Editor’s note: The opinions of the smart, well-read women in my Denver book club mean a lot, and often determine what the rest of us choose to pile onto our bedside tables. So we asked them, and all Denver Post readers, to share these mini-reviews with you. Have any to offer? Email bellis@denverpost.com.

“Prophet Song,” by Paul Lynch (Grove Atlantic, 2023): Set in contemporary Dublin, this novel plunges both its protagonists and readers into a chaotic and unpredictable world in which a repressive political force overtakes the country, any and all opponents disappear, and civil war ensues. The agonizing and impossible choices that face the people left behind are searing; the images of destruction, violence and desperation are brutal. Lynch succeeds in humanizing many of the similar images we see on the daily news from war-torn parts of the world, e.g., “Where can I find a hospital that will treat my injured child?” Stylistically, this novel makes the reader think: There are no paragraph breaks, no quotation marks indicating spoken dialogue, no clear distinction between thought and description. But, it’s well worth the effort. (Winner of the 2023 Booker Prize.) — 4 stars (out of 4); Kathleen Lance, Denver

“An Immense World: How Animal Senses Reveal the Hidden Realms Around Us,” by Ed Yong (Random House, 2022): My dogs and I share the same home, but we decidedly do not share the same world. Ed Yong’s fascinating nonfiction book explains how animals inhabiting the same space live in vastly different perceptual worlds due to our varied senses. Human abilities are not as impressive as we like to assume: Our natural reliance on our own poor senses often makes us blind (pun intended) to the broad scope of perception used by other animals, including surface vibrations, echolocation, and magnetic reception.

You don’t need to be a science geek to understand this book. Yong is a master of similes and metaphors, and he creates

memorable examples to explain how animals experience different realities from humans. “A better understanding of the senses can show us how we are defiling the natural world. But it can also point to ways of saving it.” I enjoyed this life-altering book thoroughly; now I see how limited my human life truly is. The audio book, narrated by the author, is highly recommended. (Winner of the 2023 Andrew Carnegie Medal for Excellence in Nonfiction; selection in The New York Times’ “10 Best Books of 2022.”) — 4 stars (out of 4); Neva Gronert, Parker

“Breaking Night: From Homeless to Harvard, by Liz Murray (Hachette Books, 2011): The author relates her fascinating memoir about life with substance-abusing parents, through an extended stretch of scraping up an existence on the streets, then finally to her successful transformation to a Harvard student. When Liz’s mother dies of AIDS, she decides to take control of her own destiny and go back to high school. With good luck, brains and determination, she learns to care for herself, meets adults who give her a helping hand, and stays focused. An inspiring story of a woman who refused to give up and listened to her own drummer. In the way of real life, hard work, not luck, is the magic. — 3 stars (out of 4); Bonnie McCune, Denver (bonniemccune.com)