Five of Franz Kafka's most compelling short animal stories, where fable, dark humour and unease collide A community gathers to listen to the singing of a mouse. An ape addresses an academy to explain how he became human. A creature digs ever deeper into its burrow, gripped by fear of what might be lurking outside. In these strange and unsettling stories, animals speak plainly about their hopes, fears and fixations. Includes the stories: Josephine the Singer, or the Mouse Folk , A Report to an Academy , The Burrow , The New Advocate and Investigations of a Dog BRIEF ENCOUNTERS: classic novellas and captivating stories, to be read in a single sitting or savoured over days.