The following version of this book was used to create the guide: So, Anthony Veasna. Afterparties. HarperCollins, 2021.

Anthony Veasna So's Afterparties is a collection of nine short stories. Each of the stories collected in the text is told from a distinct point of view, and employs its own formal and linguistic patterns. What links the stories is not only So's string of interconnected thematic explorations, but the characters' shared Khmer ethnicity, and the stories' common Central California setting. The following summary employs linear modes of explanation and the present tense.

In "Three Women of Chuck's Donuts," Sothy and her daughters, Tevy and Kayley, spend their evenings together at the family donut shop, Chuck's Donuts. When a mysterious customer begins frequenting the shop, the women make a series of hypotheses about his identity. By the end of the story, the women's experiences with each other, and the man, teach them about their pasts and the future.

In "Superking Son Scores Again," the boys on the local badminton team have seen their coach, Superking Son, as a hero and an idol for years. When Superking Son becomes distracted and detached, the boys must ask themselves if he is the role model they need.

In "Maly, Maly, Maly," cousins Ves and Maly kill time while their grandparents and aunts prepare for a reincarnation celebration. Maly’s mother's spirit has supposedly inhabited their cousin's new baby. Neither Maly nor Ves is initially invested in this event. Over the course of the story, Ves must reevaluate his and Maly's relationship to one another, to their family, and their culture and customs.

In "The Shop," the first person narrator moves home after college. He thinks he can help his father in his mechanic shop while searching for a job in his field. By the end of the story, the narrator realizes that his halfhearted investment in the Shop has brought shame to his father's name and life.

In "The Monks," Rithy spends several days at the local wat, or temple, after his father dies, and before leaving for basic training. His time at the wat is meant to help his father's spirit transition into the next life. However, Rithy's time there feels stagnant and pointless. It is not until he leaves that Rithy realizes new things about his father, himself, and his future.

In "We Would've Been Princes!," brothers Marlon and Bond attend their cousin's wedding afterparty. Over the course of the night, they must confront the difficulties that have shaped their past and their relationship, in order to imagine a new and better future for themselves.

In "Human Development," after graduating from Stanford University, Anthony feels discouraged about his life. While all of his other classmates are working in tech, he is preparing to teach a seemingly pointless Human Development course. Though he tries using sexual relationships as a distraction from self-reflection, by the end of the story, Anthony realizes that only he can create a future for himself.

In "Somaly Serey, Serey Somaly," Serey has been housing her relative Somaly's spirit for her entire life. She realizes that because of Somaly, she has been incapable of being herself. By the end of the story, she passes Somaly's necklace to Somaly's granddaughter in order to let go of the past, and pursue personal self-discovery.

In "Generational Differences," a mother writes an account from the past for her son. She recalls the tragedy she witnessed in 1989 while teaching at Cleveland Elementary, and how this event also impacted her son. At the end of her account, she tells her son that he does not have to carry all of her pain. He must simply understand that they are survivors.