The Zookeeper's Wife Sparknotes

There are some moments in this world that bring out the best in people. Unfortunately, it is usually in times of danger and distress that people show their true heroism. In the novel The Zookeeper’s Wife two zookeepers, Jan and Antonina rescue the lives of hundreds of Jews on the run from the Nazis. Jan and Antonina risk not only their lives, but also the lives of their family to help those in need, but hiding Jews in the empty zoo animal cages. Diane Ackerman, the author of the novel, brings this family back to life and tells the heroic story that this world needs to hear. Even throughout the bloodiest times in history, there are true moments of peace and hope.

The Holocaust. The Holocaust ended on May 8, 1945 after eleven million total people were killed. Jews under Nazi rule faced various and overwhelming obstacles to result in effective resistance against the Nazis. Despite these obstacles, the girl couriers were girls that had many goals to help Jews in the Holocaust using unarmed resistance, but they also faced dangerous, life-risking obstacles. Even with the obstacles they confronted, they influenced the resistance during the Holocaust remarkably.

Stefania Podgorska was born in 1923. She grew up in a small village in Poland, was born into a catholic family, and was the third youngest of nine. At the age of fourteen, she then moved to Przemysl for work and met a Jewish man named Joe who later became her husband. When the war first started Joe and his brothers were sent to the ghetto but because Stefania wasn't a Jew she was able to stay in town and keep her apartment. Later Podgorska heard that the SS was going to empty the ghetto soon. She knew she had to do something in order to save any Jews she possibly can. Although it wasn't easy, she moved to a bigger apartment and hid thirteen Jews in her attic for about two winters.

This book is one of those tales you will NOT forget for a long time. I sympathized with their challenges, shared in their brief joys, and broke down in their times of tragedy – and they were many! There were times I dumped the book vowing not to continue after someone died (brutally of course). Only to return with renewed hope, much like Harriet – before another tragedy to befalls them. Tonya Holmes Shook, elicited emotions in me I never thought I had. I thought about my grandfather who fought WWII with the British in Burma (Myanmar). The horrors he saw (but never spoke of), that eventually led to PTSD. Anyone who has gone through war can identify with the strife. Physical violence, rape, and murder (including of minors) are themes explored in this book. Sensitive readers

The Holocaust was one of the most horrific events, to ever occur in history. Hitler and the Nazi party started a genocide that killed millions of people because of their ethnicity. The Zookeeper’s Wife by Diane Ackerman tells the perfect story of how life was like during the Holocaust period, through a woman and her family. The main characters in the book are Antonina, the wife and mother, Jan, the husband, and Rys, the couple’s son. The Nazi’s invaded Poland, and took over the Jan and Antonina’s zoo. Throughout the whole novel, Jan and Antonina Zabinski play an active role in the underground network of both hiding Jews and taking care of animals within their Zoo. The main character, Antonina, finds herself managing various relationships during the novel, she’s a zookeeper, a wife, and a mother as well. Throughout the course of the novel, she reveals aspects of her relationship between the animals, and her husband.

In The Zookeeper’s Wife hitler was the president of Germany and so Nazi soldiers were everywhere. The war had already begun and Nazi soldiers were all over the zoo. No one come and visit the zookeeper unless they had permission to go in by the zookeeper. Lots of Jews were keeped downtown because the people thought that they were dangerous. Many Jews died when they were held in a little part of town because they were not fed. The Nazi sign was hung almost everywhere after the war.

The Zookeepers wife, directed by Niki Caro ( book written by Diane Ackerman) , is a true war story based on a historic event situated in Poland, 1939. This heartwarming plot revolves around two owners (Dr. Jan Zabinski and wife Antonina) of a local zoo which soon becomes the home of hundred of Jewish citizens hidden and withheld beneath Jan and Antonia´s home in World War 2.

Imagine, living in a peaceful environment surrounded by your loved ones, and suddenly watching it crumble to pieces in front of you. As morbid as that sounds Antonina and Jan Zabinski had to prevail through a constant state of peril, but they did more than just survived. In the midst of World War II, as Germany was invading Poland, the family managed to save about 300 lives by allowing shelter and hiding places in their zoo while working with the Underground; a resistance group dedicated to riding Warsaw of the German Nazis. The family overcomes many hardships that I would love to inform you of because truly this book is like no other I have read, and I say that with respect and awe. This novel contains laughter, sacrifice, and bravery in all of its forms.

The lack of freedom is a major reason why animals should not be kept in zoos. This shows to be accurate because studies have shown that lack of freedom can affect animals negatively. In the article, "Reason to Rethink Zoos" by Katherine Glosser, she states,"Animals deserve the same quality of life that humans have. I can't imagine being trapped in a fake habitat, never being allowed to roam outside and watching people staring and pointing at me through a glass window. If I don't want that fate, I am sure animals don't want that either"(2).

In The Zookeeper’s Wife writer Diane Ackerman puts together the stories, and interviews with Jan and Antonina Żabiński to provide her readers with a book about the efforts to save Warsaw’s Jews from Nazi extermination.

The novel, The Cage, begins with the character in the present day describing her nightmares about the time she spent during the holocaust. However the story’s time period then takes a turn and goes back into 1939, in the spring before the Germans invade Poland. Pesach, or Passover, is on its way and the main character, Riva, explains that the atmosphere of her hometown, Lodz, is exciting. She says “Excitement is in the air. The long-awaited guest is coming to remind us of the joys of freedom and the bitterness of slavery.” [Sender 6] Riva also stops to take in the beauty of “her pride and joy, the huge oak tree in the yard, its strong branches covered with blossoms.” [Sender 7] This foreshadows September of 1939 when the Jews pride, joys, and

I first watched The Zookeeper’s Wife when I was in the 6th grade. Although I did not understand all that was going on, I knew that it was retelling the horrors of the Holocaust. Six years later, this past summer, while sitting on the plane coming home from California, I came across the movie on the tiny, pixelated screen. Clicking on the movie, the summary read, “The Zookeeper's Wife tells the account of keepers of the Warsaw Zoo, Antonina and Jan Zabinski, who helped save hundreds of people and animals during the German invasion”. Sitting back in the less comfortable, cramped airplane seat, with pretzels in my hand and a blanket thrown over me, I pressed play.

Jan and Antonina Zabinski Jan and Antonina Zabinski were the owners of the Warsaw Zoo. They used their jobs to hide the Jews away from the Nazis during World War II. By hiding them in the old animal cages in the zoo. They also took care of themselves while taking care of many others, and risking their lives during the war.

One time. Life experiences. New outcomes. When one undergoes different life circumstances in a lifetime, it could lead to new outcomes from current situations; in addition, it can direct to further future events and uncovered paths. To start, when you take a risk, you’re making a choice without knowing what the expectations might be; however, you’re current judgement is a once in a lifetime offer.

While Jan and Antonina do not trust Heck, they both agree that having him as an ally will help them in their mission to save people and animals. Unfortunately, not long after their meeting with Heck, the Warsaw Zoo is closed with Heck claiming that he simply did not have the power to prevent the closing. Not to be discouraged from becoming more involved in the Resistance Movement, savvy Jan creates a ruse to put the zoo to use in a seemingly gentle manner. He offers to turn it into a pig farm to feed the