The Last Gladiolus is a literary celebration of the quiet acceptance, sacrifice, and dedication to family that characterize life in a floricultural community in southern Taiwan.

Set against the backdrop of a local Farmers Association, the eight interconnected stories of The Last Gladiolus are a microcosm of life on the family farms and nurseries that form the backbone of Taiwan’s floriculture industry. The story titles incorporate the stocking codes of various plant varieties, supplying symbolic representations of the fates of the characters in each story.

Faced with an election campaign at the Farmers Association, the protagonist of <FY004 Hearts and Minds> must make compromises for the sake of his son’s future. In <FY057 B-Grade Goods>, a son leaves university and returns to the countryside after his father falls ill, becoming a “vegetative branch” by quietly sacrificing himself to support the family nursery. A blight strikes split-leaf philodendrons in <FY009 Rust>, reflecting the growing “splits” in a fracturing family. Oppressed by a domineering mother-in-law, the female protagonist of <FH293 Twilight> is no better off than the sunflowers the family grows, constrained by wires that maintain their form.

<FR408 Damaged Rose> dissects the joys and challenges of marriage, as inseparable as the thorns and blossoms of a rose bush. <FH230 Fragrant-by-Night> releases its fragrance at night, a metaphor for the connection the protagonist feels to his close relations. Horticultural techniques such as topping and the use of grow lights represent human intervention in the natural growth process; in <FC301 Sun in Darkness> these techniques become a metaphor for the rules of society that regulate the growth of the individual. The eponymous flower appears throughout <FG118 The Last Gladiolus>, serving as the livelihood of the protagonist, and symbolizing the tireless sacrifices he makes for his family.

Born into a floricultural family, author Chen Erh-Yuan took over the family nursery from his ailing father immediately after graduating from university. In addition to inspiring The Last Gladiolus, his experiences lend this entire collection a real-world setting and rich emotional palette that ring true to the realities faced by farming families. Linked by common characters and interconnected plots, these eight stories weave a vivid and intricate tapestry of rural life in southern Taiwan.