Kane Xu entrances the reader into a traditional Chinese household, introducing the cuisine and describing the customs, painting the picture of a warm, loving family. In a brilliant extended metaphor, she also develops a comparison between her grandmother’s stinky tofu and her uncle’s case of Down Syndrome. Though both may seem repulsive or unfriendly at first sight, when you delve deeper, one may find that they are both in fact, amazing and lovable.

The author mentions something towards the end that reminds me of my own family, back when my grandmother had children in 1960s China, also known as the time when the country delved back into a time resembling the medieval era. Xu states, “Even now, it is common for Chinese households to abandon their children if they have disorders.” This one quote demonstrates that the protagonist’s grandmother possessed so much love for her children, that even against the social norms, she kept a defective one and nurtured him endlessly. Though my grandmother regrets it today, it was a necessity, especially back then, to abandon defective children or even daughters if there were too many mouths to feed. An aunt on my family tree had been abandoned as a child, or else the family would starve. That is what makes this story so incredible; the writer merges a miraculous story of unconditional motherly love, and a symbol of her own culture, the stinky tofu.