''Zoo'' is a science fiction
thriller novel by
James Patterson
James Brendan Patterson (born March 22, 1947) is an American author. Among his works are the ''Alex Cross'', '' Michael Bennett'', '' Women's Murder Club'', ''Maximum Ride'', '' Daniel X'', '' NYPD Red'', '' Witch & Wizard'', and ''Private'' se ...
and
Michael Ledwidge
Michael S. Ledwidge is an American author of Irish descent. He wrote his first novel, The Narrowback, while working as the back elevator operator for a Park Avenue Coop apartment building. His novel, Bad Connection was written while working as a ...
published in September 2012. The book made it to the ''New York Times'' bestseller list.
A sequel, ''Zoo 2'', by Patterson and Max DiLallo, was released on June 7, 2016, as a short story.
Plot
The novel centers on Jackson Oz, an
outcast among professional and academic ecologists and
biologist
A biologist is a scientist who conducts research in biology. Biologists are interested in studying life on Earth, whether it is an individual Cell (biology), cell, a multicellular organism, or a Community (ecology), community of Biological inter ...
s. Oz has tried for years to get other scientists to listen to the data he has been collecting on the increasing numbers of mammal attacks on humans. He becomes so obsessed with this goal that he quits
graduate school
Postgraduate or graduate education refers to Academic degree, academic or professional degrees, certificates, diplomas, or other qualifications pursued by higher education, post-secondary students who have earned an Undergraduate education, un ...
and devotes himself to full-time data collection and arguing his case. Finally, on a trip to
Botswana
Botswana (, ), officially the Republic of Botswana ( tn, Lefatshe la Botswana, label=Setswana, ), is a landlocked country in Southern Africa. Botswana is topographically flat, with approximately 70 percent of its territory being the Kalahar ...
, he survives an attack by a large band of male lions in which about one hundred people are killed over a large area. He saves the life of ecologist Chloe Tousignant. Upon returning to America, he finds his girlfriend dead in his apartment, killed and partly eaten by his pet chimpanzee.
Five years later, Oz has married Chloe and they have a son named Eli. His theory becomes accepted as all over the world, packs of animals are entering densely populated cities and killing humans en masse. He is recruited by the US president to research the cause but before he and his team of scientists can find an answer, the president's daughter is killed by their dog and the military launches strikes against affected cities, which worsens the attacks. Continuing his research, Oz discovers that animal
pheromone
A pheromone () is a secreted or excreted chemical factor that triggers a social response in members of the same species. Pheromones are chemicals capable of acting like hormones outside the body of the secreting individual, to affect the behavio ...
s have changed due to the widespread use of radio communication (cell phones) and petroleum products (notably automobile exhaust) and these disrupted pheromones are enlarging the animals'
amygdala
The amygdala (; plural: amygdalae or amygdalas; also '; Latin from Greek, , ', 'almond', 'tonsil') is one of two almond-shaped clusters of nuclei located deep and medially within the temporal lobes of the brain's cerebrum in complex verteb ...
s and causing the aggression. The
President of the United States
The president of the United States (POTUS) is the head of state and head of government of the United States of America. The president directs the executive branch of the federal government and is the commander-in-chief of the United Stat ...
orders all electricity, cellphone, and automobile usage banned for two weeks, and animal attacks cease nearly immediately as the ban takes effect. But after one week, people return to their previous habits and the attacks restart with increased ferocity. Oz, his wife and son, along with some scientists and political leaders, are evacuated to
Thule, Greenland
Qaanaaq (), formerly known as Thule or New Thule, is the main town in the northern part of the Avannaata municipality in northwestern Greenland. It is one of the northernmost towns in the world. The inhabitants of Qaanaaq speak the local Inukt ...
, where research into how to reverse the changes will take place.
Reviews
''Zoo'' has received mixed reviews. The ''Hutchinson Leader'' says "It's a page turner that's for sure. The ending is sort of lame, but overall I enjoyed it".
Bookreporter.com rates ''Zoo'' very positively, saying, "What is really chilling about ''Zoo'' is its plausibility. You may not agree with all of the points of view presented here, but at the very least it will keep you reading—and thinking—from first page to last".
Adaptation
In 2015,
CBS
CBS Broadcasting Inc., commonly shortened to CBS, the abbreviation of its former legal name Columbia Broadcasting System, is an American commercial broadcast television and radio network serving as the flagship property of the CBS Entertainmen ...
adapted the novel as the television series ''
Zoo
A zoo (short for zoological garden; also called an animal park or menagerie) is a facility in which animals are kept within enclosures for public exhibition and often bred for Conservation biology, conservation purposes.
The term ''zoological g ...
''. It is developed by
Josh Appelbaum
Josh Appelbaum is an American television writer, screenwriter, showrunner and producer.
Biography
Appelbaum is from a Jewish family.[André Nemec
André Nemec (born 1972) is an American writer, showrunner and producer.
His screenplays include '' Mission: Impossible – Ghost Protocol'' and ''Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles''. He is also the co-creator of CBS's summer hit series ''Zoo'', as ...]
,
Jeff Pinkner
Jeff Pinkner (born November 16, 1964) is an American television and movie writer and producer.
Life and career
Born to a Jewish family,[Scott Rosenberg
Scott Rosenberg (born April 24, 1963) is an American screenwriter, film producer, and actor.
Life and career
Rosenberg was born in Needham, Massachusetts, to a Jewish family. After high school graduation in 1981, he attended Boston Universit ...]
. James Wolk was the first to be cast, in November 2014,
followed later the same month by
Nora Arnezeder
Nora Arnezeder (born 8 May 1989) is a French actress and singer. The recipient of a Lumières Award, she is an accomplished actress in the French film industry.
Early life
Arnezeder was born in Paris, France. Her father Wolfgang Arnezeder is Au ...
and Nonso Anozie.
The main cast was rounded out in January 2015 with
Kristen Connolly
Kristen Connolly (born July 12, 1980) is an American actress. She is known for her roles as Dana in the 2011 film ''The Cabin in the Woods'', Christina Gallagher on the Netflix series ''House of Cards'' and Jamie Campbell on the CBS series ''Zo ...
and
Billy Burke.
In February,
Geoff Stults
Geoffrey Manton Stults (born December 15, 1977) is an American actor. His first regular roles on television included '' 7th Heaven'', '' October Road'', and '' Happy Town''. He went on to star as Major Walter Sherman on '' The Finder'', Sgt. Pete ...
was cast in a recurring role for a "multi-episode arc".
In March,
Carl Lumbly
Carl Winston Lumbly (born August 14, 1951) is an American actor. He is known for his roles as Dick Hallorann in '' Doctor Sleep'', NYPD detective Marcus Petrie on the CBS police drama ''Cagney & Lacey'', CIA agent Marcus Dixon on the ABC espiona ...
was cast in a recurring role.
In March 2016, Josh Salatin and
Alyssa Diaz
Alyssa Elaine Diaz (born September 7, 1985) is an American actress. She is known for her roles on television, such as Celia Ortega on the CBS daytime soap opera ''As the World Turns'', Jasmine on the ABC Family series ''The Nine Lives of Chloe K ...
were added to the cast as series regulars in season two.
In April,
Joanne Kelly
Joanne M. Kelly is a Canadian actress, known for her appearances in films such as '' Going the Distance'', and in the TV series '' Warehouse 13'' as the character Myka Bering, a Secret Service agent.
Early life and education
Joanne Kelly wa ...
was cast in a recurring role.
On August 10, 2016, CBS renewed the series for a third season.
On October 23, 2017, CBS announced that the series was canceled.
Sequel
A sequel, ''Zoo 2'', written by James Patterson and Max DiLallo, was released on June 7, 2016, as a short story. The plot has some humans becoming infected, possibly leading to the species evolving.
References
{{James Patterson
2012 American novels
American novels adapted into television shows
Ethology
Novels by James Patterson
Little, Brown and Company books