Sights, sounds, smells – description just pours off the page and a lot happens very quickly, and it's fair to say at the beginning of this book I felt a little overwhelmed. But I minded less as I became more absorbed with the characters and their world. Somewhat to my surprise the Jamrach of the title turns out not to be a major figure in the story, which focuses on Jaffy Brown, a street urchin who demonstrates an affinity with animals when he is picked up and then released from the jaws of an escaped tiger. Jaffy ends up working for Jamrach – an importer of exotic animals for sale – and then talks his way into an expedition to capture a 'dragon' from overseas, which involves signing up for a 7-year voyage on a whaling boat. The sea-voyage that follows has more than a touch of the Ancient Mariner about it, and was in fact rather a gruelling read. Although completely engrossed in the story I did find myself hoping that the grim procession of events would come to an end soon. It was only when I got to the final third of the novel that I really began to appreciate the brilliance of this book. You sort of have to live the middle section, with the characters, to really appreciate the ending. There was a particular delight, also, in turning the last page and reading in the author's afterword that the characters of Jaffy and the adventurer who becomes his father-figure, Dan, were based on real people and events, and that a tiger did indeed escape the circus and take up a small boy in his mouth, only to release him unharmed. A wonderful novel. I'm not sure it's the one to win, but I did love reading it.