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Liked It “The tragedy of WWII and the Holocaust knows no bounds - why children? Why animals? The young Roma or Gypsy boys and their baby sister are lost from their family and caravan in this heartbreaking story about genocide. Add to this, a small private zoo in the middle of a blown up village, where...” see full review » see other reviews » |
Didn’t Like It “I found this book a bit of a struggle to read. There are lavish descriptions that ultimately make the book hard to read.” see full review » see other reviews » |
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“The tragedy of WWII and the Holocaust knows no bounds - why children? Why animals? The young Roma or Gypsy boys and their baby sister are lost from their family and caravan in this heartbreaking story about genocide. Add to this, a small private zoo in the middle of a blown up village, where the animals have been left in their cages to die of starvation and thirst. No matter how satanic the Nazis were their victims showed compassion and love in the worst of situations. You will fall for Andrej, his brother Tomas, and Wilma the littlest one. Your heart will break for the wolf, lioness, kangaroo, llama, seal and chamois. Children and animals are always the victims of war. Why do we have to have war?”
Mrs. Hassig, Librarian HMS wrote this review Monday, October 22, 2012. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
“A bit disappointing for an avid Hartnett reader, but a good read anyway”
Masha wrote this review Sunday, September 16, 2012. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
“Cora R said: 5 stars
Author, Author Shelf wrote this review Wednesday, September 5, 2012. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
The Midnight Zoo is the story of three Romany children during World War II who escape when German soldiers attack their camp and take all their friends and family away. The children wander from place to place, scavenging for what they need to survive when one evening they come across a town that has been completely destroyed by bombs except for a small zoo containing a few zoo animals. The zoo has been abandoned and the animals are stuck in their cages with no one to take care of them or provide them with food. While they are at the zoo, airplanes appear and bomb the city again. When the smoke clears the animals begin to talk to the kids. From the animals, the children learn what happened to the town and to the people that took care of the zoo. The kids also share their story of how they came to be traveling alone. I really enjoyed this story. Although some of the subject matter is hard, the author tells the story beautifully with a melancholy sweetness. The story is written for a juvenile audience and I think that it strikes a good balance for children wanted to know what the war was like. The ending was ambiguous, but it had me pondering its meaning for a long time after reading it. It would be a great book to discuss.
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“Cora R said: 5 stars
Play Book Tag Shelf wrote this review Friday, July 13, 2012. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
The Midnight Zoo is the story of three Romany children during World War II who escape when German soldiers attack their camp and take all their friends and family away. The children wander from place to place, scavenging for what they need to survive when one evening they come across a town that has been completely destroyed by bombs except for a small zoo containing a few zoo animals. The zoo has been abandoned and the animals are stuck in their cages with no one to take care of them or provide them with food. While they are at the zoo, airplanes appear and bomb the city again. When the smoke clears the animals begin to talk to the kids. From the animals, the children learn what happened to the town and to the people that took care of the zoo. The kids also share their story of how they came to be traveling alone. I really enjoyed this story. Although some of the subject matter is hard, the author tells the story beautifully with a melancholy sweetness. The story is written for a juvenile audience and I think that it strikes a good balance for children wanted to know what the war was like. The ending was ambiguous, but it had me pondering its meaning for a long time after reading it. It would be a great book to discuss.”
“Two gypsy boys are running away from the soldiers that destroyed their home and family. They do not know where they are running to but they need to keep secret. They find a zoo hidden by the midnight dark with starving, cold and thirsty animals locked up in cages. To pass time the boys and animals talk to each other of their pasts. Then the boys really want to help these animals. If only they had the keys... this book was a lovely and sad tale of what happened to gypsy and towns in WWII. Although it was sad I loved it! I read my mum some and she said I had to skip that chapter and read the next one.”
anna wrote this review Monday, May 21, 2012. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
“Andrej and Tomas watch from the woods as the Germans attack their family and friends in a Romany encampment during World War II. As they wander through the war-ravaged countryside, the boys learn how to keep themselves and their baby sister safe. One night, the children find a magical zoo where the animals can talk. The story is quite magical until the end. Then, the magic changes to confusion.”
www.bookskidslike.blogspot.com wrote this review Wednesday, December 14, 2011. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
“It's beautifully written, but I didn't enjoy it. I see two possible scenarios for what happened and neither are positive or hopeful and one is devastating. Having said that I thought about it as soon as I woke up this morning and can't stop thinking about it; I want to talk about it to the point of annoyance. ”
Wistful Reader wrote this review Friday, December 9, 2011. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No“I found this book a bit of a struggle to read. There are lavish descriptions that ultimately make the book hard to read. ”
Steven R wrote this review Tuesday, November 8, 2011. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
0 of 1 members found this review helpful“3 1/2 stars”
Jenny Ashby wrote this review Saturday, October 22, 2011. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
