Empress5150's Reviews > The Zookeeper's Wife

The Zoo Keeper's Wife by Diane Ackerman (Book Club Selection). A true story of a Polish man and his wife (non-Jewish) who operated a zoo in Warsaw prior to WWII. The zoo gets bombed by the Nazis so the couple decide to start hiding Jews in the animal cages/enclosures as well as in their house. In general, this was readable and interesting although, from time to time, the author seemed to be confused about whose perspective she was writing from (hers or the Zoo Keeper's Wife). At times, too, it was difficult to read (scary scenes with nasty Nazis harassing women and children; sad depictions of lost zoo animals, etc.) Still, this is definitely worth reading as it is about an everyday sort of couple who risked their lives to save others (which led to some fascinating disclosures within our club of family members who had been involved in the resistance in Poland). Reading this book also had me pondering if people in our time would do likewise.