Stranger's Dance

At the foot of the Continental Divide, rancher Frank Redmond struggles to maintain his land amidst the bleakness of Depression-era Montana. Married but childless, Frank's wondering if the long-term future of the ranch is worth the effort. For that matter, he's considering much the same about his wife Abby.
When a stray dog wanders onto the ranch, Frank's first impulse is to shoot it as vermin. Abby and Clay, Frank's father, insists on adopting the mutt, naming him Stranger.
For Frank, it's both the last straw and a convenient excuse. He parlays his skill as a stone carver into a job at Deer Lodge at the Montana State Prison, fifty miles from home. There, he labors over a headstone for the warden's terminally ill wife.
When he finally returns home, he finds Stranger more a member of the family than himself. Frank needs to regain his family's trust and prove himself. To do so, he'll need to emulate the dog he once considered killing.
A pensively introspective but hard-hitting read, Stranger's Dance delves into the challenges and desperation of Montana ranch life in the 1930s and how animals can prove the catalyst for human healing.