The sixteen stories in Tracy Daugherty's fourth collection of short fiction explore American deserts—real geographical spaces as well as metaphorical areas of emptiness and possibility. The stories are mostly set in the desert Southwest, though the concluding novella, which features two Texas exiles, is set in New York City. Several of the stories deal with stars and astronomers; many feature architects and the built environment. Daugherty's characters struggle with asthma, night fears, inertia, and the sense of being isolated in a world full of people.