Funny Farm

July 12, 2021
In this heartwarming debut, Zaleski, founder of New Jersey’s Funny Farm Rescue & Sanctuary, shares how she came to live with “hundreds of ducks and geese, dogs and cats, pigs and goats, alpacas and horses.” After her mother left her sadistic father in the 1970s, with Zaleski and her siblings in tow, the transition (which included “hiding out in a motel”) was rough, but the peace they found made up for the loss of their upper-middle-class lifestyle. Laurie’s plucky mother, Annie, was a fierce animal lover and devoted her life to rescuing animals, even when money was tight. So it only seemed fitting, after her mother died in 2000, for Zaleski to fulfill Annie’s dream of running her own animal rescue. Today, her farm accommodates more than 600 animals—ranging from skunks taken in from exotic animal breeders to retired racehorses—many of which she pays loving tributes to. As she dishes stories of her guests—including Angel, a cantankerous, disabled goose who “didn’t live up to her name,” and a sweet 1,200-pound mare—Zaleski masterfully illustrates how one person can rise above difficult circumstances to do substantial good. Lovers of the furry and feathery will revel in this feel-good story.

Starred review from February 11, 2022

In her debut memoir, Zaleski recounts founding her animal sanctuary, the Funny Farm Rescue. It had been her mother Annie's dream to live on a farm with her many rescued animals, but Annie died shortly before Zaleski closed on the 20-acre plot in Mays Landing, NJ, in 2000. With the determination that drove her to create a successful photography and graphics company, Zaleski expanded on her mother's dream, building a loving refuge for hundreds of neglected or abandoned domestic, farm, and exotic animals and a beloved site for visitors and volunteers. Zaleski's authorial debut (she has previously illustrated Matt Reeves's anti-bullying children's books Farley the Funny Farm Dog, Chucky the Miracle Dog, and Adela the Diva Chicken) interweaves origin stories of Funny Farm's animal residents with recollections from her own childhood after her mother left an abusive husband. Themes of kindness and acceptance pervade in Zaleski's book and in Funny Farm's mission. VERDICT Readers will be inspired to visit virtually (or maybe even in person!) the animals they read about, like Emily the emu and Cowboy the goat. Zaleski's animal stories are immensely relatable and often told with the mix of empathy, outrage, humor, and steady resolve that is familiar to seasoned animal rescuers. Readers may also feel a special connection with Annie and her story of courage and unconditional love.--Meagan Storey

Copyright 2022 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

June 1, 2022

Zaleski's memoir features many rescue animals but mostly centers on the story of her mother, Annie McNulty, who fled an abusive marriage at a young age with kids in tow, few skills, and no money. They land in a broken-down shack and somehow make it work. Narrator Erin Moon does solid work keeping an even delivery on some of the more harrowing events. McNulty takes whatever jobs she can get, and a gig at an animal hospital starts her on the path to rescuing animals. A variety of animals make their way to her home, and they become a significant part of the author's childhood. VERDICT It's more about resilience in the face of adversity than about animal rescues, but listeners can gain insight and inspiration from a woman who has made it her mission to save abused and neglected animals.--Christa Van Herreweghe

Copyright 2022 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

Starred review from December 1, 2021
An adult survivor of domestic violence recounts her experience starting an animal rescue farm in honor of her courageous mother. When Zaleski was a child, her neighbors thought her family was perfect. Her mother, "a happy homemaker, demure but fashionable in her minidresses and capris with beautifully coiffed hair and flawless makeup," was well matched with her charming, economically successful husband. But behind all the society page-worthy parties, the family harbored a dark secret: Zaleski's father was dangerously violent. Finally, after two unsuccessful attempts at fleeing, Zaleski's mother packed the children in the car and relocated to a house in the New Jersey woods that was so run-down it was almost uninhabitable. There followed years of abject poverty, continued harassment from her father, and a long line of adopted animals ("an endless litany of sad stories"). Zaleski's mother rescued so many animals that she nicknamed their home the Funny Farm, a name the author would use when she formally opened an animal rescue farm in her mother's honor weeks after her untimely death. "She had rallied, like Lazarus, after her brain surgery, so much so that we started believing in miracles," writes Zaleski. "But...her decline, when it came, was swift. She faded before our eyes like a Polaroid in reverse." The narrative alternates between a chronological account of the family's experiences living just 10 minutes--yet a world away--from their wealthy, abusive father and vignettes about the animals living at the current Funny Farm. The author expertly balances humor and vulnerability while sharing the details of her harrowing childhood, making the book feel like a conversation between friends. Although the interspersed anecdotes about the Funny Farm's most famous rescued animals provide welcome moments of levity, they sometimes lack a connection to the main story. On the whole, however, the book, both heartwarming and heartbreaking, is an enjoyable read. An affirming memoir about surviving domestic violence with the help of furred and feathered friends.

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