Inspired by real-life, My Father Called Us Monkeys is a series of linked short stories about Marco, a Mexican American boy coming of age in a blue-collar and predominately white Midwestern town in 1969. His family consists of an older father, a railroad mechanic who often unabashedly calls his children monkeys; a devoted mother who works in a toy factory; a strong-willed, competitive younger sister; an older, maternal sister about to graduate from high school; and Marco, an inquisitive boy who grapples to understand the adult world. In this collection, there are stories about friendships and living with white neighbors, school days, and interactions and conflicts with extended family. Some of the stories are informed by the Vietnam War, the Apollo Space Program, and the Civil Rights Movement.