Gather initial thoughts and broad opinions about the book.

1. The novel’s afterwords and translator’s notes reveal that the entire story is a contemporary work of fiction, rather than a rediscovered historical text. How did this final reveal change your overall impression of the story you had just read? Did it make the relationship between Aoyama and Chi-chan feel more or less authentic to you?

2. What did you think of the novel’s portrayal of a relationship trying to survive across a colonial power divide? How does it compare to other stories with similar themes, such as E. M. Forster’s classic A Passage to India or David Henry Hwang’s M. Butterfly?

3. How would you describe the emotional core of this book? Did you find it to be more of a story about a complex friendship, a culinary journey, a political critique of colonialism, or something else entirely?

Encourage readers to connect the book’s themes and characters with their personal experiences.

1. Mishima tells Aoyama, “There is nothing in the world more difficult to refuse than self-righteous goodwill.” Think about a time you’ve witnessed or experienced well-intentioned help that didn’t quite land right. How might you relate this experience to the story’s ideas on the difference between helping and understanding?

2. Aoyama describes Chi-chan’s polite, unreadable smile as a “Noh mask.” In what kinds of situations, professional or social, have you felt the need to wear a similar “mask” to protect your feelings or navigate a difficult power dynamic?

3. Chi-chan approaches her arranged marriage and family obligations with a sense of pragmatism that Aoyama finds difficult to understand. Can you think of a time in your life when you made a practical decision that might have seemed strange or compromising to an outsider?

4. What role does food play in how you connect with new people or places? Do you share Aoyama’s belief that experiencing local cuisine is a key to understanding a culture, and what have your own culinary adventures taught you?

5. Has a book or a conversation ever revealed a “blind spot” in your own perspective, similar to the way Mishima’s critique finally opens Aoyama’s eyes? What was that experience of realization like for you?

6. Aoyama’s apology to Chi-chan in the final chapter is very specific: she acknowledges her own arrogance without asking for forgiveness. What do you believe are the essential ingredients for a truly meaningful apology, and how did this scene align with or challenge your ideas?

Examine the book’s relevance to societal issues, historical events, or cultural themes.

1. How does the novel illustrate the subtle, everyday effects of Japan’s colonial assimilation policies in 1930s Taiwan? Beyond major historical events, where did you see the tension between Japanese and Taiwanese cultures play out in the characters’ daily lives?

2. The book is structured as a series of translations and reinterpretations of a single story across many decades. What does this suggest about the nature of history and whose stories get to be told? How does this connect to current conversations about re-examining historical narratives?

3. Hiyoshi Sagako’s introduction describes the wansheng as “homeless, casteless ghosts” who belong fully to neither Japan nor Taiwan. What does her perspective add to the novel’s exploration of identity? Where do we see similar “in-between” identities in the world today, and what unique challenges or insights might they face?

Dive into the book’s structure, characters, themes, and symbolism.

1. What is the effect of the novel’s metafictional frame, with all its introductions, afterwords, and conflicting notes? How does this structure support the theme of storytelling as a form of historical reckoning?

2. The study guide compares the novel’s use of unreliable narration to challenge official histories with Salman Rushdie’s Midnight’s Children. In what ways does Aoyama’s narration prove to be unreliable? How does the author use Aoyama’s “blind spot” to build a critique of the colonial mindset?

3. How does the recurring motif of food evolve throughout the story? Think about its role in early chapters, like the search for kue-tsí, compared to its function in the final scenes with the tshài-bué-thng and the mitsumame.

4. What is the significance of Chi-chan’s “Noh mask”? How does this symbol function to illustrate the emotional labor required of a colonized person and the fragility of a friendship built on unequal ground?

5. What purpose does Mishima serve in the narrative? How does his character offer a different perspective on colonialism than either Aoyama or Chi-chan?

6. Do you believe the reconciliation in the final chapter, “Mitsumame,” actually happened? How does the possibility that Aoyama fictionalized this ending change the novel’s ultimate message about connection and forgiveness?

Encourage imaginative and creative connections to the book.

1. If you were in charge of adapting Taiwan Travelogue for the screen, which of the many meals described in the book would you choose to feature most prominently in the trailer, and why? What would that single dish communicate about the film’s tone and central themes?

2. Imagine Aoyama and Chi-chan could send one another a single postcard 10 years after the events of the novel, in 1949. What image would be on the front of each postcard, and what short message would each woman write on the back?

3. Picture yourself as a literary translator tasked with creating a new edition of this book. Which of the many paratextual documents would you choose to put first, and why? How would starting with Chi-chan’s 1977 “Noodles” note, for instance, change the reading experience?