This was 26 of Gabriel Garcia Marquez's short stories in chronological order of their original publication originally in Eyes of a Blue Dog, Big Mama's Funeral, and The Incredible and Sad Tale of lnnocent Eréndira and Her Heartless Grandmother.  I kept this by my bed for a while reading one or two a night before I slept.  Because apparently I didn't think me dreams were weird enough already?  I don't know, but the book seriously gave me some crazy dreams.  The stories as Marquez's trademark magical realism, though many are more surreal and out there than others.  Especially the earlier ones.  The book as a whole is very dark, filled with death and suffering and loneliness.  Certainly what one expects from Marquez, though here it seemed quite amplified.  Like he packed the same despair into a single short story as he usually does into a book.  Despite the sadness and darkness or it, I loved this collection.  The translation was good, I rarely found myself guessing if that word was the one the author intended.  And the stories were certainly worth it for the spark to my imagination if nothing else.