Introduction

tán: to talk
恋爱 liàn ài: (romantic) love
谈恋爱 tán liàn ài: to be dating; to fall in love

This is the story of the love lives of Chinese women, told through four generations of one family. Out of this story emerge six voices, told through their own words, all shaped by the shifts in politics, society and culture that defined and continue to define their lives.

All these stories are true, but the family names have been changed in order to protect the people concerned.