Born in the Year of the Snake, May Tang is like flowing water-when she should have more fire. A dreamer, she will never be sensible and obedient like her elder sister Jie Jie, or clever like her brother Peter, studying in Australia. But her parents are worried by rumoured events in China, and May finds herself on her way to a new life in Australia. It is so different that May wonders if she will ever be able to love this new country.