Patrick deWitt meets Catch 22, when a guileless young boy gets mixed up in Stalin's inner circle.

'A wonderfully inventive and slyly constructed novel, horrifying, horribly funny, and disgracefully entertaining.' John Banville

An Observer and Spectator Book of the Year
Shortlisted for the Historical Writing Association Gold Crown Award

Meet Yuri Zipit.

A boy who's had a bang on the head in a collision with a Moscow milk truck.

He has a kind face, makes friends easily, and likes to help. People want to tell him their secrets.

Including the Great Leader himself, who takes a shine to Yuri when he employs him for his natural talents.

In his new job, Yuri will witness it all - betrayals, body doubles, buffoonery. Who knew that a man could be in five places at once? That someone could break your nose as a sign of friendship? That people could be disinvented . . .?

The Zoo is a brilliantly cutting satire told through the voice of one incredible boy.