Jasper Fforde

"I've managed to bring the backlog down to a mere sixty-eight years,' she announced with some small sense of achievement. 'I hope to be able to start marking the papers of pupils who are still alive by the end of the decade."

"7. 3. 12. 31. 208: Reckless disrespect of the lightless hours will not be tolerated."

"The sky was like ebony and the only illumination was the harsh white light of the central streetlamp, which cast shadows so hard it seemed you might cut yourself on them."