With three hearts and blue blood, its gelatinous body unconstrained by
jointed limbs or gravity, the octopus seems to be an alien, an
inhabitant of another world. It's baggy, boneless body sprouts eight
arms covered with thousands of suckers--suckers that can taste as well
as feel. The octopus also has the powers of a superhero: it can
shape-shift, change color, squirt ink, pour itself through the tiniest
of openings, or jet away through the sea faster than a swimmer can
follow.
But most intriguing of all, octopuses--classed as mollusks, like
clams--are remarkably intelligent with quirky personalities. This book,
an inquiry into the mind of an intelligent invertebrate, is also a foray
into our own unexplored planet. These thinking, feeling creatures can
help readers experience and understand our world (and perhaps even life
itself) in a new way.