In the coldest months of the year, the natural response of any bookworm is to bundle up with a blanket, some tea, and a homey book. We seek to warm the most frigid corners of our hearts and bring light to the darker seasons on earth — to reassure ourselves that even in dark times, hope and light will always return to us. In my experience, no subject is better suited to this task than tales of anthropomorphic adventure. From Aesop to Alice in Wonderland, stories of furry friends and their surprisingly...