I would read more

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maryella Avatar

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The book alternated between the story of Abu Laith, the self-declared zookeeper who did all he could to feed and care for the animals despite being unable to leave the house (ISIS occupiers in his neighborhood hated him because he refused to go to the mosque), and Hakam, the man who noticed the Four Paws organization's offer to help.

Hakam's chapters were unrelated to the zoo until the end but provided a good perspective of how the occupation treated civilians.

There were some events that took my breath away and left me in abject horror.

There were also some flashback chapters into Abu Laith's childhood, some of which I felt unnecessary (the childhood was fine, but I didn't feel we needed to know the stuff about his first love).

Also included were the stories of Marwan, who assisted Abu Laith when he was unable to go to the zoo, and Dr. Amir from the Four Paws organization.

That man - Dr. Amir - was incredible and I would gladly read more about him and his work. He was most interesting.