The Zookeeper's Wife: A War Story

Description

In 1939 Poland, Antonina Zabinski (portrayed by two-time Academy Award nominee Jessica Chastain) and her husband, Dr. Jan Zabinski (Johan Heldenbergh), have the Warsaw Zoo flourishing under his stewardship and her care. When their country is invaded by the Nazis, Jan and Antonina are-and forced to report to the Reich's newly appointed chief zoologist, Lutz Heck (Daniel Bruhl). To fight back on their own terms, the Zabinskis covertly begin working with the Resistance-and put into action plans to save lives out of what has become the Warsaw Ghetto, with Antonina putting herself and even her children at great risk. The Washington Post praised the book as being "simultaneously grave and exuberant, wise and playful," while Jonathan Safran Foer wrote, "The Zookeeper's Wife will touch every nerve you have." A Focus Features release, it is directed by Niki Caro, written by Angela Workman.

Author description

Diane Ackerman has been the finalist for the Pulitzer Prize for Nonfiction in addition to many other awards and recognitions for her work, which include the best-selling The Zookeeper's Wife and A Natural History of the Senses. She lives in Ithaca, New York.