Water for Elephants, The Glass Castle

I just read two books - Water for Elephants and The Glass Castle.

Both of them were great books, if you are looking for a good read.

Water for Elephants takes place on a traveling circus in the early part of the 20th century. It is a rich detailed description of the politics and workings of the traveling circus during the prohibition and The Great Depression, when circuses - and everyone - was struggling to stay afloat. It is also about growing old, as the protagonist is reliving his time in the circus while he is living in an elderly home. A beautiful story.

The Glass Castle is sort of like an "Angela's Ashes" type tale... a story of a family growing up in poverty and hard times and parents who have a, shall we say, different view of what a parents role should be. However, as a child growing up in the family, what to someone on the outside may seem horrific seems to her as, well, more or less, normal. Of course, the older you get, the less crap you are willing to accept. This is a tale of a family of children who made the best out of the circumstances they were dealt, and then became determined to not repeat the cycle in their own adult lives.