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| The Zookeeper's Wife: A War Story | 
 enlarge | Author: Diane Ackerman
Publisher: W. W. Norton
Category: Book
List Price: $23.95
Buy New: $8.00
You Save: $15.95 (67%)
Buy New/Used/Collectible from $5.99
Avg. Customer Rating:  (97 reviews)
Sales Rank: 16255
Languages: English (Original Language), English (Unknown), English (Published)
Media: Hardcover
Number Of Items: 1
Pages: 288
Shipping Weight (lbs): 1.3
Dimensions (in): 8.3 x 5.9 x 1.3
ISBN: 0393061728
Dewey Decimal Number: 940.5318350943841
EAN: 9780393061727
ASIN: 0393061728
Publication Date: September 4, 2007
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
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| Customer Reviews:
 A CAGEY TALE OF COURAGE!! December 17, 2008
1 out of 1 found this review helpful
Please pardon the title of this review but I couldn't help it. I love this book not only because of its most unusual subject matter but because of what it tells us of the undaunted nature of the human spirit. During the most vicious enemy occupation in history the keepers of the Warsaw Zoo, Jan and Antonina Zabinski, display incredible courage and determination in using the resources at their disposal (the zoo) as a place of refuge for Jews seeking escape from the hands of the Nazis. Diane Ackerman tells this true-life tale with all the literary grace and style we have come to expect from her other works. The book reads like a novel, we are caught up in the characters, and their very real story creates a page-turning plot. Yet in the midst of the danger and grim circumstances of living under Nazi occupation, Ackerman treats us to the tenderness of Antonina's love of animals and the joy that they bring in brightening the lives of the unfortunate humans in their midst. br /br /I had the pleasure not long ago of reviewing another book set in Poland during World War Two, the award-winning historical novel, Night of Flames: A Novel of World War II by Douglas W. Jacobson. Though it was written as fiction, Jacobson's dilgent research brings occupied Poland into vivid reality. Here in Ackerman's ZOOKEEPER'S WIFE we are treated to the opposite, a true story written with the all sensitivity and skill of an accomplished novelist. We live through the tension-filled days feeling Antonina's every emotion, experiencing Jan's steely pragmatism, and watching their son Rys' coming of age. We even get to play soccer with a badger. br /br /This is a powerful and poignant story. A MUST read for anyone even remotely interested in the period of World War Two.
 A Unique Story of Unsung Polish Heroes of the Holocaust December 14, 2008
2 out of 2 found this review helpful
I know that there are Poles that helped Jews during the Holocaust. But this story is unique because of the Warsaw Zoo setting and the couple involved in heroic deeds. It would especially appeal to those who love animals and would appreciate this characteristic of the Zookeeper's wife and Akerman's handling of the subject. br /br /What is more interesting is German attitude that lead to killing off most of the animals but taking the most interesting animals back to Berlin to breed them to perfect a species. Think about how this fits with the Nazi view of Aryans, the perfect race, their experiments on humans, and genetic management/control. This theme was not apparent to me until explored in my Hadassah Book Club.
 faux lyricism December 14, 2008
This book isn't really about the zookeeper's wife. Rather, Ackerman uses the story of Antonina Zabinski as a backdrop to tell the larger story of the Nazi occupation of Warsaw and the Polish Resistance. As a story-telling technique, I have no problem with this, and Ackerman does it fairly well. We learn a lot about Warsaw during the war, as well as learning about such things as the zookeeping trade and animal life. The biggest drawback to Ackerman's use of the technique, I think, is that she starts with Antonina's memoirs, which seem to have been written very lyrically (from the short excerpts we are given), and then tries to use that lyrical tone throughout the whole book. It doesn't work very well, partly because Ackerman doesn't wield her lyricism as naturally, and partly because a war story doesn't lend itself very well to such a tone. It is an interesting story, although I think the story of the zookeeper (who was active in the Polish Resistance, fought for the Home Army in the Warsaw uprising, and was held as a POW in Germany) might have been more interesting than the story of his wife. I guess he didn't write a memoir.
 Could have been a great book December 10, 2008
3 out of 3 found this review helpful
In another author's hands, this book could have been amazing and deeply profound. The subject matter is fascinating, and I found myself wanting to know more about the zookeepers, Jan and Antonina, and the people who passed through the zoo during World War II. The problem is that the author spent so much time describing ancillary topics, that I felt this book was very choppy and disjointed. Her ability to dramatize even the most anxious situations was completely lost. I am not sure if she was limited by the amount of information provided in Antonina's diary, but there are numerous accounts of life in the Warsaw Ghetto that she could have tapped into to tell a riveting story.br /br /I am frequent reader of non-fiction and especially World War II accounts, but the way this book was written makes the story drag on and become tedious at times. There were so many animals and people described in short blurbs that it became quite difficult to follow and relate to the individuals in the book. I think more time and attention should have been given to describing the Warsaw ghetto and the Underground instead of spending numerous pages listing and describing insects and other tangential ideas that had very little to do with the story.br /br /Overall, if you are specifically interested in the role that the Warsaw Zoo played in harboring and saving Jews, this is a decent, albeit difficult to read, account. Otherwise, I would seek out other historical accounts of the Holocaust and World War II that will be more captivating.
Our Book Club Selection for November December 8, 2008
Dense writing you must pay attention to. Difficult subject hard to research so much is filled in. Menace is terrifying, accidents and slip-ups constant. All animals die and many people, too. Survivors are forever changed. And the ghastly news is that it actually happened.
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