Chen Jiatong’s inspiration for the story came from a childhood vision he had of a “tall, milk-white figure” standing outside his bedroom window, with two foxlike ears and emitting a silver glow. His novel, the work of six years and translated by Jennifer Feeley, is an anthropomorphic delight, full of peril, friendship and mysticism. The Dilah series now runs to six volumes in China, and one hopes that English-language editions of the sequels will follow, not least because this first book ends on an unfinished note.
