This book is a collection of eleven interconnected short stories from the Dominican diaspora. It is a book centered on one extended family - the Bele?ns - across multiple generations. It is set in the fictional small town of Hidalpa - and Santo Domingo and Paterson and San Juan and Washington Heights, too. It is told in a style both utterly real and distinctly magical - and its stories explore machismo, mental health, family, and identity.