These are stories that ambush the reader with Elison's signature style: a drolly disturbing admixture of dry irony and simmering rage. 'El Hugé' reveals how small-town, small-time teens can accomplish Big Ugly Things on their own. 'Big Girl chronicles the media’s fascination with the towering anxieties of a sixty-foot tall teen. 'The Pill', the collection's previously unpublished centerpiece, celebrates a “miracle cure” for obesity that sends society to a grimly delightful new utopia. 'With Such People in It', also new to readers, welcomes us to a brave new world where cowardice is a virtue. 'Gone with Gone with the Wind' is a non-fiction analysis of privilege, denial, literary classics, and personal honesty. 'Afterimage' is a one-way trip into a VR world that’s more “real” than our own.

Also included is 'Guts', which is about just what its title suggests, as well this volume's characteristically frank and thought-provoking Outspoken Interview.