Purple Clear Skies

I just finished rereading Cornelia Funke’s Dragon Rider, about a dragon and his human companion who seek a refuge for the world's last dragons. They have no choice but to visit Asif, a genie. Asif can become as large as the moon or as small as a grain of sand. His skin is blue as the evening sky and covered with a thousand eyes that reflect a thousand parts of the world. Asif knows the answer to every question in the world. But he will only answer if three conditions are met: the question must be asked by a human; it must consist of exactly seven words, and the question must never have been asked before, or the questioner will become Asif's servant for life. Funke was once asked where such ideas come from. Her answer was, “Everywhere and nowhere, from outside and inside. I have so many I won't be able to write them down in one lifetime.”