Ebook Zoo Nebraska The Dismantling of an American Dream Audible Audio Edition Carson Vaughan Patrick Lawlor Brilliance Audio Books
Download As PDF : Zoo Nebraska The Dismantling of an American Dream Audible Audio Edition Carson Vaughan Patrick Lawlor Brilliance Audio Books
A moving true story of American struggle.
Royal, Nebraska, population eighty-one - where the church, high school, and post office each stand abandoned, monuments to a Great Plains town that never flourished. But for nearly twenty years, they had a zoo, seven acres that rose from local peculiarity to key tourist attraction to devastating tragedy. And it all began with one man's outsize vision.
When Dick Haskin's plans to assist primatologist Dian Fossey in Rwanda were cut short by her murder, Dick's devotion to primates didn't die with her. He returned to his hometown with Reuben, an adolescent chimp, in the bed of a pickup truck and transformed a trailer home into the Midwest Primate Center. As the tourist trade multiplied, so did the inhabitants of what would become Zoo Nebraska, the unlikeliest boon to Royal's economy in generations and, eventually, the source of a power struggle that would lead to the tragic implosion of Dick Haskin's dream.
A resonant true story of small-town politics and community perseverance and of decent people and questionable choices, Zoo Nebraska is a timely requiem for a rural America in the throes of extinction.
Ebook Zoo Nebraska The Dismantling of an American Dream Audible Audio Edition Carson Vaughan Patrick Lawlor Brilliance Audio Books
"I grew up in southern Wisconsin, near Busseyville and Albion Prairie, with populations around 200 or so. Everybody knew everybody -- and we would often listen in the party lines to some amazingly intimate conversations. And, at 12, when I saw Lois with a blanket walking down to a nearby creek, everyone nearby in the country store knew what she was going to do.
This tightly written real account of murder resonates with my memory of those days -- Georgia Jean Wexler was kidnapped when she was eight, we searched everywhere for her, we were outraged when her father was questioned, the fabric of our small community was torn apart.
The author describes a very different type of crime in this history, one that seems alien to me now that I live in New York City, alien, that is until I remember and channel the fourteen year old boy I was at the time.
A wonderful account, well written and worth every minute I spent reading it.
Robert C. Ross
March 2019"
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Zoo Nebraska The Dismantling of an American Dream Audible Audio Edition Carson Vaughan Patrick Lawlor Brilliance Audio Books Reviews :
Zoo Nebraska The Dismantling of an American Dream Audible Audio Edition Carson Vaughan Patrick Lawlor Brilliance Audio Books Reviews
- Although, just as was Dick Haskin, I was enthralled by Jane Goodall and Dian Fossey regarding the work with primates, my life’s ambition was oriented more towards getting inside the heads of humans, just as the great explorer, John Goddard. Perhaps my conditioning was a reflection of my age, or, probably, because Goddard was a frequent lecturer at my high school in Southeast Los Angeles County.
At any rate, I selected as my First Read the book “Zoo Nebraska†by Carson Vaughan with reluctance and trepidation. It, as well as most of this month’s choices, sounded a bit dreary and depressing. As a resident of the Midwest, I witness every day much of that depicted in this study of rural America. I see, all too frequently, the seemingly perpetual decline of what it means to be living in a region in which ‘newcomers’ include even the folks who moved into the town 20 years ago.
However, I was a bit intrigued by the thought of someone starting a zoo. So, I took the chance. What follows below is my honest opinion of the writing and conclusions arrived at by the author. In other words, what did I enjoy or find interesting, and what I enjoyed less about “Zoo Nebraska.â€
BLUSH FACTOR After I finished reading, I did a search for eff words and found two. I state it this way, because they were included in a way that I easily forgot they were even in the book. They got in the book in honest reporting of what the person said, rather than for artistic purposes. The first is on page 180, the second on page 188, so, if you prefer to skip over them, you can. By no means would I suggest not buying the book due to the language, but that is your choice.
POV Third person point of view.
WRITING & EDITING The book starts a little slowly and with a little jumping around. Yet, without giving us so full a history of the town and its early mishaps and name-changing, the overall story arc might not have felt sufficiently rewarding. By about 20 percent into the book, I found it a real challenge to set the book aside. Perhaps, though, the first forty pages could have been condensed to, say, 20 or 25, to make for a quicker introduction to the more juicy bits. I think what I’m saying is that if you base your purchase decision on reading only the 10 percent sample, you’ll probably not find much of interest. However, I just want to state that the overall reading experience is much more interesting.
EXCERPT
‘…He inched toward the ledge, found Jimmy Joe behind the wheel.
“He’s inside here!†he called to Arvin below.
“He’s inside the van?â€
Jimmy Joe began to jump and thrash, rocking the van, screaming and tearing up the upholstery, smearing his blood across the dash, as if he just now realized he was trapped inside.
“It was like Planet of the Apes,†Detlefsen says. “Every time I see that movie, I’m looking around because the scream in that movie is the same one [that came] out of that van.â€
Duaine reparked his truck parallel to the blocks, creating a makeshift barricade. Two more locals joined the huddle with rifles slung over their shoulders.
“Take him out inside the van?†the trooper asked Arvin.
“Oh, we don’t want to break windows, do we?â€
“As long as he’s in there—â€
“If he tries to get out,†Arvin called back over his shoulder, “take him.â€
But the standoff seemed to enter a strange intermission. Fifty-mile-an-hour gusts now whipped the trees like dirty rag dolls, their shadows dark and distended across the parking lot. The flag clanked against its pole. Another truck rumbled past on the highway. The sun bounced off the shiny hood of the trooper’s vehicle, the whole scene playing out upside down in its reflection. At least seven armed men…’
Vaughan, Carson. Zoo Nebraska The Dismantling of an American Dream (pp. 180-181). Edition.
BOTTOM LINE
If you buy “Zoo Nebraska,†be sure to read the Author’s Note and Acknowledgments in order to more fully appreciate the efforts of this journalist to accurately convey his understanding of the events leading up to, and including, the aftermath. Oh, and you might do as I, and purchase “The Hills of Mars†by D. R. Haskins. I look forward to another interesting history of small-town Nebraska.
Certainly “Zoo Nebraska†is not a great read for every reader. It was, though, interesting and an intriguing read for me. It was much better than I feared it would be.
Four stars out of five.
I am striving to produce reviews that help you find books that you want, or avoid books that you wish to avoid. With your help, my improvement will help other readers find books they enjoy reading.. - This is a carefully researched, beautifully written book about a place and an event that are both insignificant and universal. Royal, Nebraska is a dying prairie town. The school, post office, library, and Methodist church have closed their doors as the population declined. Young folks leave for more opportunities. The only ones left are those who are too old, too sick, or too odd to live elsewhere.
Everyone loves the idea of living in a small town, but few people understand the realities of living in a place where you have little choice of friends and no privacy at all. Resentments fester and feuds are common. As one local says, "Royal has always had a 'Hatfields and McCoys' reputation." And yet the people of Royal love their town and for a few years they had something that set them apart from their neighbors. They had an accredited zoo.
Dick Haskin was a serious, studious boy who wanted to get out of Royal. From the age of 12, he was fascinated by the study of primates in the wild. He planned to use his degree in life sciences from the University of Nebraska as a springboard to a career as a primatologist. He was offered an internship with at Dian Fossey's Karisoke Research Center in Rwanda, but Fossey's murder intervened and no other offers materialized.
He took a job at a small zoo in Lincoln, Nebraska, and used his free time to study the chimpanzees. He developed a close relationship with a young chimp named Reuben, teaching him American Sign Language. But Dick disliked the concept of zoos and he eventually acquired Reuben and headed back to Royal with the dream of founding a primate study center.
Amazingly, he managed to acquire other animals and to raise funds for housing for Reuben. A $55,000 contribution from Nebraska native-son Johnny Carson was both a financial windfall and a public relations prize. The tiny educational center operated on a shoestring, but was popular with locals and attracted attention from other parts of the state. But animal centers must meet strict federal and state standards to earn and keep a license. The strain of running a poorly-financed operation broke down Dick Haskin's health and he was forced to resign as director.
A Canadian couple with experience in zoo management took over and acquired three more chimps and other animals, doubling the number of animals on display. But they didn't know that the zoo was deeply in debt and had received warnings from government agencies about the conditions in which the animals lived. When they criticized Dick Haskin's management, the board of directors indignantly fired them. Royal was NOT putting up with know-it-all outsiders!
From then on, the zoo was run by untrained volunteers. Conditions (both financial and physical) deteriorated. On September 10, 2005, a volunteer failed to close a gate while the chimp enclosure was being cleaned and the four chimpanzees (all male) escaped. Two stayed on the zoo grounds, but two wandered into town.
Chimpanzees are extremely powerful and can be very aggressive. As one expert said, "If one chimp escapes, someone will be hurt. If two chimps escape, someone will be killed." There has never been an incident int he U.S. where four chimps escaped at the same time, with some of them leaving the zoo grounds. While the rest of the country was watching the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, this tiny town was having its own horrific emergency and no one there was trained for it.
The chapter that covers the escape of the four chimpanzees is hard to read. I was left weak-knee and very emotional. Many people savagely criticized the handling of the emergency, but the fact that there were no human casualties is a miracle. These untrained civilians dealt with the danger as best they could, with no time to think before they acted. It's easy to be wise after the fact. Everyone involved was scarred by the tragedy, but they moved on. What else can you do?
What happened in Royal sounds like a horror movie, but the plain fact is that the keeping of "exotic" animals, including very dangerous ones by private individuals and in unlicensed road-side zoos without trained staff is more common than we want to believe. The tragedy in Royal could easily be repeated in many communities across America.
This is an incredible book; investigative reporting at its very best. The author shows a real feel for the people in this tiny town. He presents their lives and opinions honestly, without ever being condescending or cruel. I'll be thinking about this book for a long time. - I grew up in southern Wisconsin, near Busseyville and Albion Prairie, with populations around 200 or so. Everybody knew everybody -- and we would often listen in the party lines to some amazingly intimate conversations. And, at 12, when I saw Lois with a blanket walking down to a nearby creek, everyone nearby in the country store knew what she was going to do.
This tightly written real account of murder resonates with my memory of those days -- Georgia Jean Wexler was kidnapped when she was eight, we searched everywhere for her, we were outraged when her father was questioned, the fabric of our small community was torn apart.
The author describes a very different type of crime in this history, one that seems alien to me now that I live in New York City, alien, that is until I remember and channel the fourteen year old boy I was at the time.
A wonderful account, well written and worth every minute I spent reading it.
Robert C. Ross
March 2019 - Carson Vaughan's first book will resonate with any reader who has experienced the slower rhythms and occasionally eccentric people who choose to live in those small villages rusting away beside the highways on which travelers whiz past without a second thought. In 2005, Royal, Nebraska (pop. 63), was the site of a massacre of three escapees who terrorized the citizens residing in this remote and forlorn corner of the state. The victims were chimpanzees. The author's exploration of the incident is honest and thorough and imbues the book with the poignancy of broken dreams and failed aspirations.
