This book is proof good things come in small packages. Each short story (and some are only a page long) is chock full of vivid visual imagery, decisively descriptive language, and multi-layered meaning. Stout Mama is in her pre "When I Am Old, I Will Wear Purple" stage, but you know she'll be sporting loud lavenders later on. She's the kind of woman we'd like to emulate or evolve into, and Ms. James has the kind of adjectival accuracy we all envy. Cherish this woman and this book.