are nervous, tender, lust-crazed, lovable outsiders who appear more real than the people of real life--and whose introverted erotic intensity might make rock stars, glamour models, and other outgoing types a little envious. They sometimes see their world in remarkable ways. But thanks to the author's narrative persuasiveness, we have no trouble understanding their outlook: their outlook instantly becomes ours. Their affections are wrapped up in idiosyncratic, subjective near-antagonisms that often give a deliciously madcap, gamelike tint to the libidinous proceedings, as the author shapes their wary mating dances into previously undiscovered types of erotic tension. Their magical interdependencies are unfurled by relentlessly present narrators, who glide seamlessly back and forth from the engagingly goofy to the searingly sexy. Paragraphs reinvent themselves brilliantly, making sudden sideways turns from desperate to rebellious and earnest to flippant and back. Each story's evolution takes us confidently past its peculiar milestones, progressing rhythmically through the deeply involving long sentences and the tersely witty, off-the-wall short ones--all in Stein's unflaggingly distinctive voice. Every surprising step rings true, and it all works beautifully. It isn't that Stein's characters are sexually captivating despite the weight of their personal awkwardness; it's that they're captivating because of it. In this collection, the author celebrates their insecurity as an avenue to erotic depth. And she does it differently each time--making this book, though blessed by its strong unifying elements, a richly varied assortment.