Product Description

The remarkable true story of a family who move into a rundown zoo– already a BBC documentary miniseries and excerpted in The Guardian.

In the market for a house and an adventure, Benjamin Mee moved his family to an unlikely new home: a dilapidated zoo in the English countryside. Mee had a dream to refurbish the zoo and run it as a family business. His friends and colleagues thought he was crazy.

But in 2006, Mee and his wife with their two children, his brother, and his 76-year-old mother moved into the Dartmoor Wildlife Park. Their extended family now included: Solomon, an African lion and scourge of the local golf course; Zak, the rickety Alpha wolf, a broadly benevolent dictator clinging to power; Ronnie, a Brazilian tapir, easily capable of killing a man, but hopelessly soppy; and Sovereign, a jaguar and would-be ninja, who has devised a long term escape plan and implemented it.

Nothing was easy, given the family’s lack of experience as zookeepers, and what follows is a magical exploration of the mysteries of the animal kingdom, the power of family, and the triumph of hope over tragedy. We Bought a Zoo is a profoundly moving portrait of an unforgettable family living in the most extraordinary circumstances.

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Product Details

Publisher	Weinstein Books
Format	Paperback Bargain Price
Author	Benjamin Mee
Label	Weinstein Books
Edition	Reprint
Dewey Decimal Number	590.7342353092
Studio	Weinstein Books
Number Of Pages	304
Title	We Bought a Zoo: The Amazing True Story of a Young Family, a Broken Down Zoo, and the 200 Wild Animals that Changed Their Lives Forever
Publication Date	2009-09-01
Manufacturer	Weinstein Books

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Customer Reviews

Wonderful tru story

Review by Lauren Irk, 2009-07-06

This is a wonderful book. It is heart warming and at times heart wrenching. It was a little hard to keep track of who all the people are. I would recommend making a list of who's who. I think it is a wonderful book that all zookeepers or those interested in zoos or animals should read. I got a better understanding of what it takes to run a small zoo and even more, the hardships of getting a rundown zoo back up and running. Mee's experience was documented for animal planet and I wish I had seen it.

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A little Dry

Review by N. Hall, 2009-06-08

When I first saw this book I was extremely intrigued. I love animals and I enjoy memoirs. I have already read Terri Irwin's book and Jack Hanna's latest and enjoyed them immensely. My problem with this book was it was not about the animals in the zoo as much as I would have liked. This zoo they bought was full of interesting and endangered animals that could be a story in themselves, but besides escapes and other problems with them, I felt they were not a main character. The book is enjoyable but sometimes the author jumps around too much from past to present. If you really enjoy animals it is a decent read but there are others I would recommend before this book.

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Ok book

Review by Tim Grasshoff, 2009-05-25

This book was disappointing I guess I expected to read more about the animals and the starting of the zoo rather than all the finanical aspects.
Too many stories about banks and inspections. Sorry about his wife dying.

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The true story of a young family who bought a broken down zoo with 200 wild animals

Review by Midwest Book Review, 2008-12-15

This true story of a young family who bought a broken down zoo with 200 wild animals and how they managed to revive their family and the zoo makes for a powerful memoir to fascinate any interested in wildlife management. The zoo was located in the English countryside and author Mee, who specializes in animal behavior, had a dream to run it as a family business. His family efforts and the engaging stories of zoo residents who sometimes proved a challenge makes for fascinating reading. General-interest lending libraries will love it.

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Powerful memoir

Review by Mint910, 2008-11-17

This was a pretty powerful memoir. It combines a family, a dream, hard work, and tragedy. I think for the most part all the elements are pretty well balanced. I was rooting for this family and the success of their zoo and dream. They worked tirelessly to make improvements for the animals and zoo while trying to remain a close-knit family as the author's wife passes away.

I loved reading about the author's wife and children, especially his love for his wife. I would have loved to learn a bit more about his other family members as well. The author's mother is mentioned several times but I would have liked to learn more about his siblings.

All the stories related to the zoo were pretty amazing. Multiple animal escapes, staff spats, and animal personalities. There was a great deal going on. And I loved it all! At times when the author was talking about the animal enclosers I had a hard time picturing exactly what he meant. I don't know if it was just me or if it's hard for a zoo outsider to understand these things. It was very rewarding to see the zoo's makeover from start to finish and see the staff form and come together to get the zoo ready for inspection.

This was a very original true story and I would like to learn more about this family and their zoo since this book was completed!

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