Film · 2011 · Directed by Francis Lawrence · Starring Reese Witherspoon, Robert Pattinson, Christoph Waltz
A young man joins a travelling circus in the thirties and falls for its star.
The film follows the book's romance and trims the framing story of an old man in a nursing home.
The novel mixes past and present with more care.
Water for Elephants by Sara Gruen
Immersive circus atmosphere, a tender love story and a deeply sympathetic narrator. Full of heart and a touch of wonder.
Who will like it: Readers who like romantic historical fiction set in a colorful, vanishing world.