Water for Elephants

The book I am reading for my women author's book group is Water for Elephants, by Sara Gruen. It is a split story, about the same man but set in different time periods. One of the time periods is when he is working for a circus, traveling around the country as a vet, even though he did not take his final exam. He left college because his parents died and he was grief stricken. He begins as a man who jostles people into each performance, but after a horse falls ill he reveals his knowledge of animals. The other time period is when he is either 90 or 93, he can not remember. This part of the story reveals his past, his wife, his kids, and how he wishes he was still young, dreads becoming older. A man says that he carried water for elephants, bragging about it. Jacob (the main character) takes offense to this and gets angry, perhaps he once carried water for elephants? As of right now, the circus he is on has just bought an elephant, so perhaps he will begin carrying water for them. Is it a point of pride? Next time.