Conover is in his bag here. Beautiful interwoven narrative driven by stories of real people, he explores the fringes of rural society in the San Luis Valley in Colorado. Having grown up just north of the setting—Buena Vista, Colorado—I have a particular fondness for the area, and this account lends a new perspective to the alpine prairies and high school gyms I trundled through in my youth.

Accentuating the marriage of rampant inequality and rugged American individualism, the narrative follows the story of a strong community made up of what can be called some of the last American pioneers. People are drawn in by the romanticism of the West and the promises of the title: cheap land in Colorado. What then follows is an account of an incredibly diverse array of characters, all facing their own challenges against the backdrop.

While this leaves you thinking about the future and accentuates the skyrocketing wealth gap in the country, that darkness is buoyed by the optimism of the folks in the community and resilience, generosity and fortitude that they show. Absolutely fantastic, and a must read.