"Haunting . . . mysterious. . . . These spare narrations carry surprising weight. . . . Lopez leaves all the right things unsaid, and the silence resonates." --Time

"The purity and power of Mr. Lopez's imagery combine to give the reader a sure, steady footing." --The New York Times Review of Books

"Enchanting . . . challenging . . . rewarding . . . a rich, subtly moving collection. . . . [Lopez's] sublime stories limn the soul of nature and the soul of humanity with equal skill, conviction and reverence." --The Plain Dealer

"Each of the dozen stories . . . surrounds and encloses elements transformed, like a geode. Protected inside are fables of grace and faith, like lovely quartz crystals or beautiful bands of agate." --The Boston Globe

"Lopez succeeds in awakening our fleeting yearning and hidden feelings." -The Denver Post

"Lopez has such great narrative skill and uses his words so carefully the simple intensity is often nearly overwhelming." -The Oregonian

"[Lopez's] stories' fierce beauty lingers in the mind's eye like a foreign sunset." -The Atlanta Journal-Constitution

"Lopez displays his skill for description in writing that's precise, gorgeous, [and] arresting." -Rocky Mountain News