We love you Chrispina -- The empty, the empty, the empty -- Our mothers before them -- The evolution of my brother -- My days and nights of terror -- Why were they throwing bricks? -- You fell into the river and I saved you!

"A debut collection of stories that plunge readers into the tender and chaotic hearts of adolescent girls growing up in New York City, from celebrated poet and National Magazine Award nominee Jenny Zhang"--

"Centered on a community of immigrants who have traded their endangered lives as artists in China and Taiwan for the constant struggle of life at the poverty line in 1990s New York City, Zhang's exhilarating collection examines the many ways that family and history can weigh us down and also lift us up. From the young woman coming to terms with her grandmother's role in the Cultural Revolution to the daughter struggling to understand where her family ends and she begins, to the girl discovering the power of her body to inspire and destroy, these seven vibrant stories illuminate the complex and messy inner lives of girls struggling to define themselves. Fueled by Zhang's singular voice and sly humor, this collection introduces Zhang as a bright and devastating force in literary fiction"--