Born into an impoverished family, Siǔ-Moiinterprets her fate through the lens of a lifetime spent in different kitchens and, in twenty-one dishes, shares stories of her misfortunes, attachments, affections, and notable life experiences.

Regret over her disinterest as a young girl in her grandmother Siǔ-Moi’s tales of her own difficult and capricious life inspires Chang Chih-Hsin three decades later to sift through and revisit her remembrances of these stories and then weave them into an “inspired by true events” novel. Siǔ-Moi, a loving tribute and belated “sorry” to her grandmother, opens an emotion-filled window into the world experienced by many women born into poverty and hardship in early twentieth-century Taiwan.

Centered around the various kitchens she’d worked in, the narrative shares important memories and relationships in the life of protagonist Siǔ-Moi in parallel with twenty-one meaningful dishes. The first of these, delicious chicken soup made in her adoptive family’s threadbare kitchen, frames memories of her ill mum and wartime scarcity and marks the start of a lifetime of cooking.

To escape a marriage arranged by her adoptive father, Siǔ-Moi returns to her birth family at sixteen and learns to pickle vegetables and prepare complicated dishes. Two years later, she is married and responsible to care for her parents-in-law and her husband’s siblings as well. Then, after her husband takes work overseas, she continues cooking three daily meals for her extended family while caring for her young children. Even after her kids marry and she has daughters-in-law to make her meals, she continues to cook as an expression of love.

This saga spotlights the unjust treatment of women in traditional society. Siǔ-Moi, unschooled and constrained by contemporary social mores, can only select from the choices given her. While imperfect, her determination and goodness bring wisdom. Her loving devotion to home and family mirrors the experience of many women in real life. Siǔ-Moi’s path in life helped create what we are today and help frame tomorrow’s possibilities.