Author Robert Greer didn't want to write about the typical western cowboy. And his character, Arcus Witherspoon-- "Spoon" for short-- is anything but. Like his creator, he's both black and Native-American. Spoon's also clairvoyant. And that's a useful tool because the family's that's hired him to work on their ranch has to fight mining interests off their land. Greer has just won a Colorado Book Award for "Spoon." The novel is somewhat of a departure for him because he usually writes medical thrillers. You see, Greer's also a professor of pathology at the University of Colorado... oh... and a rancher, with about 300 head of cattle in Wyoming. And he's worried about the future of ranching families. That's a strong theme in his book. He speaks with Ryan Warner.
