Max, a 2-year-old German shepherd, Belgian Malinois and husky mix. M. Scott Brauer for The New York Times

Just a few decades ago, many researchers considered pets to be deeply unserious study subjects. Today, companion animals are scientifically in vogue.

Experts around the world are peering deep into the bodies and minds of cats and dogs. The research, which sometimes relies on data from tens of thousands of pet owners, promises to also inform human medicine.

Lives lived: Ismail Kadare, an Albanian novelist and poet whose dark, allegorical work obliquely criticized his country’s totalitarian government, died at 88. Here’s a guide to his books.