All of these stories were from the view points of various young women, who are all very desirable to men, apparently (lots of love affairs). I found all the characters and their desires very compelling. This quote is from one of these women thinking about her lover: She held the thought of Marcos in her mind, like a Saint Christopher medal, or a dream catcher, or maybe just a hidden flask of whiskey in her purse--something that made survival possible. 
 The only story I didn't care for was "That dance you do," about a kid's birthday party and all the work the young mom put into it; it's boring,at the end is a boring sentence about happy, warm feelings. She's the most happy of all the women; not that happy characters are boring, it's just...blah story. But all of the other stories were fun to read. I love the cover art.