Return to ABO: A Novel of the Southwest

Called home to a funeral in Monte Alto, a small ranching community in New Mexico, journalist Maggie Chilton finds herself face to face with everything she left behind when she graduated from high school. Against the harsh beauty of the landscape and the memories it holds, three generations of women -- Maggie, her mother, and her teenage daughter -- struggle to make peace with each other and the land they love.

About the Author :
Sharon Niederman is the author of several books of travel and history, including The Santa Fe and Taos Book and A Quilt of Words. She lives in Albuquerque, and this is her first novel.

Review :
"["Return to Abo" is a] soulful examination of ranching, womanhood and a traditional community struggling for survival and meaning in a modern age." "["Return to Abo"]is a good read that gets you involved right away. It has women's issues, domestic violence, and the non-forgiving land as a central character. For a good taste of ranch life in New Mexico this is a good book to dive into." "[Niederman's] broad knowledge of the Southwest and New Mexico glow from the pages of her first work of fiction. . . This is a story about women making their way in harsh territory of grit and warmth, of love and reconciliation." "Woven through the events by the author's knowing hand, the intrinsic beauty of the harsh landscape with its rich history is the dominating force, the situation and story rolled into one." ." . . well worth reading for its glimpses at a way of Western life that is rapidly drying up and disappearing into the winds." ""Return to Abo" has a bit of everything; familial tensions, romance, drama, and lots of cowboys. Niederman works hard to portray the nuances of small town life and particularly life in small town N.M." ""Return to Abo" has the makings of a New Mexico classic. . . Reading this novel is like a long visit with friends, like the best of family, and like the return to a place that may have changed, but like its inhabitants, still keeps its hearts." ""Return to Abo" is a story about the relationships between people and the land that surrounds them, supports them, and is just as much a part of their lives as any living person. The story is a tribute to small towns, to hometowns, to hard work on the land, and to both the freedom and hardship of the scattered communities and wide-open spaces that make up much of New Mexico." ""Return To Abo" . . celebrates life in rural New Mexico with great authenticity." "Ý"Return to Abo" is a¨ soulful examination of ranching, womanhood and a traditional community struggling for survival and meaning in a modern age." "Ý"Return to Abo"¨is a good read that gets you involved right away. It has women's issues, domestic violence, and the non-forgiving land as a central character. For a good taste of ranch life in New Mexico this is a good book to dive into." "ÝNiederman's¨ broad knowledge of the Southwest and New Mexico glow from the pages of her first work of fiction. . . This is a story about women making their way in harsh territory of grit and warmth, of love and reconciliation." "Niederman has a gift for sharply drawn, realistic characters that give edginess to what could have been a formulaic romantic novel. Her love for New Mexico and its people come through on every page." "Niederman's strength is in capturing the sense of place. It is the arid, wanting land, and the people who reside there that resonate most memorably."