One time, as the cold wind blew and she kept watch over the playground, Aomame realized she believed in God. It was a sudden discovery, like finding, with the soles of your feet, solid ground beneath the mud.

“Of course, reading novels was just another form of escape. As soon as he closed…”

“Whenever she felt like crying, she would instead become angry—at someone else o…”

“He had that feeling he remembered from childhood when he opened a new textbook …”

“It's good when food tastes good, it's kind of like proof you're alive.”