Dig

This mixed-genre collection of short stories, microfiction, and drama provides a kaleidoscope of modern human experience—from navigating fraught romantic relationships and definitions of masculinity, to dealing with the pull of family ties and the struggle to make one's way in the world. Featuring Latinx characters who are often caught between cultures, DIG explores themes of physical and emotional violence, human relationships, and the weight of politics, history, and culture on individuality and identity. Pathos and humor mix with frustration, revulsion, and dread to create an emotional rollercoaster that ultimately lands on a celebration of human resilience and perseverance.

The title story “Dig” presents an archaeologist navigating his cancer-stricken wife’s last days while unearthing his own childhood trauma. In the one-act play “Proxima b”, a Latina astronomer with an important discovery to convey can’t seem to get anyone at the observatory to listen to her–until she meets an older woman with a telescope in the parking lot. In “The Runner”, a young Latino husband and father is emasculated by casual racism and his wife’s attempts to assimilate, but his mojo is aroused by one of the most basic elements of his cultural heritage. These works and more challenge the reader with different perspectives on race, gender, and culture.