Unbroken

2011 WILLA Winner for Contemporary Fiction

Ranching is a life of extremes, perhaps even more so on the high plains near Laramie, Wyoming. And no one knows that better than Gwen Swan, who married both her husband, Will, and his family ranch. Every day she juggles hard labor beside the men with raising her two children. Meg Braeburn, who has broken away from her family's ranch, expects unrelenting hard work when she takes a ranch hand job on the place next to the Swans'. She and her son face an uncertain future, but she is determined to leave the past behind and make a good life for them. Gwen, who understands the corrosive effects of isolation better than Meg, includes Meg in her family and community and wins Meg's gratitude and support. But there is little time for reflection on anyone's part as the wheel of the seasons grinds relentlessly onward bringing disasters, triumphs and a rough road for all concerned. The prodigal Swan son returns forcing relationships to shift. Old resentments resurface, friendships are strained and tested as everyone finds themselves struggling against the elements and each other to continue their way of life. In this remarkable debut novel, the author presents us with fully formed characters that ring as clear and true as the picture of ranch life she paints as a background for the universal struggles we all confront.