I just finished this audiobook and LOVED it! I’ve been seeing this paperback in Target and Costco for months, and for whatever reason, I looked it up on Audible. Because everyone loves a circus (actually, everyone except me - I find them terrifying), I used my monthly credit on it. And boy was I glad I did!

It’s the story of a man - told alternately at age 90 (or 93 - he’s not sure) from a nursing home, and at age 23, from a train-traveling circus. Excellent narrators, wonderful storytelling. I found myself immersed in the mind of Jacob, living the drama of the depression-era big top, and equally immersed in his nursing home world, surrounded by people of varying degrees of age and healthfulness, trying to make sense of it all.

I have to say, the nursing home scenes were very sad. My own grandfather is in a nursing home, and I can’t help but know he must have many of the same feelings. I don’t think he knows who I am anymore, much as Jacob doesn’t know his own grandchildren.

And Rosie! I loved her. She’s the elephant, by the way, and for me, the star of the book.

Sara Gruen, the author, does a wonderful job of keeping the reader guessing. There are twists and turns and scenes from the beginning keep you guessing until the final chapters. I loved the ending - I couldn’t have imagined a more fitting end to Jacob’s story.

10 stars from me on this one![rating:5][rating:5]