THE WOMEN, a short story collection by Sommer Schafer, tests women in everyday situations in which the challenge requires a unique, and sometimes fantastical, approach.In 'Mary and the Machine, ' the main character desperately usurps a comfort meant exclusively for her newborn. In 'My Little Pet, ' the main character finds an unusual and mysterious creature on her doorstep one morning who initially seems to offer her the love she has always desired. In 'The Women, ' a women-only book club takes a bloody turn, and in 'The Trappings, ' a new mother finds herself and her toddler lost in a wild Alaskan forest until stumbling across a cabin hiding in the woods.