Sara Gruen Books In Order

Publication Order of Riding Lessons Books

Publication Order of Standalone Novels

Sara Gruen, a #1 New-York times and U.S.A today best selling author has authored five books. Her books are significantly focused on animals. One of her works, Water for-Elephants has also been transformed into a popular motion picture with famous stars including Reese Witherspoon as well as Christoph Waltz and Rob Pattinson in the year 2011.

Being an animal lover, she is also a supporter of several charitable organizations that take care of animals and wildlife. Since the start of writing career when she indulged in fiction writing, her first two novels Riding Lessons & Flying Changes were both based on horses. She was born and raised in Vancouver in British Columbia in the year 1969. She is an author having a Canadian and American dual citizenship.

Writing happened to her when she moved to United States in the year 1999. She got a writing job from which she got laid off in couple of years. She spent her growing up years in London, Ontario. She holds an English Literature degree from Carleton University, Ottawa.

Being a writer was struggling for her. Her third book, Water for Elephants which was based on 1930’s circus drama was put aside by her publisher, Avon books. However, this didn’t let her down. She was forced to find a different publisher, and it paved its way to become a New-York Times bestseller. Also, it is available in forty-four languages and has sold well over ten million copies all around the world. It was published by Two-Roads Books. Sara Gruen’s fourth novel known as Ape House which was published in 2010 is centered around Bonobo Ape. It was sold out to Spiegel and Grau based on a 12 page summary.

Besides animals, Sara also loves ruined castles rather than intact ones. Her favorite castle being the Urquhart Castle where she first visited at the age of 12. Ruined castles gives her a natural feeling of the wars, the betrayals, the killings, the hatred and every other feeling that happens in human life.

Technical writing job was something she thought of as a best fit for her as it involved using her writing skills. According to her, if she would not have been an author, she would probably have been a happy technical writer. Research is one of her most favorite parts of the writing process. During her initial research make contacts with museums, historians, and others so I can ask questions and verify things that come up Incorporating real incidents in her novels is delightful to her.

Awards and Recognitions received by the author:

She also has several awards in her kitty. These include the BookSense number 1 pick for June 2006, BookSense Book-of-the-Year award for 2007, The Cosmo-Fun Fearless Fiction Award of 2007, The Book-Browse Diamond-Award Best Book of 2006, The Great-Lakes Book Award 4 Fiction in 2007, the Midwest Booksellers’ Choice-Award for fiction, the A.L.A/Alex Award 2007, 21st Cen Fiction, the Carl Sand burgh Award 2007, and the Friends-of-American Literature Adult-Fiction Award. In addition, this great author was a 2006 Quill-Award nominee for the General Fiction, as well as a nominee for Entertainment Weekly Best Novel of 2006.

Sara Gruen is also a receiver of Doctrate degree in Humane Letters, Causa Honoris from Wittenberg University. >

Below is a snapshot of her early books:

At the Water’s Edge: A Novel – It runs deep with characters who must choose to either embrace or run away from their deepest truths. Also, there is a touch of the mystical in it. The novel takes place during the period of World War II. Based in Philidelphia in 1944, Madeline Hyde & her husband are cut off financially by his father by disgracing themselves at a high society New Year’s Eve party. His father, who is already ashamed of his son’s inability to serve the war, was a former army colonel. The story begins when Ellis and his best friend, Hank decide to regain colonel’s favor by succeeding where the colonel publicly failed. To avoid the glares and scowls, and to earn their own way in the world after being cut off from a family fortune, they cross the Atlantic during a high tide of submarine warfare to try to burnish their family name by hunting down an older kind of monster in a Scottish village.

In her book, Maddie Hyde is a Sara Gruen’s heroine. She’s bold, she’s warm, and she’s been cast out of Philadelphia polite society

Sara Gruen’s At the Water’s-Edge is a gripping and poignant love story about a privileged young woman’s awakening as she experiences the devastation of World War II in a tiny village in the Scottish-Highlands. She also incorporated few wartime incidents, like the Royal Observer Corps sighting of the monster and the bombing in Foyers, although in both cases she changed the year.

Riding Lessons – Sara Gruen’s novel Riding Lessons is based on a story of an Olympic Contender named Annemarie Zimmer who lived atop a strong and graceful animal. The twist in the tale comes at the age of eighteen when a tragic accident takes away her riding career along with Harry, the horse she cherished.

Twenty years later when she returns to her farm in New Hampshire to see her dying father along with her troubled young daughter to this place of pain and memory. Everything is changed when her obsession is born again by a glimpse of a white striped gelding similar to the very one Annemarie lost in another lifetime. This obsession could crush her fragile world.>

Sara Gruen’s love for animals can also be seen from her present times. She lives in Western North-Carolina with her husband. They are blessed with three sons, and live along with their dogs, cats, horses, birds, and the world’s fussiest goat.

For ordering an autographed copy of her books and to read some of her books’ Excerpts, you can visit her website at http://saragruen.com/. Also, you can reach her out at her Twitter handle @SaraGruen. Her books are also available in audio book formats at major online retailers.

She may have retired from active authoring but for all we know, Sara Gruen will forever remain in our hearts and minds, thanks to the superb work we know and love her of.