When the novel begins in 1937, Pearl is a 21-year-old recent college graduate who lives with her family in the cosmopolitan port city of Shanghai. Although pretty and intelligent, Pearl believes her parents favor her charming younger sibling, May. Both sisters pose for artists who create calendar advertising. As a result, they are local celebrities with their own pocket money. While Pearl is an obedient daughter, she dismisses much of what her parents say about duty and respect. Instead, she enjoys Shanghai’s nightlife as an affluent young urbanite.

Pearl’s life changes radically after a series of tragedies leave her with no option but to flee into an arranged marriage in America. While Pearl, as the eldest sibling, shoulders the responsibility of caring for her sister and finding a way out of their dilemma, she eventually becomes discouraged by the drudgery of her life. Unlike May, Pearl doesn’t venture out of Los Angeles’ Chinatown and fears what the government might do because of her unauthorized status. When tragedy strikes again, and Pearl’s daughter flees back to China to join the Communist effort there, Pearl finally finds the courage to assert herself. As the book ends, she is about to fly to Hong Kong to reclaim her daughter and find a new sense of purpose in her life.