SORRY THIS IS SO LATE my blog finally started working
I found this whole “book” (I guess we can call it that) super confusing. It seems to be a bunch of chapters that have little connection to each other. As you read you think “okay now we’re talking about the guy from the other stories daughter” and just wonder how this could be out together as one story. When I read it, I got a little lost. I won’t be able to talk about the whole story as a whole, but there was one part that really stuck out to me.
In Chapter 1 on page 528 it says “Truth becomes fiction when the fiction’s true; Real becomes not-real when the unreal’s real.” Shiyun had the stone and the monk snatched it away from him in front of an archway reading “the Land of Illusion.” That scene seems to mark a transition to the next part of the story.
Earlier on in the story, the Stone said something about romantic stories all being set mainly in two dynasties, giving it the feeling that they could have an aspect of fiction to them. The Stone doesn’t have a time frame because the romance could take place at any given point in history. One should not believe that it cannot happen in the current time. Giving them a time would limit the relatability (yeah I know that’s not a word but I don’t know what to use there) of the stories. The truth would become fiction.
Truth is not easy to understand, but when it is understood there is a “click” that makes you realize how important it is. So even a fictional story can make a connection and “click” with you, suddenly making it real. Little things like emotions and simple moments of understanding could change everything about a story. If the is none of that, even a true story can seem fake. You have to give life to it on your own. The author did his/her job and now it is time for you to meet him halfway; take what he has given you and make it real for yourself.
–Ariella