The Flounder Robert Jr. Banks just before Dan can question

just before Dan can question them

elegant prose

Wilson offers being "born backwards" as a tongue-in-cheek answer for physical trials such as being cross-eyed

If one wishes to go beyond superficial discussions of the physical relations involved

The Flounder Robert Jr. Banks just before Dan can questionIt all begins in the Stone Age, when a talking fish is caught by a fisherman at the very spot where millennia later Grass's home town, Danzig, will arise. Like the fish, the fisherman is immortal, and down through the ages they move together. As Grass blends his ingredients into a powerful brew, he shows himself at the peak of his linguistic inventiveness. Translated by Ralph Manheim. A Helen and Kurt Wolff Book Author: Grass Publisher: Houghton