Summary

In “Dream House as the Queen and the Squid,” Machado narrates a fable. A queen was lonely and looking for a friend, so her counselors brought her a squid. The two got along famously, until one night the squid looked into a room that was filled with screaming and the smell of death. Soon after, the queen became friends with a bear and forgot about the squid. The squid moved away, but soon received a letter from the queen, begging her to return. The squid refused because of what she had seen in the palace.

In “Dream House as Thanks, Obama,” Machado goes to see President Barack Obama speak in Iowa City. The day after she broke up with her girlfriend, the president announced his support for marriage equality.

In “Dream House as Void,” she feels an enormous sense of loss after the...