Sympathy for Wild Girls: Stories

by Demree McGhee

A debut collection of surreal, skin-piercing stories about the boundless longing of queer Black women


In Sympathy for Wild Girls, young Black women yearn for intimacy and search for it on turbulent ground. Navigating a subtly warped version of our world, where social mores loom like shadows and bigotry shape-shifts, Demree McGhee’s characters track the prints of their desire and pain to the edges of reality, finding refuge in unlikely places. Can they survive the chasms lurking in our common notions of “girlhood”—considering their heightened peril as queer women of color?


A runaway seeks shelter from violence with a pack of wild coyotes. A young woman falls into a hypocritical crew of white Christian YouTube influencers. A mother witnesses her daughter’s prophecy about the end of the world come true. A group of shoplifters lose themselves in their quest for cheap lipstick and cheaper fame. Fighting self-loathing and societal abuse, McGhee’s characters chase abandon on their own terms—embracing their feral strength and ugliest truths, howling at the moon to be known.

Genres: Short Stories, Fiction, Magical Realism, Queer, LGBT, Fantasy, Feminism

210 pages, Kindle Edition

Published May 6, 2025

Reviews

[Danika at The Lesbrary · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a collection of stories about queer Black women that is going to live in my head for a long time.

If you love Carmen Maria Machado, especially Her Body and Other Parties, you need to pick up Sympathy for Wild Girls. They’re both feminist, fabulist/magical realist stories that get under your skin. Some are heart-achingly sympathetic, like falling in love with your straight rich white best friend—who will never acknowledge anything between you but friendship, and yet says her boyfriend is threatened by your relationship. Others are far from most people’s lives, like a school nurse whose grief over her girlfriend dying makes her lose touch with reality and start experimenting on animals with a kid at her school in an attempt to find the secret to bring someone back from the dead.

Several deal with very intense, weird, undefined childhood friendships between girls, or complicated relationships between women that are left without clarity—if there’s any universal queer woman experience, this is probably it. There’s so much yearning and a lot of near misses. My heart went out to one character who is so confused about the judgment she experiences as a queer girl who hasn’t yet realized she’s queer—but her peers seem to sniff it out and isolate her regardless.

Some stories have an arc, while others are more like vignettes: snapshots into someone’s life. They’re always always visceral, evocative, and having to do with the body. These are the kind of stories that you can really dig into and interpret: I would love to have studied them in a class, because it feels like there’s so much packed into just a few pages.

Content warnings: Animal harm and death, eating disorders, homophobia, child harm, kidnapping, homophobia, racism, and violence.

Full review at the Lesbrary.

[Ashley · Rating 5 out of 5]

JEEEESUS DEMREE THIS IS VICIOUS BUT IN THE BEST WAY

Coherent review to come

[Book Riot Community]

This is one of Book Riot’s Best Books of 2025:

This collection of stories about queer Black women is going to live in my head for a long time. If you love Carmen Maria Machado's work, you need to pick up Sympathy for Wild Girls. They both excel at writing feminist, fabulist/magical realist stories that get under your skin. These stories explore intense, undefined relationships between women; the horror at having a body (especially a racialized, sexualized body); and the strange paths grief can lead you down. Visceral, evocative, and thought-provoking, these are stories that benefit from discussion and deep reading. This collection deserves to be recognized as a new classic.

- Danika Ellis

[Amelia · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was spectacular. A vicious, violent, haunting, profound collection of stories centering Black queer women.

I love short form lesbian psychological horror!!! (if you can call this that, which I am).

[Gabrielle · Rating 3 out of 5]

not my favorite short story collection. many of these stories were less than 10 pages long and blended together in character and theme. it seemed like nearly every story was about the same thing, so i couldn’t separate them in my mind. the only one that really sticks out to me is the one about the christian youtube cult. otherwise i immediately forgot the stories.

demree mcghee writes wonderfully and creatively about girlhood, motherhood, and queerness, though. she has some wonderful lines that stuck out to me:

“Kissing girls felt like catching a ghost I could see, could touch.”

[Nadya · Rating 4 out of 5]

gay n vicious

[Sam · Rating 3 out of 5]

My Selling Pitch:
Collection of short stories mostly about a semi-closeted black lesbian lusting after problematic white girls. Skippable.

Pre-reading:
If there’s one thing about me, it’s that I’ll pick up a book just for the cover. She's S T U N N I N.

(obviously potential spoilers from here on)
Thick of it:
Sympathy

3/5
———-
Throwing Up

Why am I Hilary, lol?

Interesting thought. Because I think we all thought we would be different afterwards, and the response to that is, well, what did you want to change? And I don’t know what I wanted to change with it. Maybe just the validation that I am attractive and worthy of lust because I spend so much time picking apart my appearance, but like lol def only made it worse!

4/5 more please
———-
Scratching

2/5
———-
Even Here
A summer book

1/5 I didn’t like that one at all or get it
———-
Thinning

4/5 no girl has ever had an original experience around food lmao
———-
Exchange

Our gen is so burnt out.

2/5
———-
Pollen
These stories remind me a lot of Come and Get It.

I feel like this collection is mostly black lesbian lusts after problematic white girls
1/5
———-
She Is

3/5 like I get it. It’s just kinda obvious and miserable and done to death.
———-
Nico

1/5 men are so annoying.
———-
Butterfruit

Why’s it bad that the trees grow peaches?

Like she's only spoken to to be corrected, but like who cares. Why do you need attention 24/7?

1/5
———-
Be Good

4/5 make it a whole book.
———-
Valerie

Every book is bears.

2/5 I just don’t get it.
———-
Swallow

1/5 I’m getting a little frustrated with these vignettes. I need a bit more structure to them.
———-
Better Days

1/5
———-
A Matter

3/5

Post-reading:
I don’t know, this was fine. I don’t think there’s a single must read story in here. The three that I liked, I would’ve preferred if they were developed into books. I don’t think they were satisfying short stories. I think the strongest, most interesting one was Be Good. I think that could’ve been developed into a successful character study with religious and gender commentary.

The rest are just kinda meh. I love a short story collection, but I need those stories to have clear arcs. The majority of these felt very musey and unfinished. They felt like vignettes developed around one banger line and then abandoned when the author ran out of steam. With short stories, you really have to have punchy characterization. These all felt like the same perspective and characters over and over again. If you fuck with surrealist magical realism, you might get on better with these then I did.

I think it’s a 2.5 that I’ll round up to a three. It’s not something I would discourage people from reading, but it’s also not something I would recommend. There’s too many stories in the collection that I didn’t get. I got a little frustrated with them, wondering what the point was. And once you trigger a negative emotion in me, it’s pretty hard for the book to come back. It’s doable. It’s been done. This just wasn't the book for that. The cover’s beautiful, though, and I would try the author again if she puts out a novel.

Who should read this:
Short story fans
Surrealist magical realism fans
Queer short story fans

Ideal reading time:
Summer

Do I want to reread this:
Nope.

Would I buy this:
No, and I’m bummed because I love that cover.

Similar books:
* Death Valley by Melissa Broder-surrealist magical realism short story
* Come and Get It by Kiley Reid-lit fic character study, queer, social commentary
* Nineteen Claws and a Black Bird by Augustina Bazterrica-edgy short story collection, horror
* Mouth by Puloma Ghosh-edgy short story collection, horror
* Stranger Things Happen by Kelly Link-edgy short story collection, horror
* Her Body and Other Parties by Carmen Maria Machado-edgy short story collection, horror
* Nightbitch by Rachel Yoder-magical realism mommy horror

[Ren Parks · Rating 5 out of 5]

Reads like a series of nightmares. Surreal and gnawing. Sweaty and nauseating.

In this hollowing collection of short stories, Demree McGhee follows in the footsteps of Toni Morrison and Audre Lorde in continuing the conversation of what it means to embody a Black, feminine, sexual sense of self in a society built on the degradation of Black womanhood and female desire.

Privileged to have gotten an early look at this debut collection, and I’ll be keeping an eager eye out for more of McGhee’s work! ✨

[Orion R · Rating 3 out of 5]

A great short story collection: all of the stories are actually short, and they all blend reality with fantasy in novel ways. These stories explore motherhood, girlhood and how racism pulls families apart and turns the world into a strange and hostile place.

Would rank higher, except for this trope: Across multiple stories, Black protagonists keep falling for the same kind of snobby blonde white girl — while seeing her whiteness as both superior to herself and more beautiful. This came up in like half of the stories and became a little repetitive and off-putting.

[Sejal Spicely · Rating 5 out of 5]

Sympathy is masterfully crafted and beautifully written; it lingers in the mind like smoke long after reading its final word. McGhee centers an urgent and necessary perspective about the dangerous world that Black women are forced to inhabit. Its stories contain a harrowing series of quotidian apocalypses, all darkly atmospheric and with an air of tragedy—even and perhaps especially the ones that end triumphantly. This is a stunning debut to what I expect will be a long and incredible career

[Gabriella · Rating 2 out of 5]

This one wasn’t for me, and that’s okay!!! I think my friend and frequent buddy reader, Adriana, is rubbing off on me with their hatred of short story collections. There is nothing wrong with Demree McGhee’s Sympathy for Wild Girls, and I feel like in another mindset, I could’ve enjoyed it!

Part of why I think it might be a me problem vs. the author’s problem is because McGhee’s collection often reminded me of Lesley Nneka Arimah’s What It Means When a Man Falls from the Sky, which is one of my favorite short story collections ever! It’s funny though, because while both stories share their moments of surrealism, I struggled to connect with those stories in Sympathy for Wild Girls.

My favorites here are a bit more straightforward, where I can enjoy the unique Oklahoma landscape, and latch onto why the characters are connecting with one another (outside of the fact that it would make for a quirky short story topic.) “Even Here, There I Am” is a moving story about how moving on rarely changes people in the ways they hope, and “Be Good” felt incredibly connective and like something you could just sink into. “Thinning” is about the way desirability impacts us all, by making us feel less deserving of love or quality treatment by the world—and I am always a sucker for lesbian sports connections. “Valerie” was also fun as someone who also expected lesbian couplings to be transcendent or magical, only to find out that I might just be ace and that’s okay!!!

As I always say, I don’t quite have the range for magical realism. However, that’s not always true—I’ve come to realize that for things to start being spooky, I need everything else to be really clear. This collection is really interested in the unexplained elements of attraction, both to family, friends, and more than friends. However, I think I struggled to understand WHY certain characters were being drawn to each other—which then makes it harder when those characters start levitating or having prophecies about the end of the world, LOL. So I cannot lie, by the time I got to the end of this, I was definitely jumping for joy. I don’t want to discredit it to others, because I think a different reader might really enjoy this. AND, I’m always happy to see more Black sapphic fiction being published (even if most of the love interests are white LOL). But, for me personally, I did not find this to be my cup of tea.

[Sunny :) · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great set of semi-absurdist short stories centering different queer, female, and Black experiences. Even a few days after finishing there are some stories I'm still thinking about (the floating girl and the woman who moves in with Christian influencers are haunting me especially).

The stories hold space for endings, relationships, and feelings that feel incomplete without being unsatisfying or unfinished. I'm always a big fan of stories that embrace melancholy and imperfection without straying into being too grim.

Some stories are better than others, of course, but the best ones really shine. If you're looking for a bit of heartache, catharsis, and humanity in your next read, this is a great book to pick up.

[Emily Hayhurst · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this collection of short stories so much, I devoured the whole book in one setting! Demree writes with such rich descriptive language and pulled me into the surreal world of each story. I also loved how quickly she established deep, complex characters with subtle details, connecting each person & story to the larger themes of queer Black womanhood. Highly recommend picking up this collection!!

[Lavelle · Rating 4 out of 5]

a spellbinding, mystical collection filled with sorrow, grief, and strength. I love collections like these sooo much

[Boktok85 · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5⭐️

[emily faye · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5/5

[courtney ★]

Not feeling this.

[Kelsey Stanley · Rating 4 out of 5]

Women can all relate to at least one story in Sympathy for Wild Girls, making it a must-read. Intimacy and grief are among the themes addressed in these beautifully written short stories. "Scratching" was my favorite story. Bringing back every animal from the dead was my dream as a child, and still is today.

[T. Cantwell · Rating 5 out of 5]

When Sympathy for Wild Girls launched at San Diego's Burn All Books in May 2025, McGhee admitted she was a bit confused by the "subtly warped version of our world" comment in the book's blurb. "This IS my world," she said, in so many words, and after reading her gorgeous, fluid stories, I agree--this is as real, and as juicy, as fiction gets. Not only are the stories layered with complex emotional and philosophical truths, but they are also crafted with language we can bite into (see "Butterfruit"). McGhee creates contemporary scenarios that include and intrigue us, effortlessly, with their first sentences. Take the opening of "Be Good": "I left after slicing off the top of my finger in my parents' barbecue restaurant. On the same day that I got my stitches pulled out, I shaved my head in the front seat of my car, bent over a plastic bag in the green light of a gas station." How can we not read on? McGhee's stories achieve John Gardner's requirement of good fiction--the reader is immersed in a vivid, continuous dream. McGhee is a rising talent who deserves to be widely read, and I can't wait to see what she does next.

[Erin Crane · Rating 2 out of 5]

I made it to about 60% and called it quits. I feel really bad 🥲 Thankfully this book seems to have found its audience for the most part.

I was mostly enjoying it at first. The better stories are at the beginning for me. Then I was increasingly bored and increasingly pushing my way through. So I’m done!

The stories I didn’t like were dull to me. Made me shrug. Whatever they were doing I was not seeing or understanding, so I was left feeling like I’d wasted my time.

I *did* enjoy Sympathy for Wild Girls, Throwing Up in a Gated Community (just now caught the play on words!), and Even Here There I Am.

[Nuha · Rating 5 out of 5]

WOW! I loved this debut collection of short stories from Demtee McGhee. It lingers on the uncomfortable parts of growing up as a Black woman in America, leaning into the gross, the misshapen and the just plain ugly and rendering it tender and haunting and beautiful. the characters in these stories are for sure strange people, but they are also human and alive and McGhee captures that tension between voueryism and honest self reflection well.

[Benjamin Bird · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is the kind of stuff that makes one glad they're alive. Demree is a master at making sentences that stick with you and characters that will break your heart. Surely the start of a long and illustrious career.

[Robert · Rating 3 out of 5]

Most of these stories could stand on their own, and if I had read them individually they would have lead me to looking for other work by the author. However, put all together they detract from each other.
A collection of short stories should have a theme, but in this case everything seemed one note. Each story had the same character; a woman struggling with her identity and often latching on to someone else. In this way it felt like I was just reading the same thing over and over again, and I’d forget about the stories before it.
Many of these stories needed a few more pages, in my opinion. There are only so many open endings you can write before they become forgettable and the reader begins to wonder if the author just doesn’t know how to finish her ideas.
If there was just a little more variety in characters or story structure I could have been really hooked on this book.

[Jacqueline Nyathi · Rating 4 out of 5]

“Wild” and “girls” are two words that are not *supposed* to go together, or so we’re taught. Because stories about wild women and girls are somehow subversive. There are ridiculous expectations placed on women and girls in certain societies, so that these are the words we expect rather: Submissive. Passive. Receptive. Agreeable. Heterosexual. Pretty. Shiny… happy… sunny. Of course, though, the reality is that girls and women are not always these things, and the girls and women in these stories certainly aren’t.

In *Sympathy for Wild Girls* one girl transforms into a being that grunts, bites, and has matted hair (my hero! but then I feel her pain acutely). Another wants to lose all excess weight “until my old clothes only functioned as parachutes, boat sails, curtains to gather wind, tents that could shelter anything but my body.” Yet another is transforming right before people’s eyes—but those people don’t acknowledge it, looking around and through her. Ava’s story is the most memorable for me: after a great trauma, she starts floating, and has to use weights to hold her down to the surface of the earth.

These are, of course, stories about pain. About the pressures placed on women to conform: Be pretty, and hairless in all of the right places. They’re about how dangerous the world is for girls, when they just want to be allowed to be, and to breathe. They’re about the women who raise girls with all of their own pain leaking from every pore. In these stories, bodies are weird and sometimes horrifying; girls have magical abilities; and sometimes the world around them shifts in inexplicable ways. They’re angry stories, and sometimes hopeless: not every character finds redemption, just like in real life. And it’s striking that although not always explicit, the young women and girls in this collection are women of colour.

I love anti-fairytles, and when they’re this subversive and about women of colour, I’m even more thrilled that they’re out in the world. This, too, is Black punk.

Thanks to Feminist Press and Edelweiss for early DRC access.

[Jess · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a vicious weird queer black girl / surreal horror / magical realism collection, and I say that in the most respectful way possible. These are stories of women and girls attempting to make sense of the world around them, some stories told in snippets, some with a beginning middle and end, all with beautiful yet nightmarish prose. It's uncomfortable and unsettling, and that's the point.

[Tara Ryan-Gallagher · Rating 5 out of 5]

Mystical & feminist, Sympathy for Wild Girls is a collection of stories that will stick with me for a long time. It builds on the conversation of what it means to be a Black, queer woman in a world where representations of femininity and sexuality lack intersectionality. Full of desire and yearning tinged with magical realism.

Pick this up if you like Carmen Maria Machado!

[Azad Habib · Rating 5 out of 5]

My favorite stories were ‘sympathy for wild girls’ and ‘thinning’! I loved the characters in each story, and how visceral some of the scenes and emotions were and how she was able to communicate those feelings in her writing. I highly recommend this to all my friends and I’m very excited to read whatever Demree McGhee writes next! I love reading yay!

[M R · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was an unexpected and sometimes haunting collection of short stories. I especially enjoyed the stories: Sympathy for Wild Girls, Throwing Up in a Gated Community, Scratching, Exchange, She is Waiting, and Be Good.

[Isabelle · Rating 5 out of 5]

Best debut I've read in years

[Olivia Zerger · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.5 ⭐ Absurdist, weird, feminist, queer. Honestly loved them all