Zookeeper and scientist Jan Zabinski said of his wife "She's so sensitive, she's almost able to read their minds...She becomes them...She has a precise and very special gift, a way of observing and understanding animals that's rare, a sixth sense...It's been this way since she was little."
-describing Antonina Zabinski, The Zookeeper's Wife
While very inspiring in some ways, the book is wearisome in others. After Germany invaded and bombed Warsaw, zookeepers Jan and Antonina Zabinski, with few animals left, began to take in and hide numerous Jewish refugees. Their efforts put them in grave danger if they were caught. Jan was even a member of the Polish resistance, a group who found ways to sabotage the Nazis in many creative ways. Both Jan and Antonina carried cyanide pills in case they were caught.
Although I have done a great deal of reading about the Holocaust and have visited the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum in Washington, D.C., I learned things I didn't know from this book. I am always shocked by the tragic things that happened but also impressed by the number of people who helped and gave sanctuary to Jews at great risk to themselves and their families.
I prefer nonfictions that read like fiction, that is with dialogue making people seem more real. The best this author could do was to quote diaries, letters and interviews to personalize the characters. There were pages of description and numerous lists of animals, plants and other things, making the book tedious at times. In fact, I found I couldn't wait to finish it. I'll give it a 3 rating even though I was leaning toward a 2.
Apparently, there is a film adaptation. I need to see it one of these days to compare. I have a feeling it might be more compelling than the book.
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