Father of Lions

October 28, 2019
Callaghan, Middle East correspondent for The Sunday Times, exposes the perils of life under ISIS for both humans and animals. In June 2014, the Islamic State, heavily undermanned but full of “religious bloodlust,” attacked the government forces in Mosul, Iraq, forcing them to abandon the city. Callaghan details how the residents of Mosul fought to keep themselves alive during the two-and-a-half-year siege, among them Abu Laith, known as the Father of Lions, a larger-than-life mechanic with a brood of kids and fiery wife. Laith acts as caretaker for the Mosul Zoo, home of his own lion, Zombie, which he raised from a cub. While hiding from the insurgents, Laith tries to keep the animals from starving with the help of a young, shiftless man named Marwan. The narrative takes time to build, but Callaghan creates a detailed and nuanced account of life in an ISIS-controlled corner of Iraq. The well-researched narrative builds a powerful finale after Mosul has been liberated and an Indiana Jones–like Egyptian veterinarian named Dr. Amir takes an interest in the zoo. Callaghan’s intense story of saving a zoo serves as a human look at life in a war-torn city.

November 15, 2019
A chronicle of a dark period for the beleaguered zoo of Mosul when a longtime denizen and family man tried to keep the animals safe during the brutal two-year occupation by the Islamic State group. In June 2014, the Iraqi forces fled the strategic city of Mosul, "Iraq's second city and home to over half a million people," leaving IS to move in. Sunday Times Middle East correspondent Callaghan tells the story of the self-appointed zookeeper at the local zoo, Abu Laith, his second wife, Lumia, and their many children, who were suddenly subsumed under the laws of Sharia. This meant complying with numerous arbitrary statutes about dress and mores to which they were unaccustomed. Moreover, the animals' cages were inexplicably moved next to Abu Laith's house, near the park and mosque. Afraid the owner was plotting to sell them off, he needed "a spy" to keep an eye on them and help feed and care for them--especially his favorite family of lions, Mother and Father and baby Zombie, whom Abu Laith had cared for since a cub. Marwan, the young assistant, and Abu Laith went to enormous measures to try to keep the animals fed as well as safe from visitors, efforts that the author narrates capably. In brisk chapters that move back and forth among her protagonists, Callaghan also tells the story of Hakam Zarari, a former government scientist, and his family, who were horrified by the brutal methods of IS. As the liberation of the city began in late 2016, the dangers of violent death increased, as did the trauma and threat to the vulnerable, starving animals. Yet it was not Abu Laith who ultimately "saved" the animals but Egyptian-born, Austria-trained vet Dr. Amir--previously the rescuer of the Baghdad Zoo's remaining animals--who was informed of the Mosul zoo's lot by Hakam and swept in to help. An engaging yet heartbreaking narrative that reads like fiction.

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Starred review from December 1, 2019

Callaghan's (Middle East correspondent, The Sunday Times) first book is a true page-turner. The story takes place in Mosul, after IS has taken hold of the city, instilling fear and terror in the region's longtime residents. Against this backdrop, we meet Abu Laith, a zoologist, self-trained through years of watching the National Geographic channel, who is also the self-appointed caretaker of animals in the Mosul Zoo. Fighting intensifies and, as conditions for the citizens become more precarious, animals at the zoo begin to suffer as well. While Abu Laith does his best to keep animals safe and healthy, he cannot always succeed against the violence inflicted on his city. Just when things seem to be truly hopeless, an international animal rescue operation brings assistance. VERDICT Recommended for readers seeking a more nuanced understanding of the complexities inherent to this region.--Diana Hartle, Univ. of Georgia Science Lib., Athens

Copyright 2019 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

December 1, 2019
What happens to animals living in zoos when their home cities become war zones? When human lives are held cheap, zoo denizens suffer too, as food becomes scarce in besieged cities. Mosul, Iraq's second largest city, fell to ISIS. The ongoing fighting between militants and government forces decimated most of Mosul's attractions. The small zoo remained open, but as the violence continued the animals began to starve. Abu Laith, "father of lions," was an animal lover and self-taught zoologist and zookeeper, and as conditions got worse he and his family began to scrounge as much food for the animals as they could find. The horror of the zoo's residents, caught in their cages and slowly starving, is well rendered by journalist Callaghan, Middle East correspondent for The Sunday Times (UK), as is Abu Laith's resiliency and determination. Political maneuvering, ISIS oppression, and ignorance took their toll until finally an Austrian charity stepped in to rescue the zoo's few survivors. With the pacing of a thriller and touches of humor, Callaghan's tale of animal-focused bravery under fire is both wrenching and charming.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2019, American Library Association.)