All of these stories deal with family, friendship, and growing up queer and having to stay closeted or be open and put up with homophobia. The gay protagonists are all messy and very unlikeable in their own ways, but they're well-written. Only one story has a non-queer protagonist, and he's also unlikeable due to how he treats his family, particularly his brother, who is queer. Overall, I really like this collection despite some upsetting moments of animal cruelty and homophobia.