The Zookeeper's Wife: A War Story

by Diane Ackerman

The Zookeeper's Wife: A War Story

published	September 4th 2007 by W. W. Norton
binding	Hardcover
isbn	0393061728 (isbn13: 9780393061727)
pages	288
description	*A true story—as powerful as Schindler's List—in which the keepers of the Warsaw Zoo saved hundreds of people from Nazi hands.<...more [close] A true story—as powerful as Schindler's List—in which the keepers of the Warsaw Zoo saved hundreds of people from Nazi hands.* When Germany invaded Poland, Stuka bombers devastated Warsaw—and the city's zoo along with it. With most of their animals dead, zookeepers Jan and Antonina Zabinski began smuggling Jews into empty cages. Another dozen "guests" hid inside the Zabinskis' villa, emerging after dark for dinner, socializing, and, during rare moments of calm, piano concerts. Jan, active in the Polish resistance, kept ammunition buried in the elephant enclosure and stashed explosives in the animal hospital. Meanwhile, Antonina kept her unusual household afloat, caring for both its human and its animal inhabitants—otters, a badger, hyena pups, lynxes. With her exuberant prose and exquisite sensitivity to the natural world, Diane Ackerman engages us viscerally in the lives of the zoo animals, their keepers, and their hidden visitors. She shows us how Antonina refused to give in to the penetrating fear of discovery, keeping alive an atmosphere of play and innocence even as Europe crumbled around her. 8 pages of illustrations. [close]
date added	06-07-07 edit book

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Allanna

Allanna rated it:

04/22/08

Read in March, 2008

Another book about the Holocaust. I haven't read much about how World War II and the Holocaust affected Poland (usually most books I read talk about Western Europe). Namely a family who operated the Warsaw Zoo.

Also covered were many of the Jewish friends of this family. And how the occupation of Poland by the SS affected the people.

Michael and I were just discussing the other day (as we watched the preview for http://www.paperclipsmovie.com...), ...more

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Clif

Clif rated it:

(review of isbn )

04/28/08

Read in April, 2008

The primary source for this book is the diary of Antonina Zabinski (the zoo keeper's wife). Her detailed descriptions of how she and her young son cared for a variety of animals (many as in-house pets) provides some relief from the otherwise depressing story of the Holocaust that was taking place around them. The story branches out from there to tell of the efforts of the Polish resistance to subvert the Nazi occupation and rescue as many as possible from the Jewish Ghetto. The Warsaw Zoo end...more The primary source for this book is the diary of Antonina Zabinski (the zoo keeper's wife). Her detailed descriptions of how she and her young son cared for a variety of animals (many as in-house pets) provides some relief from the otherwise depressing story of the Holocaust that was taking place around them. The story branches out from there to tell of the efforts of the Polish resistance to subvert the Nazi occupation and rescue as many as possible from the Jewish Ghetto. The Warsaw Zoo ended up being a hub of resistance activities and a way-station for moving fugitives to safer locations (Noah's Arc in more than one way). They used the cover of "gathering food scraps for the animals" and other gutsy ruses as a means to transport food, information and documents in and out of the Ghetto. The book reads much as a series of short stories, many with life or death close calls. The book reminded me of Shindler's List except this story focuses on the activities of the Polish resistance outside the Ghetto and concentration camps.

Life as viewed by a mother raising a young child during a very dangerous time provides the combination of the human element and war to provide the suspense to make it a gripping story. And the situation becomes even more tense when she gives birth to a baby daughter just a few weeks before the Russians approach Warsaw. And we all know enough history to realize that the Russians didn't exactly bring peace and freedom. The Russian Army's advance stopped 10 miles outside of Warsaw and let the Nazis and Polish resistance fight it out. This resulted in the decimation of Polish resistance (85% of the buildings in Warsaw were destroyed). Did the family at the zoo survive this final show down? You'll need to read the book to learn how it ends.

Early in the book we learn that Antonina possessed the gift of calming animals (a la horse whisperer). Numerous times later in the story, when she found herself in the presence of hostile German or Russian solders, she was able to use this same gift to calm their evil intentions. Perhaps there was a bit of luck involved, but it's clear that a less controlled response in those same situations would have resulted in violence to her and her family. Her husband also had a cool and quick wit that got him out of some close calls. But, I was particularly impressed with Antonina's apparent God given ability to look into the souls of others and will them to relax and be calm. It's an amazing story.

During the first half of the book I thought I'd rate the book at three stars. It has a slow beginning. As I got closer to the end I decided perhaps I'd give it four. Now that I've finished I've decided to give it five.
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Kate

Kate rated it:

04/22/08

Read in March, 2008

recommended to Kate by: I heard her interviewed on NPR

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here.

I can't decide whether I enjoyed this book or not. I think the idea of it is more interesting than the execution. It follows the true story of Antonina Zabinski and her family, caretakers of the Warsaw zoo during the Nazi occupation of Poland. Diane Ackerman, being a literary writer and not an historical one, was able to provide an interesting spin on the subject matter, and I loved all of the imagery and description of Antonina's relationship with the animals and general life at the zoo. ...more I can't decide whether I enjoyed this book or not. I think the idea of it is more interesting than the execution. It follows the true story of Antonina Zabinski and her family, caretakers of the Warsaw zoo during the Nazi occupation of Poland. Diane Ackerman, being a literary writer and not an historical one, was able to provide an interesting spin on the subject matter, and I loved all of the imagery and description of Antonina's relationship with the animals and general life at the zoo. However, this is still is a true story, and as such I felt the book didn't maintain enough focus on the story line and was lacking in many crucial historical details. Ackerman goes off on too many completely unrelated tangents, which would be interesting if the book were longer, but it seems like she overlooked important pieces of the puzzle in favor of long descriptions of marginal players in the story. She would take half a page to describe how the wind rustled the trees, and then just gloss over things like how the Germans never noticed that there were a ton of extra people living in the house, despite the fact that soldiers would pop in all the time. All of a sudden I was at the endnotes and hadn't even realized that the book ended. It's almost as if as she was nearing the end, someone walked into the room and said, "Come on Diane, finish up so we can go to dinner." There is almost no closure, just a few short and antiseptic paragraphs about what they did after the war along with a sort of epilogue of other people that were mentioned here and there in the book. Ackerman describes meeting with the son in Warsaw and touring the old house, but he seems disinterested in reminiscing about their time at the zoo, but doesn't speculate as to why. Here are some examples of hugely important issues that weren't really addressed:

- Why did Jan retire so suddenly, after all his time as a zookeeper?
- With the zoo villa playing such a large part of story, there is no mention of whether they had to move out after Jan retired
- Why is it that after growing up in a zoo and having a constant array of pets by his side during the whole story, Rys (the son) has no pets now?
- When and how did Jan & Antonina die?

I wouldn't necessarily say that this book wasn't worth reading, it just seemed like Ackerman focused on so many painstakingly small details throughout the book, and then suddenly ran out of paper or something. ...less

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Susan Evans

Susan rated it:

05/18/08

bookshelves: animals, biography, nonfiction, read-in-2008, zoo-blog

Read in May, 2008

The Zookeeper's Wife is an intriguing story of the Warsaw Zoo during the Nazi occupation of Poland. Zookeeper/Zoo Director Jan Zabinski and his wife Antonina managed to save over three hundred people from certain death at the hands of Nazi soldiers. The story is taken largely from Antonina's diary and other historical sources. It is a haunting tale of survival against what must have seemed like the end of the world.

At the beginning of the Nazi occupation, Lutz Heck, a former colleague of Jan...more The Zookeeper's Wife is an intriguing story of the Warsaw Zoo during the Nazi occupation of Poland. Zookeeper/Zoo Director Jan Zabinski and his wife Antonina managed to save over three hundred people from certain death at the hands of Nazi soldiers. The story is taken largely from Antonina's diary and other historical sources. It is a haunting tale of survival against what must have seemed like the end of the world.

At the beginning of the Nazi occupation, Lutz Heck, a former colleague of Jan's and the duplicitous head of the Berlin Zoo, offered to "save" the Warsaw Zoo by shipping it's animals to German zoos for safe keeping. The Zabinskis had no choice but to comply with Lutz's request. Had they not, their animals would have been forcibly taken. Lutz had plans of his own of course. He was really only interested in animals with the "purest" bloodlines (mostly animals that were native to Germany.)Once he had taken the animals that he wanted, he held a New Years Eve hunting party at the zoo where drunken SS soldiers shot to death the rest of the defenseless, caged animals.

Using their now empty zoo, the Zabinskis devised an ingenious way to protect many of their neighbors from mass execution at the hands of their oppressors. The "guests" that were sheltered in their villa and in animal cages and sheds were Jews and Polish resisters, smuggled from the Warsaw Ghetto by Jan. Each hidden family had a codename, usually the name of whichever exhibit they were being housed in. Meanwhile, Jan was heavily involved in the Polish Underground, and was able to hide weapons and supplies in places the Nazis would never think to look.

The courage and fortitude that Jan and Antonina displayed in the face of what certainly appeared to be a hopeless situation, is truly staggering. They were gifted naturalists and conservationists and truly heroic human beings. They risked everything, their home, their lives (and the lives of their children,) to save their neighbors during one of the darkest periods in modern history.
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Jen

Jen added it

07/04/08

bookshelves: female-author, non-fiction

Read in June, 2008

For some crazy reason, when I requested this book from the library, I thought it was historical fiction. But it is actually non-fiction. Diane Ackerman pieces together the life of Jan and Antonina Zabinski, Polish Christian zookeepers, from Antonina's diary and other historical sources. This husband and wife team managed to save over 300 people during World War II by temporarily hiding them in the zoo and then moving them out to safe hiding places.

The main focus of the book is on the Zabinsk...more

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Mazola1

Mazola1 rated it:

07/07/08

This book is a tale of quiet courage and compassion. It is set in World War II Warsaw. Amidst the devastation of war and the inhumanity of the Nazi liquidation of the Warsaw Ghetto, the grounds of the Warsaw Zoo became a haven for hundreds of Jews, who were saved by the zookeeper and his wife at great risk to themselves. The Zookeeper's Wife is the story of how they did it, as well as a vivid portrait of wartime Poland and the unique household run by the zookeeper and his wife. The incredible br...more

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David

David rated it:

12/29/07

Read in December, 2007

This is another book exploring the lives of people living in the countries occupied by Germany during WWII. Unlike most, this was written by a naturalist, not an historian. This gives the book an interesting take on the Nazi occupation of Warsaw.
The narrative centers around Antonia Zabinski and her husband Jan. Prior to the outbreak of war, they were the caretakers of the Warsaw Zoo - a large zoo befitting the capital of Poland. The book paints a brief picture of what their life was like p...more

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Marigold

Marigold rated it:

04/22/08

Read in September, 2007

I loved this true story of Jan & Antonina, managers of the Warsaw Zoo in Poland during World War II, & how they lived through the Nazi occupation of Poland, keeping the zoo going on a limited basis, & using it as a hideout for hundreds of Jewish people, most of whom were saved as a result. Ackerman uses snippets of letters & diaries to bring Antonina, in particular, to life. I found I could really relate to her struggles - I always find it hard to relate to "heroes" - b...more

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Timothy

Timothy rated it:

04/22/08

This is a book about WWII. Antonina and Jan owned the Warsaw Zoo. However, during the war, it was used not to keep animals but Jews in order to help them survive and escape from the claws of the merciless Nazis. It is one of another narrative of bravery, courage, audacity and sangfroid. It makes one wonder how strong the human spirit is in the face of adversity. Adversity is the time that demonstrates humanity so vividly. Just as what Antonina said after she successfully 'coaxed' the German sold...more

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Jeanne

Jeanne rated it:

04/30/08

Read in April, 2008

I came away from this book with a deep sense of admiration for the Polish spirit, and was struck by how involved women were in the Underground movement and Uprising against the Nazis, even young girls.

The character of Poland and its people is remarkable, a contrast to all the Polish jokes I heard growing up. It's no wonder Poles were considered dumb; the Germans killed nearly their entire educated class, both gentile and Jew.

Against the cruel backdrop of WWII Warsaw, Ackerman shares wi...more

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Amanda

Amanda rated it:

04/25/08

Read in February, 2008

I really enjoyed it. I liked that while reading something that felt like a novel, I learned the true stories of Warsaw during the war. I learned of the cruelties and of the bravery.

I learned about the Ghetto Uprising when the Jews fought the Germans with rocks, sticks and fists (they had no weapons) and held them off for nearly one month. After the Ghetto fell, the Poles took over with the Warsaw Uprising, in which Antonina's husband Jan went and fought.

I learned that while the Soviets w...more

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Jen

Jen rated it:

04/22/08

Read in February, 2008

Let me preface by saying a) I love Diane Ackerman's previous works and b) I have a deep interest in holocaust history. Therefore, I was surprised her latest book did not engage me as much as I'd hoped.

Ackerman usually tackles very broad, amorphous subjects like love, the five senses, etc. And her somewhat circular and poetic writing style is, I think, well suited to those topics. But for The Zookeepers Wife, I craved a level of linear details and specifics that I just could not find. I quic...more

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Kevin

Kevin rated it:

10/03/07

Read in October, 2007

The full title of this book is The Zoo Keeper's Wife ( A War Story). The first part of the title is well in keeping with the kind of subject matter that has made me a long time favorite of Diane Ackerman. This is a true account of Jan & Antonia Zabinsky keepers of the Warsaw Zoo before Hitler and the Nazis invaded Poland. Once the invasion takes place the zoo is destroyed and most of the animals are either killed outright or shipped to German Zoos. The few remaining animals become househol...more

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Megan

Megan rated it:

04/22/08

Has a copy to sell/swap — Read in January, 2008

recommended to Megan by: birthday present from mom and dad, who know me well

Diane Ackerman is one of my all-time favorite authors and, quite honestly, one of my personal heroes. She is a scientist and a poet and just an incredible woman with an unceasing and unabashed pursuit of knowledge and experience. This is her latest book and it's just as wonderful as her others (read A Natural History of the Senses, A Natural History of Love, The Rarest of the Rare, An Alchemy of Mind, Cultivating Delight, The Moon by Whale Light). It's such an interesting subject that fits Acker...more

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David

David rated it:

04/28/08

Read in April, 2008

recommended to David by: NPR

I enjoy reading things about the Holocaust and I was initially inspired to read this book from an NPR (National Public Radio) interview in January. I brought this book along for the plane ride to Argentina and finally just finished it.

This book is about a Polish family living in Warsaw starting before the German occupation during World War II (WWII) and concluding in midst of the Soviet occupation. I fell in love immediately with the main two people in the book, Antonina and Jan, because of ...more

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Jennifer

Jennifer rated it:

04/22/08

bookshelves: documentary-nonfiction

Read in March, 2008

I started this book with really high hopes, and I really enjoyed the first couple of chapters - the author painted a really vivid picture of Antonia and her crazy home full of animals, a husband and young son. I was still thoroughly interested when Antonia & Rys went off to the country , and then when Antonia went into hiding in the lampshade store. But then the book seemed to become more disjointed & hodge-podge. I assume this is because Antonia did not write enough in her diary for ...more

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Kelsey

Kelsey rated it:

06/07/08

Read in June, 2008

This book was probably the best one I've read all year, maybe even longer than that. I'm not big on nonfiction or war stories, but this was fantastic. The writing was so descriptive and vivid, from both Ackerman and Antonina. I really appreciate Ackerman's efforts to really get to know Antonina and give a full picture into her life and emotions. I felt like Antonina was telling the whole story herself.

A quote on the back of the book says "The Zookeeper's Wife will touch every nerve ...more

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Candice

Candice rated it:

04/22/08

Read in December, 2007

recommends it for: Ellen, Jamie

Another very good book about the courage of people surviving the Holocaust. I wished, as I read the book, that Ellen were nearby so that she could tell me how to pronounce some of the Polish words.

The reason I gave the book three stars and not 4 or 5 was that the writing was a bit too flowery at times. I guess I should not blame the author, as a good bit of the material she used was taken from the diaries of Antonina Zabinska, the zookeeper's wife.

It was a compelling story. First we s...more

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Marni

Marni rated it:

04/22/08

Read in November, 2007

Diane Ackerman is one of my all time favorite non-fiction authors. Her Natural History of the Senses my favorite non fiction book. So when I discovered that her newest title was about a topic that I was always fascinated with--ordinary people rescuing the persecuted during the Holocaust--I was quite interested. Would her delicious use of vivid and literary language work with a dark topic as World War II? Her descriptions of the Zabinski's lives as they fought to survive and help other people and...more

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Sarah

Sarah rated it:

04/22/08

Read in September, 2007

“The Zookeeper’s Wife” author Diane Ackerman is, not surprisingly, a poet and somewhat naturalist. These creative attributes are obvious once you start reading the book, which is written in such lovely descriptive and informative prose that you forgive the author for her tangential style of writing.

The book tells the true story of Jan and Antonina Zabinski, the zookeeper and his wife, respectively, whose Warsaw zoo is bombed in 1939 by the Germans, and who offer refuge to hundreds of...more

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avg rating (this edition): 3.68 (773 ratings)
number of reviews: 360

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