: We Se Seldom Look on Love, By Barbara Gowdy, Somerville House Publishing, 209 PP, . $18.95 paper Barbara Black BOOK REVIEW -EEP INSIDE ourselves we harber the fear that we are ‘not normal in.some way, _: that certain behaviors; “thoughts or even parts of “our bady would be branded ~ “abnormal” if exposed to -the glare of the public eye. .,And yet, to be normat is to be somehow un-unique, to disappear : into the whitewash of the average. °” Barbara Gowdy’s astonishing | ‘book, We So Seldom Look On-. * Love, charges into this idea, ex- ploring it with candor and j a fertile - ‘imagination...’ Wsa double-edged read. Peopl 4 ing the stories in this collection are - freaks, of varying degrees, physi- Cally and psychologically aberrant, ‘who struggle with their abnortnali-’ ity, sometimes stoically, sometimes sanctimoniously.""- *. But faced with entry into the. “realm of “normal,” they fear the” joss of their identity. Like those of us on the normal - ringe, they must learn to live with, themselves and, as one female ‘necrophiliac’s says in an epiphany : a f self-acceptance, “I had «.” iscovered myself to.be ir: “redeemably abnormal. | could ei “ther “slit my throat or surrender ... we to. my obsession.-1 surrendered.’ - Others, such as Sylvie in the “story by the’ same name, know that,.despite the occasional long- ing to be normal, their identity is _ © defined by their freakistiness. «Sylvie is a bright, candid young gil who sports an additional pair. ‘of fegs (and genitals). Her mother | Pampers and favors the extra ap- “ pendages, called Sue, over Sylvie. ’ Sylvie eventually joins the cir- cus, where her freakishness is both -celebrated and marketed. : Her fife changes when she meets "a man who tells her the extra legs can be removed." - But Sylvie wonders: “What if * her freak meinory is connected to her freak fegs? What if she becomes somebody else for whom nothing that ml be wo to the per- . son she was wi cing?” | In “The Two-Headed Man,” Samuel is a pious bore who is tormented by his lecherous, vulgar “brother” Simon, his extra hea ‘and, quite explicitly, his dark side. (incidentally, ‘despite his” crassness, Simon's interjections in the story are the more entertain-. ; ing.) : : ina af in of unchyistian rage, : BIER are I be worth preserv- Samuel attempts to saw off his se- cond head “Simon” to expurgate the “devil embedded in my flesh.” Samuel is subsequently charged with manslaughter. The amputa- -tion, or “act of ascension,” as he saw it, brings not admiration but disdain from the community. Gradually, we notice Samuel slipping i into delusions, a sign that removing his “monstrosity” was not sufficient to rid himself of evil. These stories sound hideous in the retelling, but you must read Gowdy’s book to see how adeptly and matter-of-factly she handles the characters and their i inner lives. Ceriainly there is an element of voyeurism (and Gowdy plays on it by adding erotic bits), but the Wednesday, March: 17, 1993 —- North Shore News - 25 overall tone is frank, not drippy Gothic sentimentalism. Gowdy has an empathetic talent that allows her to capture a char- acter’s unique inner experience. Although outwardly freakish, many of them lead extraordinary inner lives and have an acute sense of perception as a result of their being “outside’”’ the normal. Gowdy captures their un- translatable private worlds, allow- ing us a glimpse into their souls. ‘The bittersweetness of it is that we know most other people do not see this aspect of the person, instead viewing them with puzzlernent and pity from a distance. In “Body and Soul” we meet Terry, a girl born blind (and bald) and abandoned by her mother, && Removing his ‘nionstrosity’ was not sufficient to rid himself of evil. 99 testing your tolerance. But in the end, viewing our own lives through these “aberrations” is uplifting. We see'not only that. they struggle like we do, but.in some Cases are more human than we are. living with a foster mother. She is so sensitive to her - surroundings that “By the air currents passing through her fingers, she could tell if somebody was breathing in her direction.” Gowdy is able to describe Terry’s non-visual world, using - Terry’s idiosyncratic perceptions. In some instances, the visceral images go too far and Gowdy’s penchant for the macabre in- trudes, It’s as if she wants to lead - you to the brink of your fears, Gowdy is our jovial guide on a tour of the human house of mir-.. rors, pointing out red-blood life and sweet death, beauty and ugliness, vices and holiness to our horror and arnazement. 2% PARTLY SKIMMED MILK \VIAMEG A.AND 0 ADOL> a) RECYCLE AT CAPERS Take pride in recycling ‘Valley Pride dairy cartons at Capers. - Abbotsford dairy, purchased by Avalon Dairy in 1990, is now. offering a "wash and squash" This. small recycling programme — a Vancouver retail customers. - . How does it work? Simply wash’ the used cartons with cold water, squash them, and return the cartons to Capers' collection bin under our front awning. 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