We Bought a Zoo

Enjoyed this memoir written with honesty and self deprecation and great humor.
I also learned a lot about the modern zoo and it’s role in conservation. So much I didn’t know about zoos helping with species that are endangered in whatever degree. Benjamin Mee is just an ordinary guy with a great dream, to own and operate an important zoological space. In July2007 the zoo opens and we were there for all the adventures beforehand. We meet a wonderful cast of animals and felt Benjamin grief when he looses his wife Katherine to a brain tumour . There is lots of tensions with deadlines, money troubles and code red ( escaping animal) !!
A great story.

We Bought a Zoo is a unique and engaging memoir about an ordinary family who happens to buy a broken down zoo. When the opportunity to purchase the Dartmoor Wildlife Park lands in his lap, Benjamin Mee can't resist. He knows it won't be easy but he never suspects the heartbreak and fear he will face along the way. From nursing his young wife who becomes ill with a brain tumor to staring down a loose tiger, over and over he fights for the dream of raising his family in this extraordinary setting.
I really enjoyed getting to know Benjamin Mee through this book. He comes across as an interesting, humorous guy who is willing to both laugh at himself and stick his neck out for the things he believes in. I really envy him his determination to show more see the zoo be both financially successful and a contributor to the scientific world. The animal stories are very entertaining and the human stories are heartfelt. My only complaint is I would have enjoyed seeing more of his siblings and his mother in the book as they were clearly very involved as well. show less

We Bought A Zoo is subtitled: The Amazing True Story of a Young Family, a Broken Down Zoo, and the 200 Wild Animals That Changed Their Lives Forever

Given that, the story takes a little time to get off the ground. We find the author, a free-lance writer, living in rural southern France with his wife & two children and refinishing two dirt-floor stone barns. When word comes through his sister that a dilapidated zoo in the English countryside is for sale, the author & his extended family takes action to purchase it. This is not an easy endeavor and the business details fill the first quarter of the book. Note also that a BBC film crew got wind of the endeavour and asked to film the process.

The thing is, I don’t think I’d like Benjamin show more Mee if I met him in person. He uprooted his family once, by selling their beloved flat in London to move to his personal idyll in France, and then again, back to England because, after all, HE’D always wanted to own a zoo and now his French dream wasn’t what he wanted after all. On both occasions, he overrode his wife Katherine. This was especially appalling to me the second time because Katherine was newly diagnosed with a brain tumour & receiving (excellent) treatment in France. The fact that his (possibly) dying wife wasn’t enthused about this new venture didn’t faze him a bit.

In addition, although Mee has experienced staff and certified professionals advising him, he ignores their advice in serious decisions at least twice that he reports. In both cases, things ended up favorably but, rather than be grateful for twists of fate that may have affected the situations, he boasts and struts.

But the story? Animal lovers, once you get past the purchase transaction, there’s plenty of goodies for you amidst the details of the continuing financial issues, grim living conditions (for the family), and Katherine’s disease and eventual death.

Imagine the day staff moved Tammy the tigert withour proper restraint precaution, only to have the beast gain consciousness as they moved her. Mee describes the situation as being “beyond fear, to total calm”. But the fear lingered when, sometime later, Mee & his brother are startled by a large animal moving behind them while checking some reservoir pipes, & spring to defend their lives – against the neighbor’s cow. I believe they were less afraid when one of their younger wolves was running loose through the nearest town. And there is an amusing exposé: what happens “When Porcupines Go Bad”.

Perhaps the most likable animal in the zoo was Zak, the elderly alpha wolf, who “maintained his grip on the pack now, not with brute force, but through sheer charisma and experience.” The account of his surgery to save him from testicular cancer will be a source of angst among male readers and of glee to the women.

Mee’s account of the peacock – which he evidently disdains – as a dumb, evolutionary mistake, is humorous. It also amuses me that Mee can describe the wonders of these animals and their behaviours and personalities and make attribution every time to the marvel of evolution, to the point, by his own admission, that it “[made] evolution sound (almost) like a religion”.

That these creatures are so intelligently made, with abilities beyond what are needed for survival, and so varied is surely evidence of a designer, a creator. And since, according to Mee, the peacock (named, so he postulates, for the size of its brain), has that marvelous tail that is so “evolutionarily expensive”, it really should be extinct by that theory. The last time I checked on the world’s peacock population, that wasn’t the case.

I would have loved to see more photographs of the animals Mee brings to life in his stories, but the colour pictures included are disappointing. Nearly half are of their project in France, and the ones of the animals include many that are not named in the book, and exclude many that are.

I really did learn a tremendous amount, though, about the running of a zoo. It’s a highly regulated & examined business – and an almost unmaginably expensive one to run. The money and the struggle to get it, manage it & plan for making it, are a major part of the book. And, animal lovers with the same dream, please note that, despite the months of Herculean effort by Mee, his family & his staff, the zoo would not have succeeded financially if the BBC (whose film crew had been on location for those many months) had not run the four-part television series Titles “Ben’s Zoo” in November of their opening year. That brought more paying visitors and made endless opportunities for additional moneymaking venues such as this book. Without that, the zoo would have closed, broke, after the first summer and the animals would have been disperse. In other words, “Kids, don’t try this at home!”

Should you read it? Even though I personally dislike the author, he does write well and the book held my attention from beginning to end. There are no bogged down bits – it’s all moving forward. If you like animals or are interested in learning about the world of zoos, then by all means – read it & enjoy! show less

"The amazing true story of a young family, a broken down zoo, and the 200 wild animals that change their lives forever."

Benjamin Mee was living that life that he thought he wanted. In the summer of 2004 he has moved his young family to rural France, leaving behind years of busy London life but taking his writing career with him. He is the proud owner of two very rustic barns that need enormous amounts of work. Perfect for a writer of do-it-yourself columns, he will have plenty of inspiration.

Life, as it is wont to do, intervenes. Benjamin's lovely young wife Katherine is diagnosed with a brain tumor. She is treated aggressively and early but the type of cancer is one of the fastest growing kinds and is likely to recur. With admirable show more courage, the couple faces the unthinkable. The treatment is successful and they have hope.

At some point during the crisis, Benjamin's sister sends him a pamphlet of a zoo that is for sale in Dartmoor, England. Somehow, this is what he has always wanted. In a fantastic co-operative effort, his entire extended family bands together to try to make the dream a reality. After much exhausting back-and-forth the zoo is purchased and the family moves in.

Now the pressure really mounts as Benjamin, Katherine, their small children, his Mom and his brother Duncan all work together to turn the run-down zoo back into a thriving business. In the midst of the chaos, Katherine's two year remission comes to an end and Benjamin is sidetracked, caring for his now terminally ill wife.

When I received this book in the mail I opened it up and read the jacket flap. Just that, and I was teary-eyed. So I turned to the first page and before I even looked up I was on page 120. No one should have to deal with the kind of stress that this family went through. But the zoo, while a source of enormous pressure to get it up and running, was also the path through the grief and the way back to life. The animals need you every day, even days when you don't want to get out of bed. The story is engrossing and heartbreaking at times, but ultimately life-affirming and I was cheering for this family and thrilled for their success. show less

The Good Stuff

Heartwarming and hilarious and honest
I am in total awe of this man and his family and what they accomplished against all odds, truly inspiring
It's about family and zoo animals -- what's not to like
There are Otters - OK only 1 paragraph (Pg 74), but anyone who mentions otters is cool with me
Talks about Gay Animals -- yup its true (take that homophobes)
Liked authors writing style
Interesting to hear about the inner workings and challenges of running a zoo
Author is just extremely likable and you really feel his love for his wife
Learned so much
Now REALLY want to see the movie

The Not So Good Stuff

Have a sudden urge to go see this zoo -- people I do not have the time and money to do this (hell at least I have a Zoo show more membership)
It made me cry (not a bad thing, but I sick, crying makes my body feel even crappier)

Favorite Quotes/Passages

"I was the mad Englishman they were the slightly bemused French country folk - tolerant, kind, courteous, and yet, inevitably, hugely judgmental."

"I am reasonably convinced he had high-functioning Asperger's syndrome. For the first, and last, time in our conversation, he looked me in the eye and smiled, as if to say, "So you like Tumors too?" and excitedly introduced me to his team." (While his wife was being taken in for surgery)

"The vet arrived with the necessary sedatives, on on the third attempt Sovereign was successfully darted, although unfortunately, it appeared, in the tip of his sheath, and he jumped around angrily until he began to slow down, scowling and prowling, glaring at us through the wire. You got the impression he was memorizing faces, so that if he got out again he'd know whom to punish for this indignity."

"... I had always wanted to dedicate to free-ranging monkeys, and to my father, Ben Harry Mee, who had provided the funds for the park --albeit unwittingly and posthumously, and absolutely certainly (had he been alive) unwillingly."

Who Should/Shouldn't Read

Anyone and everyone

5 Dewey's

I received this From Random House in Exchange for an Honest Review -- thanks guys I was home sick and you made me cry with this one show less

Benajmin Mee and his wife, Katherine, had just recently (within a few years) bought their “dream” place in France, but just as Katherine was diagnosed with cancer, Benjamin’s sister contacted him with an idea to buy another “dream” place, a run-down zoo in England. The plan/hope was for the entire family to band together to buy the place… and they did. It took a lot of work to get the zoo up to snuff to get a zoo license to be able to reopen the zoo...while also trying to get bank loans before they ran out of money.

This really was more about the business of the zoo and leading up to re-opening it, rather than the zoo or animals themselves once it was open. And that’s ok. It was still very entertaining for me to read. In show more addition to the business-y stuff, there were plenty of animal stories for my liking, as well. show less

Though Benjamin Mee had only just moved his family to the South of France when the opportunity came up to purchase a dilapidated zoo back in England, he got his wife, kids, siblings and even his mum on board to make a go of the unusual enterprise. On a financial shoe-string, and with limited experience, the family turned the zoo from an embarrassment into a thriving business and conservation effort -- the Dartmoor Zoological Park.

Mee relates the story of his experience with wit and an evident passion for zookeeping (a sharp contrast to his earlier life as a journalist). His humour hits the mark more often than not and after the first chapter the narrative moves along at a brisk and entertaining pace. Mee is at his best when describing show more the tribulations of caring for the many massive, carnivorous mammals under his care, as well as some very silly peacocks and the like. He recalls with obvious relish time spent making business calls while walking around draped in a boa constrictor named Kevin, and narrow escapes from being speared with porcupine spikes.

The revitalization of the zoo coincides with the death of Mee’s wife Katherine from a brain tumour, the treatment of which Mee tackles with the same determination as rebuilding the zoo, but sadly without the success. Mee recalls his wife with affection but shrugs off sentimentality in describing her decline and even manages to find some sparks of humour in the poignant struggle.

The pics of their oh-so-cute kids, among the eight pages of lovely colour photos in the book, made me wish that the story told of the children’s reaction to, and interaction with, their myriad and exotic new “pets,” as I’m sure there must have been a few stories there to tell. Also, at the risk of sounding insensitive, I could have done without the very scatological description of the effects of Katherine’s medications.

Overall, however, this book kept me wanting to read on, and chuckling along, and cheering for Ben, his family, and the park staff. While my negative feelings toward zoos were not entirely dispelled, it was nice to read about someone for whom the well-being of the animals is equally important as, if not more so than, the bottom line of the business. I grew to like the people and animals described in the book and I will keep an eye out for the BBC documentary should it be shown on this side of the pond.

With its funny and uplifting story and attractive appearance, I think this book would make a great Christmas gift for many different types of people, particularly for animal lovers who know that the furry members of their family have Personality (as I know mine does).

Many thanks to Doubleday/Random House Canada and LibraryThing for this (gorgeous!) review copy. show less