394 pages
English language
Published Nov. 7, 2007 by Allen & Unwin.
When Jacob Jankowski, recently orphaned, jumps onto a passing train, he enters the world of a second-rate circus struggling to survive during the Great Depression, making one-night stands in town after town. A veterinary student, Jacob is put in charge of caring for the circus animals. It is there that he meets Marlena, the beautiful young star of the equestrian act, who is married to August, the charismatic but twisted animal trainer. And he meets Rosie, an elephant who seems untrainable until he discovers a way to reach her.
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.
