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| Babylon's Ark: The Incredible Wartime Rescue of the Baghdad Zoo | 
| Authors: Lawrence Anthony, Graham Spence
Publisher: St. Martin's Griffin
Category: Book
List Price: $14.95
Buy New: $8.40
You Save: $6.55 (44%)
New (32) from $8.40
Avg. Customer Rating:  15 reviews
Sales Rank: 224578
Media: Paperback
Edition: Reprint
Number Of Items: 1
Pages: 256
Shipping Weight (lbs): 0.6
Dimensions (in): 8.1 x 5.5 x 0.8
ISBN: 0312382154
Dewey Decimal Number: 590.7356747
EAN: 9780312382155
ASIN: 0312382154
Publication Date: July 8, 2008
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
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| Customer Reviews:
| Showing reviews 11-15 of 15 | | « PREV | | |
A Great Tribute to Compassion! May 13, 2007
4 out of 4 found this review helpful
One thing that can set humans apart from their relatives is that they are quite capable of showing remarkable compassion to other life forms. They unfortunately also can be crueler than other species in ways that are unbelievably ugly. Lawrence Anthony is one of those compassionate people who can make one proud to be human, as much as the crimes against both humans and animals of such pathological personalities as Uday Hussein make one ashamed. In "Babylon's Ark: The Incredible Wartime Rescue of the Baghdad Zoo" Anthony tells a riveting story about how he and a team of international zoo and conservation workers, including the incredibly brave Iraqi zoo staff, managed to rescue many of the animals held at the Baghdad Zoo at the start of the Iraq War, as well as Uday Hussein's private zoo and the unspeakable Luna Park "zoo."
To animals at all of these facilities Anthony and his helpers (including some fine young men of the U.S. military and their officers) were angels of mercy. From a blind bear to starving tigers and lions, they bring numerous wild animals back from the brink and gain support for the zoo to be properly maintained for the future. The story of the two dogs still living in a cage of starving lions at Luna Park also lends some credence to the idea that attachment to other species is not totally limited to humans.
Wars tend to dehumanize people and any humane action in the midst of violence can soften the horror to some degree. Anthony and the other workers at the Baghdad Zoo produced something more precious than just saving a few animals- they brought an island of sanity to the insanity of war!
All did not end well- one of the tigers so lovingly saved was shot by a drunken U. S. soldier - but the effort was totally worth it because it highlighted the plight of zoo animals in war time and may lead to quicker help for such institutions in future wars. At least one can hope so. An excellent book to read when human activities tend to make us think that our species is capable only of depravity.
Lawrence of Bagdad May 13, 2007
1 out of 1 found this review helpful
I couldn't put this book down! I read it in one day! Lawrence Anthony is a real time Hero!!!
Excellent work, excellent read. May 2, 2007
1 out of 1 found this review helpful
As South African conservationist Lawrence Anthony watched coverage of the war in Iraq, his fears always centered on one place: the Baghdad Zoo, once one of the finest zoos in Arabia, now in the center of the firefight. What was happening to the animals? Had they been killed in the combat? Looted for food? Or had they been forgotten, left to starve in their cages?
By the time Anthony bargained his way through all the red tape to reach Iraq, it was clear that all three had happened and were still happening, and things were much worse than he could have imagined -- dead animals left to rot, filthy cages covered with flies, animals without food or water. But he also found soldiers tossing food from their MREs into the cages, Iraqi staff members willing to risk their lives to return to work, and many others who would give and do whatever it took to see the animals kept alive and the Baghdad Zoo reopened.
Like so many -- perhaps all -- of the true stories that emerge from war, this book throws into sharp relief all that humans are capable of -- the vast depths of both cruelty and compassion, desperation and determination. At its heart, this is a story about the small things that can make an incredible impact. Members of the military risked careers to get Anthony's team the supplies they needed (everything from a generator, to detergent and pesticide, to a pistol to deter the ever-present looters), and the zoo staff put their own lives and their families' lives in danger -- and they did these things because it was "for the animals."
This is a fast-paced read, clear and fascinating, with detail that puts the reader directly into the scene. A must-read for anyone who believes in conservation, and in the responsibilities we have to this planet and the creatures -- human and animal -- with whom we share it.
Humanity in the time of war April 29, 2007
1 out of 1 found this review helpful
I couldn't put this wonderful and engaging book down until the last page was read. I cried, I laughed and was amazed by the bravery of these men. I highly recommend this to anyone who wants to learn more about what it is like to be in the middle of a war trying to do good deeds.
One of my favorite books in a long time April 27, 2007
5 out of 5 found this review helpful
Lawrence Anthony took it upon himself to help the captive wildlife in Baghdad shortly after the war in Iraq began. Often, in war, zoo animals suffer horrible fates. They are starved or eaten, and in some cases slaughtered and tortured by soldiers.
This account shows the courage of Anthony and the brave staff of the Iraq zoo who, during a period of lawlessness, did everything they could to help the animals. They dodged bullets every day to get to the zoo where they hauled buckets water in scorching heat, found food in a city that had little, dealt with constant looting, and managed to save what was left of the zoo's inhabitants. Help arrived from sources both expected (animal aid foundations) and unexpected (South African mercenaries, wartime photographers, rank and file army soldiers who fed starving lions their MREs.) The story offers details on what life is like for soldiers and civilians in the red zone, a peek at the former palaces of Saddam and his family, the horrible Middle Eastern black market for exotic animals, and the spirit of the Iraqis who wanted to save their animals.
It's really an amazing book
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Wildlife, nature and the Environment
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