Hardcover, 335 pages
English language
Published Nov. 7, 2006 by Algonquin Books.
As a young man, Jacob Jankowski was tossed by fate onto a rickety train that was home to the Benzini Brothers Most Spectacular Show on Earth. It was the early part of the great Depression, and for Jacob, now ninety, the circus world he remembers was both his salvation and a living hell. A veterinary student just shy of a degree, he was put in charge of caring for the circus menagerie. It was there that he met Marlena, the beautiful equestrian star married to August, the charismatic but twisted animal trainer. And he met Rosie, an untrainable elephant who was the great gray hope for this third-rate traveling show. The bond that grew among this unlikely trio was one of love and trust, and, ultimately, it was their only hope for survival.
Pretty good. Another popular novel that comes with historical insights. Hard to rate... 3.5 - 3.75 stars?
Unsettled by his parents' deaths, and right before finishing his final exams to become a vet, Jacob Jankowski jumps on a circus train. Jacob ends up as the vet for the Benzini Brothers Most Spectacular Show on Earth. There he meets very peculiar characters and makes a lot of weird friends and powerful enemies.
At first I thought it was interesting to know the end before reading the whole story as it would leave me less anxious for the characters, but it turns out it worked against the book because I lost all interest in the story of the young Jacob Jankowski. The older version was the one that kept me reading/listening to the book. I liked it, his monologues felt very real, but I did not think the book was that interesting. The end is pretty good though.
