People there only dream that it is China, because if you are Chinese you can never let go of China in your mind.

Whenever I'm with my mother, I feel as though I have to spend the whole time avoiding land mines.

Why do you have to use me to show off? If you want to show off, then why don't you learn to play chess." - Ch. 5

It's both rebellion and conformity that attack you with success.

You must think for yourself, what you must do. If someone tells you, then you are not trying. -An-mei

I have a writer's memory, which makes everything worse than maybe it actually was.

You should think about your character. Know where you are changing, how you will be changed, what cannot be changed back again.