Surprise number one: the film is set in the USA, the book is set in England and France. The zoo is in England.
Mee is or was a journalist so his writing style is good, his story flows and develops stories and characters very well.
The story gas several prongs that include the death of the father, who we never meet; the death of the wife, who we do meet and the outrageously unlikely prospect of going from journalist to zoo owner and manager!
They do it! That's not much of a spoiler really as they made a documentary series on the Mee's rehabilitation of the zoo and there is that film to go on!
Mee tells stories of cowardly dogs, wild and very dangerous animals as well as people stories.
There's the big cat under sedation, being carried to the surgery ... when it wakes up 😳 everyone scatters as you can well imagine. Mee is left in its sights and groggy as the cat is, it is still a lethal killing machine. All ends well but it is the kind of story that keeps the book going.
As i was about half way through the book i thought that the stories of leadership, raising money, organising the family, learning how a business works, knowing who to hire and why made this as much a business book as a family tale. Much to learn here by your BA (BS) and B Com student.
The book us a few years old now but well worth reading: family and business points of view alike.
DW
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