 |
| 6. | Scarpetta Patricia Cornwell, Putnam, $27.95, 9780399155161 The 16th Kay Scarpetta novel by the bestselling author of Book of the Dead. |
6/4 |
| 7. | Unaccustomed Earth Jhumpa Lahiri, Knopf, $25, 9780307265739 The latest collection of stories by the author of The Namesake. |
7/27 |
| 8. | The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo Stieg Larsson, Knopf, $24.95, 9780307269751 This debut thriller by Swedish journalist Larsson is an October Indie Next List Great Read. |
8/15 |
| 9. | The Host Stephenie Meyer, Little Brown, $25.99, 9780316068048 The debut adult novel by the author of the very popular Twilight series for teens. |
15/26 |
| 10. | Cross Country James Patterson, Little Brown, $27.99, 9780316018722 A new Alex Cross thriller by the bestselling author of Jack & Jill. |
10/6 |
| 11. | Just After Sunset Stephen King, Scribner, $28, 9781416584087 King's first collection of short fiction since 2002's Everything's Eventual. |
/6 |
| 12. | The Christmas Sweater Glenn Beck, Threshold Editions, $19.99, 9781416594857 An inspiring Christmas tale by the well-known radio and television host. |
9/7 |
| 13. | The Art of Racing in the Rain Garth Stein, Harper, $23.95, 9780061537936 A look at life through the eyes of Enzo, a mixed-breed pooch. |
/26 |
| 14. | 2666 Roberto Bolano, FSG, $30, 9780374100148 This daring novel by the author of The Savage Detectives is a December Indie Next List Great Read. |
12/4 |
| 15. | A Most Wanted Man John le Carré, Scribner, $28, 9781416594888 Le Carré's latest novel of spies and counterspies is an October Indie Next List Great Read. |
11/12 |
| ON THE RISE | ||
| 25. | The Charlemagne Pursuit Steve Berry, Ballantine, $26, 9780345485793 This new thriller by the author of The Venetian Betrayal is a December 2008 Indie Next List Notable title. |
Hardcover Nonfiction |
Last Week/ Weeks on List |
|
| 1. | Outliers Malcolm Gladwell, Little Brown, $27.99, 9780316017923 The author of Blink and The Tipping Point looks at what makes some people successful-- and others not. |
1/6 |
| 2. | Dewey Vicki Myron, Grand Central, $19.99, 9780446407410 The touching true story of an abandoned kitten's impact on a public library and the town of Spencer, Iowa. |
3/15 |
| 3. | American Lion Jon Meacham, Random House, $30, 9781400063253 A vivid look at the life of the seventh president of the United States. |
2/7 |
| 4. | The Last Lecture Randy Pausch, Hyperion, $21.95, 9781401323257 The life-affirming "last lecture" by Pausch, then a professor at Carnegie Mellon University. |
4/38 |
| 5. | Hot, Flat, and Crowded Thomas L. Friedman, FSG, $27.95, 9780374166854 The latest by the author of The World Is Flat looks at the global environmental crisis, and what we can do about it. |
5/16 |
| 6. | Holidays on Ice David Sedaris, Little Brown, $16.99, 9780316035903 Sedaris' bestselling holiday collection is new again, with six more pieces. |
6/8 |
| 7. | Barefoot Contessa Back to Basics Ina Garten, Clarkson Potter, $35, 9781400054350 The latest cookbook from the Food Network star and bestselling author of Barefoot in Paris. |
7/9 |
| 8. | When You Are Engulfed in Flames David Sedaris, Little Brown, $25.99, 9780316143479 Yet another laugh-out-loud collection of essays by indie fave Sedaris. |
8/29 |
| 9. | Annie Leibovitz at Work Annie Leibovitz, Random House, $40, 9780375505102 Leibovitz describes how her famous pictures were made. |
9/6 |
| 10. | The Snowball Alice Schroeder, Bantam, $35, 9780553805093 A biography of one of the most successful and well respected men of our time, Warren Buffett. |
10/13 |
| 11. | Guinness World Records 2009 Guinness, $28.95, 9781904994374 The annual look at world records, wild, wacky, and serious. |
12/14 |
| 12. | Alex & Me Irene M. Pepperberg, Collins, $23.95, 9780061672477 An extraordinary true story of the bond between a human and a parrot. |
15/5 |
| 13. | Letter to My Daughter Maya Angelou, Random House, $25, 9781400066124 Wonderful essays by the beloved author of I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings. |
11/13 |
| 14. | Deciding the Next Decider Calvin Trillin, Random House, $14, 9781400068289 Trillin's humorous look at the 2008 presidential election, in rhyme. |
14/4 |
| 15. | In Defense of Food Michael Pollan, Penguin Press, $21.95, 9781594201455 Pollan's answers to the questions raised in his bestselling The Omnivore's Dilemma. |
/39 |
Based on reporting from hundreds of independent bookstores across the United States. For an independent bookstore near you, visit IndieBound.org.
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