Summary

THE MOSUO SISTERS is a tale of two sisters caught in the whirlwind of China’s breakneck modernization. Juma and Latso, young women from one of the world’s last remaining matriarchal societies, are thrust into the worldwide economic downturn when they lose their jobs in Beijing. Left with few options, they return home to their remote village in the foothills of the Himalayas. But home is no longer what it was, as growing exposure to the modern world irreparably alters the provocative traditions of the Mosuo. Determined to keep their family out of poverty, one sister sacrifices her dream of an education and stays home to farm, while the other leaves to try her luck in city—changes in fortune that test each sister in unexpected ways. Ultimately, though, it’s the sisters’ relationship with one another that hangs in the balance as they struggle to navigate the vast cultural and economic divides that define contemporary China.