France is a librarian and teaches history and interdisciplinary studies at University Liggett School in Grosse Pointe Woods, Michigan. In the following essay, France discusses the theme of toxicity in Brown's story.

Most of the characters in "Animal Stories" are physically and emotionally damaged. Jamie, the narrator, provides glimpses and examples of environmental poisoning and self-destructive human behavior. By contrasting these with anecdotes and observations about nonhuman animal behavior, he underscores the unique capacity of humans to realize that they are going to die, which makes people more aware of loss and therefore more likely to feel great sadness. Except when faced with environmental poisons inflicted on them by humans, the survival instincts of many animals give them more adaptability and resilience than most of the people introduced in the story. The changes in Jamie's mother, suffering for years from an undetected brain tumor that severely deranges...