Word: lepidoptera
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Dates: during 1970-1979
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BUTTERFLIES by Thomas C. Emmel. 244 pages. Knopf. $29.95. Some of these rare Lepidoptera are so luminescent they produce optical shock. Even the commoner varieties blend the lyrical with the clinical, intriguing both scientist and layman. Accompanying facts are as remarkable as the closeup images. The ubiquitous orange monarch, for example, is the only true round-trip migrant among the world's 20,000 species. Although only one family of butterflies is called satyrs, most males exhibit an aggressive libido as soon as they emerge from the chrysalis-they can detect females by odor, flight signals, and ultraviolet waves...
WHEN VLADIMIR VLADIMIROVICH Nabokov says he writes, ideally, for a lot of little nabokovs, he's not just talking about people who share his eccentric view of "reality" (always in quotes) or his predilection for lepidoptera. To fully appreciate Nabokov's work you need at least a portion of easy brilliance, his fluency in three languages, and his passion for the purest and most pointless play with words. Beyond that, to enjoy his latest novel it helps to have a passing familiarity with his entire oeuvre...