Water for Elephants is my favorite novel of all time. It’s absolutely enchanting! I’ve re-read it every summer since I first closed the book years ago. It even makes me swoon when I get a glimpse of the cover of this literary gem or when I hear someone utter the title. It’s made an imprint on me for sure. Bravo, Sara Gruen, on writing brilliant characters. Some that I’ve fallen in love with, others that are perfectly detestable. All that together created a period piece that was so perfectly written, I felt like I was actually there. And when it came to a close, I longed for the past just like one of the characters did. Thank God for Hollywood, because they produced a swoon-worthy adaptation of the equally entrancing book. The film was absolutely stunning! The visuals. The story. Even though none of the characters (save the earring-ed up circus worker) were as I pictured them while I was reading Sara Green’s story, the casting actually was perfection. Like some of my other faves – Chicago, Moulin Rouge, Amelie – Water for Elephants is motion picture eye candy. And no, I’m not talking about Rob Pat. Let the record show that I belong to Team Jacob! I digress. You have to go rent this movie on Amazon Prime immediately and thank me upon the rolling of the final credits! Bottom Line: I highly suggest you add Water for Elephants to your Summer Reading List whether you’ve read it before or not. Side Note: This time when I re-read the book I listened to the Audible version. It was a fun way to get to know the characters even better. I also watched the film in between reading sessions, so I could really get a feel for the differences between the two. Both are brilliant pieces of work!