Was reading FLAUBERT'S PARROT by Julian Barnes and becoming pretty certain there would not be an owl in it. I mean, on page 46 there is a list of dozens of different kinds of animals, but no owls. And I was like, "Oh, well, if there were to be an owl in this book that was the spot for it." As much as I complain about my sick compulsion to list every book I read that has an owl in it (which is every book), I felt kind of let down. Just a few pages later, though, from a summary of a Flaubert story: "Flashes of light in the forest... prove to be the eyes of watching beasts: wild cats, squirrels, owls, parrots and monkeys." Tell me, what did I feel? Here's a picture of an owl Megan Abbott just sent me, coincidentally. "It's a purse!" Megan exclaims.
Friday, January 23, 2015
Flashes of Light in the Forest
Was reading FLAUBERT'S PARROT by Julian Barnes and becoming pretty certain there would not be an owl in it. I mean, on page 46 there is a list of dozens of different kinds of animals, but no owls. And I was like, "Oh, well, if there were to be an owl in this book that was the spot for it." As much as I complain about my sick compulsion to list every book I read that has an owl in it (which is every book), I felt kind of let down. Just a few pages later, though, from a summary of a Flaubert story: "Flashes of light in the forest... prove to be the eyes of watching beasts: wild cats, squirrels, owls, parrots and monkeys." Tell me, what did I feel? Here's a picture of an owl Megan Abbott just sent me, coincidentally. "It's a purse!" Megan exclaims.
