Originally Posted by Josiegirl:
The whole story sounds sad. Why would he be stuck in a cage, by himself, in a mall? Was that part based on truth? It's bad enough for them to be stuck in a zoo. 
Will have to google this book, and real life version.
Yes. Someone purchased a male and female as infants. Female died of pneumonia. They tried to get another female, but were denied so used him as a marketing gimmick in a mall, instead.
Zoo Atlanta has all kinds of info on him and photos.
https://zooatlanta.org/animal-legend/ivan/