The Dictionary of Animal Languages

There were points when I was reading this novel that I was so bored I wanted to scream and other times when I was scribbling down quotes. Sopinka writes some dazzling lines.
Ivory Frame is beautiful, intelligent and cold. That is also how I would describe my reading experience. It's difficult to care about Ivory, and at the same time, she's my new hero.
Here is a female living the life she wants in the way she wants in a time dominated by men. Ivory does not seem to feel she has sacrificed to live this way, she seems very content (or at least, completely engrossed in her work). She even succeeds in a male dominated field.
At the same time I found my mind wandering while I was reading because Sopinka shows us this and shows us this and shows us this.
So, while I have mad respect for this book, I didn't really enjoy it. It's not that I need a likeable main character, I most certainly don't. What I need is plot and for it to move along at a decent clip.
Dictionary reminded me of a statue in an art gallery. Is it beautiful? Yes. Is it cold and unmoving? Yes.