Book Review: MY FATHER'S ZOO by Esther David

A wonderful book about Ruben David and his immense love and respect for animals -wild and domestic alike.

Being a granddaughter of a forest conservator I have grown up on stories and incidents of wildlife. Whenever I used to spend vacations at my grandparents' place, it was a ritual, every evening, I’d be sprawled on the huge swing, he sitting ever so majestically on his chair on the porch and he would tell me fascinating stories. Some which were related to him and some to his friends. This book took me back to those wonderful days where I could imagine him narrating these beautiful stories to me. 

Also, recently I came to know that certain stuffed ducks, which belonged to nanaji and are now at my maternal place were in fact gifted by Ruben David, founder of Ahmedabad zoo, to my nanaji and that somehow made this book more special to me.

My Father’s Zoo by Esther David has described heartfelt incidents between Ruben David and animals. The way he could fearlessly walk into the enclosures of tigers, chimpanzees, bears, lions and get nothing but unconditional love in return is amazing. The ways he used to capture certain wild animals which got wandered into the city from the jungle and take full precautions that they don’t receive as much as a scratch is worth admiring. And the illustrations by Esther David are wonderful, adding a lively touch to the book. All in all, it is a book worth treasuring for those who love animals. These two quotes from a book are nothing less than a hard-hitting reality:

“The two-legged are more dangerous than the four-legged”

“When man hunts animals, he calls it a sport. But when animals hunt men, we call it ferocity and brand the animal as a man-eater.”

When the book ended, I still wanted to read more and more. Couldn’t get enough of it.