His prose oscillates back and forth across time and space, invoking countless unfamiliar butterfly names. All manner of gorgeous butterflies spring from the pages of his book. Once the reader surmounts the initial language barrier, he can almost hear the rhythms and see the images of Wu's narrative. Wu says, "It takes aesthetic talent to convey beauty.
然而吳明益又是一個高明的情境描述者，即使文中出入的時空複雜、一個個陌生的蝶名、一隻隻色彩斑斕的蝴蝶飛來飛去，讀者一旦跨越文字的隔閡，吳明益的文筆自有一種音韻的律動，彷彿就在你耳邊生動地口述，畫面瞬乎眼前，栩栩如生。