A flicker of light

Residents of Moose Creek, MT, have to be sturdy to withstand the town's frigid temperatures, barely paved roads, and stilted economy, but even tough nuts will crack under enough pressure. The stalwart Jensens are pushed to the limit when matriarch Juniper rapidly succumbs to dementia and wanders into a blizzard on foot. Even as her mind betrays her, Juniper holds tight to the penny in her pocket: a reminder of a terrible secret that only she can reveal. Her granddaughter Beatrice returns home to Moose Creek with her unemployed city slicker husband and a surprise baby on the way. Bea simultaneously envies and disdains the quiet resilience of her old friends and family but discovers that her small town may not be as small-minded as she thought. VERDICT Powner (The Sowing Season) delivers a powerful sophomore novel in which helping hands and faithful prayers are flickers of light that pierce the darkness of suffering. Fans of thoughtful contemporary fiction such as Susie Finkbeiner's Stories That Bind Us and Cynthia Ruchti's Facing the Dawn will want to add Powner to their lists.--Christine Barth, Scott Cty. Lib. Syst., IA