Little Raw Souls is an apt name for this collection of short stories from Colorado State University professor Steven Schwartz: Every stand-alone chapter pulls the reader into the psyche of a character charged with making complicated, emotionally trying decisions. Privy to each protagonist’s thoughts and actions, the reader can empathize with members of the diverse cast: an ex-writer seeking his estranged grandchild, a woman stranded at an airport and considering an affair, a widower falling in love against his will. Read slowly, one story at a time, and the book provides a revelatory—and sometimes uncomfortable—immersion into the multilayered personalities and complex choices that make up the human condition.