Lion Heart: The Sunday Times Bestseller - How a lifelong love of big cats led to an incredible lion rescue

by Cam Whitnall

Lion Heart is the bold and uplifting memoir of Cam Whitnall, a man whose life has been defined by extraordinary bonds with wildlife and a dramatic warzone rescue that brought five lions to safety in the UK.

'If you know what to look for, a lion’s face tells you everything. The eyes, the scars, the shape.

Their faces tell the truth about survival, control and what it costs to exist in a world shaped by humans.

Everything I’ve chosen to do with my life comes back to that.

Because once you’ve really learned how to look at a lion, and understood the story written across its face, walking away stops being an option.'

When Cam’s grandparents bought a dilapidated zoo, once known as the worst in the UK, and brought it back to life, they also created a home for their family.

Cam grew up on the grounds, now known as Hertfordshire Zoo, in a bedroom overlooking the tiger enclosure. His childhood playground, where he and his brothers would play hide-and-seek after hours, was filled with endangered species from around the world. He built deep connections with the animals in their care, even hand-rearing a lion cub called Zara, an experience which inspired a lifelong fascination with big cats.

Over the years, the family business expanded as they also took on The Big Cat Sanctuary with Cam taking the helm as director. He and the sanctuary made global headlines for leading a high-risk rescue mission of five abandoned lions from war-torn Ukraine. The lions were found in states of shellshock and malnourishment and had likely been used for illegal breeding. After ten months of dedicated effort, Cam united Rori, Yuna, Vanda, Amani and Lira in their forever home at the sanctuary and gave them the freedom to walk on grass for the very first time. A momentous milestone in a lifetime dedicated to animal welfare, conservation and rescue.

Genres: Memoir, Nonfiction, Animals

290 pages, Kindle Edition

Published May 21, 2026

Reviews

[Cassie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Wow! I love animals so much and I learnt a lot would love to visit Big Cat Sanctuary one day!!!

[Ashley · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book was everything and more. From living local to the big cat sanctuary and having been able to attend and take part in their life changing experiences, reading the behind the scenes with the work Cam and the team have put into it, makes the book just that better. You feel every emotion he's portraying, you feel all the hard work put into these incredible rescues and enclosures the team have created to provide the best lives for these animals. The utter dedication is huge. This book makes me proud to be a Zoologist and makes me want to make a difference that will shape the world or even just myself.

[Sophie McGuiness · Rating 5 out of 5]

One of my favourite books ever. It was an amazing insight to Cam's life and inside the makings of Hertfordshire Zoo and The Big Cat Sanctuary. I laughed, gasped and cried throughout this book. Absolutely loved it.

[Amber Anderson · Rating 5 out of 5]

Incredible!! Cam and his entire family are inspirational. The love he has for animals floods off the pages and it was impossible not to cry hearing his moving stories.

I’m already a member of BCS but I now really can’t wait to attend Big Cat Fest tomorrow and see all the new enclosures and cats.

[Hannah Hood · Rating 4 out of 5]

Heartwarming