 Set mostly in Texas and the American Southwest, the stories sympathetically depict the blue-collar lives of oil riggers, railroad and steel construction workers, x-ray technicians, waitresses, and a con man who tries to buy Costa Rica and examine themes of multi-generational family dynamics, adolescence, and the tension between work and personal relationships.The book received wide acclaim from critics, who called it "a remarkably accomplished first collection" ("Kirkus Reviews"), "a breathtakingly haunting and magical tapestry of human emotion" ("Booklist"), and "a deep and haunting book" ("Harvard Review").