3.5 stars. (#partner @randomhouse @litandlatte) • Sabrina & Corina by Kali Fajardo-Anstine is the second short story collection I’ve read this year. I do this thing, with short story collections, where I’ll read a couple, and then never pick the book up again. I don’t know why. That was never a problem with this book, though. I would finish a story and immediately want to see what came next.

These stories revolve around Latina women of indigenous descent who live in Colorado. They take place in the fictional town of Saguarita and real places like Denver, and the sense of place is strong. I pictured Saguarita as a Durango-like setting but I’m not sure what it was actually based on.

These stories explore the cycles of violence surrounding these women, how it feels to watch your neighborhood gentrify around you until it is unrecognizable, what it’s like to be a single parent or be raised by a single parent, and more. My favorite story of the bunch, Remedies, is about a girl who keeps getting lice when she has to visit with her half-brother. Her mother feels some sort of obligation to the boy, despite not even being in a relationship with his father anymore.

These stories are insightful, poignant, and moving. I highly recommend picking up this collection. I’ll be thinking about it for awhile