just wondering: What does anyone make of the fact that PW begins with a "whisper to the reader" which amounts to a fairly elaborate meditation on the beauty of Florence, which follows one of the most entertaining long sentences lampooning Florence? Additionally, on the first page of the novel itself, there is a quick comparison of Dawson's Landing with Venice? Another question: is Roxy's baby the child of Driscoll? is there a critical consensus one way or the other on that? It does say the baby is 31 parts white, making the father white; I just wonder if we understand the child to be the slave master? -- Harold K. Bush Saint Louis University St. Louis, MO