The book was originally published in 2007 and optioned in 2008, so we can honestly say this had been a long road. The film is truly splendid and Diane Ackerman is rightfully thrilled and extremely proud of it across the board. The director, Niki Caro, did a beautiful job with a terrific international cast, and Jessica Chastain is just brilliant.
On the strength of the film and the marketing campaign, the book has been climbing up the ranks of the paperback bestseller list for the past 7 weeks, where it now sits at number 1!
The film opens May 5th in the UK.
Sales to date: Brazil (HarperCollins), Czech (Triton), China (Chongqing), Portugal (Presenca), Taiwan (China Times), Holland (Het Spectrum), France (L’Archipel), Germany (Heyne), Hungary (Gabo Kiado), Italy (Sperling E Kupfer), Japan (Aki Shobo), Korea (Namu Bench), Poland (Znak), Portuguese (Presenca), Russia (Atticus), Turkey (Pegasus Yayinlari)
THE ZOOKEEPER’S WIFE, published by W.W. Norton in US, spent 54 weeks on the New York Times bestseller list and has now sold over 700,000 copies in English.
THE ZOOKEEPER’S WIFE chronicles the true incredible story of how Jan and Antonina Zabinski, the keepers of the Warsaw Zoo, turned it into a safe haven for Jews after the Germans invaded Poland during WWII.
The Zabinskis hid scores of Jews in cages and sheds, as well as in their own home. The zoo soon became known by its guests – who were given animal names – as "The House Under a Crazy Star," where humanity was tested and found.
Praise for THE ZOOKEEPER’S WIFE:
“A true story—of human empathy and its opposite—that is simultaneously grave and exuberant, wise and playful.” –Washington Post Book World
“Ackerman...makes beautiful work of harrowing tales of [her characters'] determination to keep souls alive, in the actual and metaphorical sense both.” – New York Daily News
“An inspiring read...may join Schindler's List and Hotel Rwanda as popular accounts of heroism in the face of genocide.” – Salt Lake Tribune
“Fresh and compelling....Ackerman has succeeded in a vivid, cinematically written book that's bound to find its way to the screen.” – San Francisco Chronicle
“It's a tribute to her talent that the book feels both triumphant and inevitable by the last page.” – Orion