Yufan has always been told to “act like a girl”: learn the piano, stay quiet and dignified, wear skirts, and never be noisy or rough. Pressured by her mother and grandmother, she hides her true self and conforms to the image they demand.
Her world shifts when she discovers she is intersex—and that her mother performed a Daoist ritual during pregnancy to ensure a boy. As puberty arrives, Yufan realizes her body is not developing like other girls’, deepening her confusion and isolation.
Published shortly before Taiwan legalized same-sex marriage, this award-winning graphic novel offers an intimate portrait of one young woman’s exploration of gender, identity, and belonging. It confronts the weight of family expectations, the grip of tradition and religion, and the pain of social scrutiny. Seeking refuge, Yufan feels lost—until her cousin invites her to join a queer rights protest and attend a same-sex wedding slowing, a door to acceptance and solidarity opens.