When the Killing's Done, by T. C. Boyle

Characters, Organizations, Locations, and Animals
Alma’s family	Others	Invasive Species
Beverly Boyd – grandmother Tilden Boyd – grandfather Warren – friend Katherine “Kat” Boyd – mother Greg Takesue – father Ed – stepfather Dr. Alma Boyd Takesue Tim Sickafoose – boyfriend Beverly – Alma and Tim’s baby	For the Protection of Animals (FPA): David LaJoy Anise Reed Wilson Gutierrez National Park Service: Alicia Penner – secretary and spy for FPA Robert Freeman Scorpion Ranch: Rita – Anise’s mother Baxter Russell “Bax” Frazier Carter – Island Healers Annabuelle Yuell – Nature Conservancy Toni Walsh - reporter	Alapaca – rats Guam – brown tree snake Santa Cruz – pigs Succession of animals on Santa Cruz: Bald Eagles – died, DDT Sheep – overgrazed, removed Golden Eagles – killed pigs, then foxes – removed to save foxes Bald Eagles - reintroduced

 For Discussion:

NOTE:   Page numbers are from paperback edition.

1. Did you understand Beverly’s reaction to Katherine’s boyfriend, Greg, being Japanese? 
2. When we first met Dave and the FPA protestors, they were protesting the killing of rats on Alapaca.  Did the fact that rats are not cute and cuddly have any bearing on your reaction?
3. Why was Dave LaJoy always so angry?   Why did the author give him a last name containing the word “joy?”
4. Discuss LaJoy’s reaction to raccoons and then other animals destroying his new yard? 
5. Did LaJoy value animals more than humans?   Was he careless with his boat and causing the death of four people?
6. On page 304, did you feel sympathetic toward the dead hog after you read the description of how is was perfectly made for its life?
7. Later, also on page 304, Frazier said, “This is one mean animal.” And Alma things, “He’s right…These animals have to be eliminated and if you stop to see them as individuals you’re done.”   Does this explain the difference in how Alma and LaJoy view the animals?
8. Discuss Tim’s reaction to Alma getting pregnant?   How did his suggestion that she get an abortion fit with his work protecting the animals?
9. What did you think about Dave LaJoy’s revelation on page 358 when Wilson was holding the rattlesnake?   The author wrote, “And he understands, for the first time, how wrong this is, how wrong he’s been, how you have to let the animals – the animals – decide for themselves.”
10. Given the numerous ways man has accidentally or purposefully made decisions for the animals, is it possible for the animals to determine their own fate?
11. How did you like the end of the novel – Dave and friends being killed, Rita going to the ranch house to scatter Anise’s ashes and purposefully missing the boat home, finding the raccoon that Dave released on the island?
12. How well did the author present the different sides of the protection of animals issue?   Were his portrayals realistic?
13. How would you categorize this book?  Adventure? Science?  Did you learn anything or gain any new insights?

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