“I know,' said Erin, and described how she'd lately felt depressed in a new and scary way, which Paul also had felt lately and described as a sadness-based fear, immune to tone and interpretation, as if not meant for humans - more visceral than sadness, but unlike fear because it decreased heart rate and impaired the senses, causing everything to seem 'darker.”
The story centers on Paul, a writer in his late twenties, who drifts through a series of social encounters, romantic entanglements, and drug-fueled experiences in contemporary New York. The narrative shifts between the city's art and party scenes and a trip to Taipei, where he confronts his family background and cultural identity. Written in a detached, observational style, the book explores themes of alienation, the search for meaning, and the blurred lines between connection and isolation in modern urban life. more
“People also don't care about the daily comings and goings of diplomats and yet we must report it.”