I am usually not a big fan of books with animals as main characters. I decided to break away from this pattern and read The Elephant Keeper, especially that the description mentioned it to be 'a magical adventure'. The novel is set in 18th century England and the story is told by Tom Page, a keeper of two elephants he named Timothy and Jenny. By pure accident, Tom found himself to be their main caregiver since the day they arrived in England. The elephants were still pretty much babies and on the verge of dying. However, under the careful eye of Tom and his undivided attention, Timothy and Jenny survived. And Tom's life took an unexpected turn as he falls in love with the two animals and slowly but surely removes himself from the world of people.

Sounds interesting, doesn't it? Well, it was okay in the beginning even though the style of writing (Tom's weird grammar with author's attempt to use the language as it may have been used in the times the story was set) took some getting used to. It also took me a while to get interested in the story of raising two elephants, the way Tom recounts his life as elephant keeper seemed emotionally distant to me and therefore I couldn't quite believe that he was all that devoted to Timothy and Jenny. But still, there was something in the story (probably the novelty of reading about elephants) that kept me going. Unfortunately, when I got about half-way through, the relationship between Tom Page and his female elephant, Jenny became just plain weird to me. I don't want to spoil anything for those of you who might want to read it but when a man starts talking to an animal and receives answers and the conversations take on an intimate character, and when that same man starts having sexually suggestive dreams featuring the animal I have to start questioning the sanity of the whole novel. Which by the way, was not pitched as a fantasy but historical fiction. I did finish The Elephant Keeper because when I am already half done with a book I go on until the end, but it left me feeling slightly put off. ( )

Since traumatized at an early age by the violent death of Bambi’s mother, I’ve not been one for animal stories. When forced to read Old Yeller in Junior High School, I curled myself up in a ball, chewed my fingernails, and wept. When asked to review The Elephant Keeper by Christopher Nicholson, my old fear of being forced to watch the demise of innocent animals reared its mighty head. Thankfully, I faced my fear.

The Elephant Keeper is a warm, gentle tale set in 18th century England that follows the life of Tom from boyhood into middle age while devoting his life to the care of Elephants. Nicholson does a spectacular job of evoking 18th century England, both London and the countryside, through a vivid array of details and, most of all, through the lovely voice of its narrative. How can you be anything but safe in a novel that opens thusly: “It was six days ago that Lord Bidborough, accompanied by another gentlemen, came to the Elephant House and, after making the usual inquiries about my charge, who was, at the moment, quietly eating hay, asked whether it was true that, as he had heard, I was able to read.” Even in middle age and visiting prostitutes in London, there is an innocence about Tom that is endearing. The elephants, like the Houyhnhnms in Gulliver’s Travels are endowed with all this novel’s wisdom, and though I am not usually one to have patience for attributing animals with great powers of intellect, I found myself giving way to Nicholson’s artistic device and being thoroughly entertained. Each night as I picked up this novel, I would sigh in preparation for my pleasant interlude. Though this book has its share of both naughty and nice bits, taken as a whole, it definitely lands in the nice column. Enjoy! ( )

I found this book moved slowly, but I do not mean to imply that it is plodding. Rather, each time I returned to the story, I felt I was exposed to 18th century life in a degree I had not experienced before. I welcomed the slow pace, as it allowed me to absorb more of the culture, country, and civilization in which the story takes place.

My reading behavior is not always the same; my behavior changes when I read different things. In the case of The Elephant Keeper, each time I picked up the book I found myself mentally slipping silently and invisibly into the scenes. Although personally I had no similar experiences in my own life to draw from, I found I became the proverbial fly on the wall. For example, I experienced emotional tightness and nervousness when Tom went through his trials-n-tribulations traveling back to his original home, only to find people and circumstances there little resembled what he had hoped to find. Also, as Tom’s emotional needs were tied to Jenny, I understood his physical urges to frequent the whore houses, where those physical needs could be satisfied by others. By the way, I thought Jenny was a jewel ... so clear-headed with such a wonderful disposition. (still not sure whether second-half Jenny is Jenny, or she is the alter-ego of Tom ... but in some ways it does not matter)

As I was reading this book, I thought I enjoyed the first half far more than the second half. However, after some reflection, I now realize that it is the second half that has remained more deeply in my thoughts. I liked this book. Although originally I had not been prepared for it, in retrospect I liked the shift that took place from the first half to the second. And, I really liked the open-ended ending. ( )

Oh, my. What a wonderful story, beautifully told. You might imagine that a story about a man in charge of an elephant in England in the late 1700’s can be all merry and bright, and it isn’t. You will cry. But it isn’t all heartache, either. You know from the very beginning that there is just one elephant, so you know you going to have to find out what happens to the other one. The author handles the relationship between the elephant and the keeper (and some of the other characters) in such a tender way that makes you rejoice that such people exist. And if you love animals, and reading about them as I do, then you will identify with a lot of the emotions written about here. And the ending is about as good as it could be, considering. This book stayed with me for a long time afterward. I highly recommend it, even though parts were hard to read. I loved it.

I write my review, then I read some of the others. I think some of the comments below about the second half of the novel have some merit, but I still loved the book. I had trouble putting it down. I gage a book by how anxious I am to get back to it, and I was really anxious to get back to this one. Due to time constraints, took me a couple days. ( )

I rate books a two or below when I can't finish them. This one wasn't a bad book... but I just couldn't find myself caring or getting engaged with the characters at all. I learned in "The Little Guide to your Well Read Life" that I should ask myself 'If I die tomorrow, do I want this to be the last book I ever read?'. I did that with this book and said "no".

It's not a bad book... I just didn't care. Perhaps I will try it again someday? Perhaps not. ( )