A Lion Among Men

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Where do you draw the line? Abu Laith loves animals, especially those of an exotic variety. So he plans to take over, upgrade and expand the zoo in Mosul, Iraq. But reading the start of this I can't help but feel that a zoo and the animals in it belong here in the first place - with a lack of food, space and constant threat from the human beings around them. So despite Abu's best intentions, his lack of experience caring for animals still turns my stomach. And alternating with Abu's story is that of Hakam, a lab worker in Mosul and member of a wealthy family. The purpose of Hakam so far seems to be to expose the reader to the hurdles, dangers and perspective of an Iraqi citizen caught up in the day-to-day drudge of life after Hussein was deposed, and what happens when the Islamic State takes over. Interesting, but completely unrelated thus far to the zoo story - I'm assuming they intertwine at some point?