While spending time with a capybara named Pumpkin, Gary Shteyngart noticed that it was always on alert for a predator. The capybara represented a duality he knew all too well: a desperately friendly creature always afraid of being attacked.

 While spending time with a capybara named Pumpkin, Gary Shteyngart noticed that it was always on alert for a predator. The capybara represented a duality he knew all too well: a friendly creature always afraid of being attacked.