The Zookeeper's Wife

"The Zookeeper's Wife" was written by Diane Ackerman. The title doesn't do justice to the heroine of this true story, Antonia Zabinski. Antonia was as much of a zookeeper as her husband, Jan. They owned a zoo in Warsaw, Poland, during World War II. She and Jan were naturalists who tried to preserve species and run their peaceful zoo while raising their son. When the war starts, the Nazis take many of the treasured animals to Germany. The other animals are shot for sport. Antonia and Jan start housing Jewish friends inside the zoo. Jan is a part of the Polish resistance movement. Antonia handles the zoo, the people in the zoo, and life in general while Jan is away. She even gives birth to a daughter during this time. Reading this book makes me want to go to Warsaw. I want to see the zoo, the Jewish ghetto, and other landmarks mentioned in this book. I really want to know, if push came to shove, would I be as brave and heroic as Antonia? Here is what the book has to say about the personalities of the rescuers: ". . . tended to be decisive, fast-thinking, risk-taking, independent, adventurous, openhearted, rebellious, and unusually flexible-able to switch plans, abandon habits, or change ingrained routines at a moment's notice. They tended to be nonconformists, and though many rescuers held solemn principles worth dying for . . ." This book was very entertaining, informative, and thought provoking.