To be a dolphin!
On the way to Guelph Farmers' Market I passed Macondo Books, and there on an outdoor display table, shining in the sun, lay a used copy of a book I've always wanted, Biological Exuberance: Animal Homosexuality and Natural Diversity by Bruce Bagemihl, Ph.D. Today, appropriately, I'm substituting for someone's shift at Out On The Shelf, so I've undressed this new find and penetrated the first chapter. The reading is both informative and entertaining:Another sort of "oral" sexual activity is called beak-genital propulsion and occurs among both male and female Bottlenose and Spinner Dolphins: one animal inserts its snout or "beak" into the genital slit of another, simultaneously stimulating and propelling its partner foward while swimming.
I finished Ysabel this week. Guy Gavriel Kay tried to be too complicated in his recent writings. He wove tapestries of plotlines and characters, but ultimately the effect didn't go deep enough with anyone, and left frustrating loose ends. In Ysabel he has settled to a simpler, more linear approach, keeping with the point of view of the main protagonist, except for a few brief and illuminating excursions.
This book also revisits the universe of The Fionavar Tapestry, which originally brought Kay acclaim as a fantasy novelist. However, the tale never leaves our planet, playing out entirely in modern Provence, where several antique spirits resolve from the mists of time. Old, beloved characters also reappear. If you enjoyed Fionavar, you'll want to read Ysabel to catch up on family news.
I've also signed out Dionne Brand's first novel. Along with 700 pages of delightful animal deviance, it's plenty of reading to involve me for a while.
