Zoo Story: Life in the Garden of Captives »

Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist Thomas French goes behind the scenes at one of the country's most popular—-and most controversial—-destinations: zoos.

The Barnes & Noble Review

. . .French [has done] a masterful job capturing the pleasure and regret that commingle at a zoo. "Zoos argue that they are fighting for the conservation of the Earth, that they educate the public and provide refuge and support for vanishing species. And they are right," he observes. "Animal-rights groups argue that zoos traffic in living creatures, exploiting them for financial gain and amusement. And they are right."

Contents

Author's Note....................ix
1 The New World....................1
2 The Audacity of Creation....................22
3 Night Delivery....................43
4 Siren Song....................56
5 Royalty....................72
6 Cold-Blooded....................93
7 Frontier....................104
8 Berlin Boys....................121
9 Mating....................132
10 The Human Exhibit....................143
11 City and Forest....................159
12 Undertow....................172
13 Freedom....................181
14 Conspiracy Theory....................189
15 Winning....................198
16 Not Winning....................209
17 Cull....................222
Epilogue Dusk....................228
Notes....................241
Bibliography....................281