Week forty of Lite Reads comes to a close as we finish the selection Everything Under Heaven by Anya Ow. During the week, there have been questions as food for thought on social media as people had the chance to read it and think about it. Before I announce the next Lite Reads selection (May 26), I will be sharing my own thoughts here. Like our previous selection, this story was chosen with Asian Heritage Month in mind (Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month in the USA). Spoilers ahead for those who haven’t finished reading the story yet.

Everything Under Heaven by Anya Ow is “a Peranakan wuxia short story about dinosaurs” that is filled with adventure, fantasy, and fabulous cuisine. Kee and Sarnai are our main characters, two women from different cultures who meet while they’re each on their own journey. This fantasy world is a part of Uncanny Magazine’s dinosaur issue, and the people from this setting see these dinosaurs as dragons. Kee is a chef looking to try out cooking every kind of dragon she can find. Sarnai is a huntress and warrior who seeks a dragon that killed a child to get justice for the child’s family. They team up for the sake of safety when they find each other in the wilderness, but they find friendship (with the barest hint of more) with each other as they each work on their individual honour quests.

Food is one of the most important things to Kee’s personal history, personality, and culture. Recipes are passed down between women in families, and made with time, love, and any ingredients that exist “under heaven.” I really connected to this aspect of the story. Seeing the way that food connects to family and to memories is something I relate to on a deeper level, and I love reading stories that show how much food can impact our lives. Seeing Kee using unfamiliar food (dragons) to connect herself to the memory of her distant mother (Dragon Ming) was incredibly moving. I have felt the deep loss of a family member passing without leaving behind recipes, so this truly touched me.

Kee’s relationships with each of her parents are vital to the story. Her mother is absent, and she longs for that sense of connection to the woman she barely knows. Her father is physically present in her life, but his mental faculties slip away with age. We get to see unusually complex parent-child relationships for a short story, and it’s genuinely wonderful. We witness the ways that we love our parents, the ways we honour them when they’re gone, but we also witness the ways that their absence can cause profound pain and complexity in the love that doesn’t always exist with parents who are very present and involved. The way Kee uses her own experiences with love to honour a mother she didn’t get to experience love with was incredibly moving.

Both Kee and Sarnai come from different cultures, and it is fascinating seeing this play out. We get to see the preconceptions each has of the other’s background, as well as the ways those preconceptions break down as they get to know each other. It’s also beautiful to see the ways that they can act and react in ways that are complementary, and I love seeing them getting to be themselves with each other. The cultural exchange feels so natural and healthy here.

Overall, Everything Under Heaven by Anya Ow was fun, exciting, fascinating, and moving. When I read that it was “a Peranakan wuxia short story about dinosaurs” I was really excited and curious, but it honestly surpassed any expectations I had. It easily could have turned out gimmicky, but it came out as a beautifully thought out fantasy adventure story, deeply rooted in the ideas of cultural tradition. I look forward to reading more from Anya Ow after this, and I know I’ll be recommending this story to anyone who will listen.

I hope everyone who participated by reading the story and following along on social media enjoyed the story. If you have more thoughts to add, please feel free to comment on this post, or anywhere on The Feminist Bibliothecary’s social media. Week forty-one begins tomorrow, May 26, with a brand new short story selection, a final one chosen with AHM in mind!