International tax lawyer Luis Villalobos is lured to the tiny island of Cura?ao by the promise of a fast track to the cusp of an already stellar career. But the paradise we expect is so rarely the paradise we find.

'The Miracle of Small Things' is a novel in stories, a portrait of the power of place in our definition of self.

Author Guilie Castillo Oriard is a Mexican import herself who transferred to Cura?ao "for six months"-and, twelve years and a magical story of love later, is still there.