The Enigma of Room 622

by Joël Dicker

Nothing can help you feel less alone than to find someone more forlorn than yourself.

“Do I have the right to hate someone because I admire them so much?” “Yes. It’s called jealousy.”

“The man who can make you laugh can also make you live, for there is no finer feeling,” Sol had said to her one morning. “Why’s that?” she inquired, amused. “Because laughter is the strongest feeling of all, stronger than love and passion. Laughter is a form of perfection. We never regret it; we always experience it fully. When it’s over, we’re always satisfied—we want it to go on but we do not ask for more. Even the memory of laughter is pleasant.”