Pulitzer Prize- winning journalist French goes behind the scenes at Tampa’s Lowry Park Zoo during a turbulent time in its history. Among the “characters” that populate the book are a group of imported African elephants settling in to zoo life; Enshalla, a beautiful Sumatran tiger who refuses to mate; Herman, the patriarch of the chimpanzees who was donated to the zoo as an adult; as well as Lex Salisbury the controversial zoo CEO and the various keepers who are extremely dedicated to their charges. French does an excellent job of presenting both sides of arguments regarding the pros and cons of zoo life, conservation issues, and the treatment of both captive and wild animals, while telling an absorbing story of a zoo undergoing expansion and change to keep up with the times.