Writing in short, interconnected fragments Gardiner revisits the year spent in Anacortes with a new sense of perspective. Little Wonder reads like a series of love notes to a former self, or a collection of Polaroids made golden with age. Gardiner's characters navigate frustration, loss, and heartbreak, but they also come into new versions of themselves, a transformation they may not recognize in the moment. Through poignant vignettes furnished generously with detail, Gardiner looks into what it means to enter the world and realize that it is not nearly as amenable to change as an optimistic young person might think. With Little Wonder, Gardiner has shed light on the idea that joy and pain are often two sides of the same coin — and that being alive in this world can necessitate embracing both.