“Her grief was so big and wild it terrified her, like an evil beast that had erupted from under the floorboards.”

“An insincere and evil friend is more to be feared than a wild beast; a wild beast may wound your body, but an evil friend will wound your mind.”

“He thinks about her, at this moment, in her house, a few thin walls away, packing her life into boxes and bags and he wonders what memories she is rediscovering, what thoughts are catching in her mouth like the dust blown from unused textbooks. He wonders if she has buried any traces of herself under her floorboards. He wonders what those traces would be if she had. And he wonders again why he thinks about her so much when he knows so little to think about.”

“Her life was like a burst of wild, flowing Chinese calligraphy, written under the influence of alcohol.”

“It is a great evil to look upon mankind with too clear vision. You seem to be living among wild beasts, and you become a wild beast yourself. ("“The Story of Prince Alasi and the Princess Firouzkah”)”

“She was terrified. She was beginning to realise that after long months of selfcontrol,the pressure, theearthquake, the volcano of her soul was showing signs that it was about to erupt, and themoment that this happened, she would have no way of controlling her feelings.”