“Every day our life was full of thoughts of the horrible present, and even our own death.”
The Warsaw Zoo during WWII faced devastation and loss. Animals were killed or taken to Germany. Parts of the zoo were bombed. However, the zookeepers did their best to not only save what animals they could, but also managed to hide people in their home or the zoo. Antonina and Jan Zabinski always kept their hope that the zoo would be a zoo again one day, but they had to face so many trials along the way as they protected their son and as many lives they could.
I’ve had The Zookeeper’s Wife on my to-read list for several years. While I heard it was a slow read, I did eventually want to see the movie so I needed to read the book at some point first. I actually bought the book when it was on sale so I had it in the to-read pile that I’m trying to get through this year.
The Zookeeper’s Wife focuses on Antonina view of what happens during the years when the zoo is affected by the war. It’s a non-fiction book, so it relies on several people’s journals and is told in chronological order. There are facets of this WWII book that aren’t focused on in a lot of WWII books – what happened to the animals, how some people “hid” using language and hair dye and about the Polish uprising. The details are very vivid and it reveals a lot about what life was like in Warsaw during the war. Many parts are heart-breaking but other parts show the true spirit of humanity.
Even though The Zookeeper’s Wife is non-fiction, lovers of historical fiction will enjoy this book. It’s a fascinating read, but for mature readers since it does describe some of the things the Nazis did and the fear of the war.
Have you read or watched The Zookeeper’s Wife? Let me know what you thought in the comments.