We had been so unlucky. By the time we had finally learnt to read properly, there had been nothing left for… — Dai Sijie

I was carried away, swept along by the mighty stream of words pouring from the hundreds of pages. To me it was the ultimate book: once you had read it, neither your own life nor the world you lived in would ever look the same.

Four-Eyes’s parents probably wanted their son to be a writer. They must have thought it would be good for him to read books, even if he had to do so in secret.

I hadn’t suspected that a tiny glimmer of hope for the future could transform someone so utterly.