This collection presents characters in the midst of personal and national crises. We meet a failed poet who, envious of other people's wealth during the real-estate bubble, becomes an embezzler; a clavichordist whose dreams of art collapse under the obligations of marriage and fatherhood; and, in "Bronze," a sexually confused college freshman whose encounter with a stranger on a train leads to a revelation about his past and his future.

Ball wishes he could fly like Balloon, but when a boy arrives and sends Ball rolling, bouncing, and even soaring into the air, Balloon feels deflated.

"A sharp, biting, and irresistible debut about parties and ambition in New York City--introducing a talented Mr. Ripley for the digital age, with all the glitz and grit of Bright Lights, Big City. If you can make it here, you can make it anywhere. Louise Wilson is an expert at just barely making it. She's mastered the tricks and shortcuts that a penniless small-town girl needs to survive in New York City. When she meets the beautiful, wealthy, eccentric,...

Night after night, a young girl watches her mami set up a cot in the living room for guests in their Washington Heights apartment, like Raquel (who's boring) and Edgardo (who gets crumbs everywhere). She resents that they get the entire living room with a view of the George Washington Bridge, while all she gets is a tiny bedroom with a view of her sister (who snores). Until one night, no one comes, and it's finally her chance! But as it turns out,...

Barnacle is bored by the monotony of the tides, and envies the fish who swim freely--until an eel comes along.

Hola, soy una cabra. Las casas iban bien por aquí hasta que apareció Unicornio. ¿Y qué si él puede volar? ¿O hacer que lluevan magdalenas? ¿O convertir las cosas en oro? Pues genial. Yo también puedo hacer cosas geniales, como... ¡Oye! ¿Qué estás haciendo? ¿Por qué abres el libro? Él te va a decir lo genial que es. Y bla, bla, bla. Venga, adelante. Luego no digas que no te lo advertí. ¡Unicornio zopenco!