In this collection of poems, Williams employs elements of both the narrative and surrealistic lyric—addressing subjects as diverse as family, alienation, political quandary, and artistic desire—in order to craft a darkly humorous and generally hard-hitting vision of the current state of contemporary America. In the words of Bob Hicok: "This is not the misanthrope’s attack but the lover’s hope for something better and true: a genuine self, a sustaining culture."