“The Crazies: The Cattleman, the Wind Prospector and a War Out West,” by Amy Gamerman (Simon & Shuster, 2025)

Ever wonder why there are so few wind farms, harvesting wind to create electricity? This book will clue you in. Gamerman shows us a wide range of stories: a Montana cattle rancher struggling to make ranching work; a wind farm agent who sees great potential in the constant winds near the Crazy Mountains; the billionaire neighbors on their trophy ranches who oppose the sight blight they envision from windmills; the Native Americans wanting to preserve their sacred spaces; and the hapless local officials caught up in the ensuing conflict. This is a true story that examines conflicting values, the meaning of legacy and the rights and meaning of land. — 3 1/2 stars (out of 4); Kathleen Lance, Denver

“Again and Again,” by Juliet Wittman (Beck & Branch Publishers, 2023)

Coloradan Wittman, also author of the memoir “Breast Cancer Journal,” moves into fiction grounded in reality as Paula, an oncology nurse, and a small group of cancer patients with only months to live decide to try to save the youngest among them, 4-year-old Colin, whose insurance company is refusing the treatment that can save his life. Cancerland (a world no one wants to visit) pairs Paula with Chloe, a 23-year-old with a terminal diagnosis, determined to defeat her own death and to save the boy. A handful of other patients join them on a mission that tosses them between hope and fear. We learn from all these characters, who are so human the reader can dislike them at times during their trials even as we’re learning their survival skills. The moral? Refuse to give up, although you know you won’t succeed. What else can you do? You have nothing to lose, right? — 4 stars (out of 4); Bonnie McCune, Denver (bonniemcccune.com)

“Big Breath In,” by John Straley (Soho Crime, 2024)

A complex crime novel in which the retired biologist/sleuth is facing the inevitable end of her cancer treatments, yet is buoyed (or distracted?) by the job at hand: track down a missing woman and child. There are meditations on whale life, a quintessential road trip, and unexpected encounters along the way — with heartless baby sellers, radical white supremacists, radical lesbian bikers and soft-hearted straight bikers — yet it somehow all works, in its own quirky way. — 2 1/2 stars (out of 4); Kathleen Lance, Denver

“Stone Yard Devotional,” by Charlotte Wood (Allen & Unwin, 2023)

As expected in a memoir, “Stone Yard Devotional” is introspective. In an almost stream-of-consciousness style, the writer slides smoothly through many layers of memories. The surprise: this is a novel, not a memoir.

Our unnamed narrator has decided, for reasons unstated, to dwell in a small enclave of nuns on the arid plains of Australia. She doesn’t share their beliefs, but she shares their tasks and difficulties — including a plague of mice — as they retreat from the COVID pandemic. She is grieving her mother, and many of her disjointed musings are about her mother’s life. Additionally, her former schoolmate, who is now an activist nun, brings disquiet to the community when she is stranded there while returning the remains of a former nun, a murder victim. As disparate as these elements are, Wood hews them into cohesive beauty. Her polished prose is reason enough to read this novel, which was shortlisted for the 2024 Booker Prize. — 3 stars (out of 4); Neva Gronert, Parker