Between memory and reality there are awkward discrepancies

Eileen Chang

Whoever thinks he is objective must already be half drunk

Lu Xun

Life is an abyss. But so what?

Han Han

The best attributes of anyone or anything usually reside on the surface, which is where, in fact, all of us live out our lives

Ge Fei

Faced with the absurd reality of contemporary China, the writer cannot fully explore or express the possibilities of extreme beauty and extreme ugliness without resorting to science fiction

Chen Qiufan

I tried. I put everything into being an exceptional student. But those things are like water cast out in the desert, they evaporate quickly. Whenever I started something, I would picture its inevitable ending. An apple becomes pips in the trash

A Yi

Memory comes from forgetting

Song Aman

Where there’s life, death is inevitable. Dying’s easy; it’s living that’s hard. The harder it gets, the stronger the will to live. And the greater the fear of death, the greater the struggle to keep on living

Mo Yan

In reading Western science fiction, Chinese readers discover the fears and hopes of Man, the modern Prometheus, for his destiny, which is also his own creation. Perhaps Western readers can also read Chinese science fiction and experience an alternative Chinese modernity and be inspired to imagine an alternative future

Xia Jia

Besides the noble art of getting things done, there is the noble art of leaving things undone. The wisdom of life consists in the elimination of non-essentials.

Lin Yutang

The ten thousand things, the grass as well as the trees, while they live are tender and supple. When they die they are rigid and dry

Thus the hard and the strong are the companions of death. The tender and the delicate are the companions of life. Therefore he who in arms is strong will not conquer

the Daodejing

In truth, it is I who have defiled myself, for one’s self is one’s own fiercest enemy

Ding Ling

Mere existence is already the result of incredible luck. Such was the case on Earth in the past, and such has always been the case in this cruel universe

Liu Cixin

He was half-afraid that all the rude things he had been silently saying would come popping out of his mouth

Yan Ge

Every person’s heart is an island, trapped by water, sequestered from the world

Ge Fei

Underneath the hole is another hole. Do you dare go down?

Can Xue

It is not often that one has the opportunity to observe the extinction of an entire civilisation

Lao She

I loathe reason. Reason is the sort of rubbish you can indulge in when life is sweet, like love and honour. I totally reject it.

Chen Xiwo

My pen is alight and my body aflame. Until both burn down to ash, my love and my hate will remain here in the world

Ba Jin

The moment I was bitten, I died and became another thing. Now I am loitering on the other shore of the Styx, listening to the past from beyond its waves

A Que

It is a long and painful process to see oneself clearly, as is the process of returning to one’s childhood

Shen Yang