Sisters and mothers, housewives and witches, the prophetess Cassandra and the Queen of the Britons Boudicca—in her debut collection of short stories, Gwen Kirby writes about women who often teeter on the brink of a nervous breakdown.

Each story here presents surprises: instructions for laying bathroom tiles turn into high tragedy, a restaurant review becomes a reflection on a less-than-successful marriage, and one of the most touching stories revolves around a stuffed kangaroo forgotten in a suitcase.

Kirby's bold, funny, and always human texts are built around women, but the experience of her heroines is universal: they are ready to confront an imperfect, and sometimes downright hostile, world with all the fury and love they can muster.