Texas Books

David has a baby left on his doorstep and when he goes to the local department store to buy baby supplies, he meets shy-moussy Marissa who is dressed in a story book costume. David needs a nanny and thinks Marissa would be perfect,he offers her a lot of money and she takes the position. Soon David sees the sexy woman under the shy exterior and before long sparks are flying. Of course, his reputation as a womanizer doesn't help his suit. This is one of my favorites in the Texas Cattleman's series.

Another installment in the Texas Cattleman's Club series - Silhouette Desire #1547 (November 2003) - "Entangled With A Texan" by Sara Orwig. Book summary from back cover:

Tied up in knots! How on earth had Texas Cattleman's Club member David Sorrenson been roped into protecting a tiny baby girl? The ex-military man knew everything about security and danger, not infants! Marissa Wilder was the perfect solution. This down-to-earth family gal knew all about children, and agreed to be a live-in nanny at his ranch. David yearned to show Marissa a steamy night or two, even though his high-risk lifestyle had taught him to avoid long-term attachments and his sexy houseguest deserved someone permanent. Living with Marissa was tangling up his emotions something awful, and if he didn't know better he'd swear he was falling for her....

I thought this would be the perfect book since I have eleven grandchildren and would love showing them (one at a time, I don't lack ALL my senses) our great state! And I was, the book was everything I expected and more. Only thing is, I always have to hunt it down and find who borrowed it last. From my own kids to my brothers and sisters, I never know exactly where it is. Guess I need to order everyone their own copy!! Keep that in mind when you get yours. It's a wonderful guide to all the places you know about and so SO many you don't. If you're planning on traveling Texas with your lil' rugrats, you need this book! It'll will guarantee a good time for all.

A travel guide for families that hits the highlights of Texas without complicating the trip planning with too many details. Only problem is that phone numbers (at least area codes) keep changing, but this book lists web pages to help a family get more information on the part of the state they want to see.

Luckily, I live in Austin and get to see more of this genius' work than many do. He is a hidden wonder. He should be King. His works are funny, both funny ha ha and funny peculiar. They are word smart. They are bursting with story, that for which we are so hungry. And they are so satisfying on these levels that one begins to take their beauty for granted. When I get bored, I look at a Sam Hurt, and see the world afresh and afunny, and beautiful again.

I picked up a copy of this book a long time ago from the kansas university bookstore. I couldn't believe how much better it was than anything in the paper. Why wasn't it in the paper?!! of course! It was too good to be next to those cheap hacked out cookie cutters. it was sam hurt that inspired me to start my own career as an underground cartoonist . And it was sam hurt that I ultimately blame for getting thrown out of kansas university art school. Curse your damn cartoon!--chris burn

This book is wonderful. It shows how a family together can face any and all situations. It may be fictional but it can be true if a family sticks together it can over come all odds and be strong because of it. Show love and respect to each other and help each other through every situation.

If you haven't read any of the other books written by Gilbert Morris, you are really missing out! This begins with life on the ranch. Clinton is a very interesting situation that he barely gets out of. Does he break it all off? Moriah is fearful and worried about Ethan. Does she marry for love or for her son? Has Brodie gotten over Serena? Will he find new love? Will Mary Aiden's selfishness hurt the man she loves? What of the Comanche chief that kidnapped Moriah? Morris has created a spellbinding, sequel to THE YELLOW ROSE OF TEXAS and DEEP IN THE HEART. Great read!!!

Graciela Iturbide finds strange creations through her photographic lens. She is able to document both people and events without manufacturing false perceptions, but she is also able to show us the darker aspects of the human and animal spirit in a way few other photographers achieve. This large, elegantly produced book is a fine survey of her portraits of subjects from Mexico and South America to India and North America, a handsome and varied group of self portraits, and photographic essays on cemeteries and other aspects of death as well as animals and expansive views of birds in flight.

Iturbide studied with Manuel Alvarez Bravo in the late 1960s and his well-known influence is felt in her work. But this fine artist has found her language beyond Bravo and manages to take the raw realism of Bravo's images and transform them with the magic of the spirit world and the mystical elements that inform her photographs. Her images are all in brilliant black and white and for the most part are 'constructed' or posed. The gradations between dark and light add a sense of the surreal to her images, whether the subjects are friends of the artist, couples at weddings, burial sites, East LA Cholas, or her very strange images of women with iguana hats or of her own face inhabited by live snails or wings of dissected birds!

An excellent feature of this book is the addition of Graciela Iturbide's comments on pages facing her photographs, and the book opens with an informative 'Conversation with Graciela' by Fabienne Bradu. This is a sophisticated portfolio of works by one of our contemporary gifted artists. Highly Recommended. Grady Harp, April 08

Graciela Iturbide photographs the Zapotec women of Juchitan and the Mixtee goat butchers of Oaxaca: EYES TO FLY WITH includes a range of black and white images, from previously unpublished works to those she's famous for, and this provides an outstanding monograph of her achievements. Each full-page photo is accompanied by either a quote from her explaining the photo's inspiration or a title line and date, while an article about her and interview with her provide foundations for reference for newcomers. Art library holdings, especially those strong in contemporary photography, will find it a fine pick.

I'm a journalist, a sports fan, amateur historian and the fourth great-granddaughter of the amazing Peter Sides, a Revolutionary War Veteran who was killed at the bloodiest battle on Texas soil, the Battle of Medina in 1813.

You don't believe me? Look it up!

I first read this book years ago and loved it. I've recommended it to others who have loved it. It's a fabulous read and rollicking adventure. It's the kind of book I keep re-reading and buying any copy I can find and passing it on to people I love.

Please excuse the passive voice in the previous paragraph. I know better ; )

Fast Copy is a lot of lively fun!

A native Texan myself, I found myself laughing all through this book. I caught continual glimpses of friends and relatives (and, yes, even myself!) in this wonderful little novel that explores Texas, football, and Texans.

However, it is not just a comedy that pokes fun at Texans. Nosiree! It deals specifically with Depression-Era Texas and makes us take a disturbing look at ourselves. How can someone callously believe that other humans are "just hobos"? Do we truly believe that appearances are more important than reality? What will one do for Love; is it ok to hurt others to pursue one's own pleasure?

This is a most thought-provoking work and well worth the time to read.

John Henry Faulk was in an up and coming radio and TV personality when in the mid 1950s when he decided to stand up to those who tried to turn America against itself. His memoir of his legal struggle, "Fear on Trial" tells how he was blacklisted by AWARE, Inc. and subsequently could not work in his chosen profession. Mr. Faulk, with the help of such prominent broadcasters as Edward R. Murrow, Charles Collingwood and Mark Goodsen, hired famed cousel Louis Nizer to file a lasuit against the blacklisters. His victory sounded the death knell fr those who would try to rule through fear, intimidation and innuendo. "Fear on Trial" is a must read for all those who value freedom if thought and expression, for if it were not for John Henry Faulk, Howard Stern, Don Imus and Rush Limbaugh and others would not have the freedom they do today. His writing style is the same as his broadcasting tyle was, simple, folksyand to the point. His recalling the terrible days of unemploable status and the help of friends such as Tony Randall, Jack Gilford (also blacklisted) and others will tug at your heart, mind and soul. I most heartily recommend this book.

... are doomed to repeat it. And no book captures more vividly the history of the McCarthy hearings then this book. Anyone hearing McCarthy's words today, from his general classifications of all americans into either loyal citizens (supporting him) or enemies of the state (the rest), to his labeling the International Workers of the World a terrorist organization, should find them hauntingly current and familiar.

A must read for anyone who truyly values democracy, liberty and the *real* America-- the one where difference of opinion is valued, not feared.

I have been interested in Trans-Pecos plants for over 20 years but have been terrified by the prospect of learning how to identify them by species. After one hour with this book I am 'fern savvy' and really enjoy identifying ferns in the field. It is very easy to read and understand, the technical terms are very clearly explained, the illustrations are excellent and I don't get frustrated and confused. I bought one for myself and then bought a second one to keep in my truck all the time and then bought 2 more for my job and my employee! Worth twice the money (don't raise the price!)

[Ferns and Fern Allies of the Trans-Pecos and Adjacent Areas by Sharon C. Yarborough and A. Michael Powell], Native Plant Society of Texas News, 20 (Nov.-Dec. 2002): 3.

To look at a fern is to travel back in time. Ferns date from over 300 million years ago, long before the appearance of the first flowering plant. Although I knew nothing of this remarkable ancestry when at a young age I saw my first ferns in the forests of Breton Woods, their delicate beauty nonetheless captivated my imagination. My childhood fascination with ferns was hardly unique, however. People have been attracted to ferns for some time. During the 19th Century, for instance, nothing less than a fern craze sprouted up in England, where suddenly once wild ferns were abundantly cultivated in gardens, purchased as indoor potted plants, and replicated in ornamental designs on numerous household items.*

When I arrived in Austin in 1969, whatever fern-desire I may have harbored soon withered in the heat. Although my first Austin home was located on a creek site, all the land surrounding it was caliche-hardly ideal for ferns or much else. Ferns, I had always observed, thrive in a shady, moist habitat. It was not until many years later when an acquaintance of my daughter gifted us with ebony spleenwort (Asplenium platyneuron) that my fondness for ferns revived. While this Texas native plant may not be as aesthetically appealing as the more delicately textured wood fern (Thelypteris kunthii), it is both hardy and drought tolerant. I have become very attached to ebony spleenwort. Planted along the north side of my home's foundation, it has thrived, even remaining green throughout every winter. After a protracted stretch of heat and drought, it signals the need for some water by yellowing slightly.

That there is yet more hope for Texas fern lovers who live in such dry places is evident in Sharon C. Yarborough and A. Michael Powell's new book. It identifies many native pteridophytes adapted to the arid conditions of the Trans-Pecos region-that Maine-sized western part of our state situated between the Rio Grande and the Pecos rivers where the average annual rainfall is a mere 12 inches. One of the intentions behind this book, in fact, is to promote the ferns of this locale as suitable candidates for xeriscaped home gardens.

The Trans-Pecos ferns conserve water by producing hair-shaded fronds somewhat smaller in size than average. Some of these plants will wither after a long period of dryness, and yet these very same seemingly dead flora will immediately green up again whenever water becomes available. It is likely, moreover, that these plants reproduce more by asexual means-vegetative buds forming on a tiny heart-shaped prothallus that normally produces eggs and sperm on its underside when moisture is present. Fern reproduction is a curious business, in any event, and the authors of Fern and Fern Allies do very well explaining the intricate process so that it can be easily understood by lay readers.

Including spikemosses, horsetails and scouring rushes, this attractive field guide provides detailed keys designed to facilitate plant identification in the wild. Besides useful information concerning the floral morphology and habitat conditions of Trans-Pecos pteridophytes, Yarborough and Powell provide 37 line drawings. In the matter of fern identification such detailed drawings are more helpful than photographs.

A comparison with David L. Jones's Encyclopedia of Ferns and Boughton Cobb's A Field Guide to the Ferns, in the Peterson series, provides another measure of the value of Ferns and Fern Allies. Of the 15 examples in the new book of members of Cheilanthes, the largest genus of the maidenhair fern family, only 3 appear in Cox's book and only 2 in Jones's volume. Similarly, of the 11 members of Selaginellaceae (the spikemoss family) described in Fern and Fern Allies, 2 are included in Jones's work and none in Cobb's guide. As these statistics and results of a comparative review of the remaining plants both suggest, Fern and Fern Allies is as valuable as it is handy.

What an invitation to adventure Yarborough and Powell's book provides. Like several columbines native to the same region, many of the Trans-Pecos ferns are hidden in unusual places. To be seen they must be searched out. And, as the authors note, "there are probably more rare treasures to be found in certain microhabitats" of that area of Texas. Let's hope so, and let's hope, too, that native plant nurseries will make some of these arid-adapted ferns available for our home garden landscapes.

*See David E. Allen, The Victorian Fern Craze: A History of Pteridomania (London: Hutchinson, 1969).

William J. Scheick, a former NPSOT vice-president, is also a member of the Central Texas Horticulture Council and a frequent contributor to Texas Gardener.

The best progressive writing and independent journalism in the Great Lone Star State. Like The Nation, the TO is beholden to none of the corporate interests that taint most of the corporate news.

Remember what journalism used to, and should, be.

The Texas Observer has a well-deserved reputation for asking the tough questions which our state government (still famous for a 'good-old boy' reputation) wishes would just be quiet instead.

As an investigative journalist myself, I always have looked to the Observer for inspiration and comfort. Their own perserverance reminds me that our job is often thankless, but a passion for justice is one of a journalist's most effective tools.

For all of my frustration with the current status of Texas/National politics, these pages remind me times were once much worse in Texas. When segregation was still considered matter of fact, the Observer pushed ahead with the 'radical' idea that all people deserved human rights.

Finally, the Observer produced such now-nationally recognized figures as Jim Hightower and Molly Ivins. Ivins continues to cheer me up today with her right-on commentary that George W. Bush is a danger to the world, and not all Texans approve of him (or had even wanted him involved with any kind of government).

If you've ever seen the magnificent, nationally famous Texas A&M University Band perform during half-time, you will want to own this fine volume. It offers a comprehensive history of the first 100 years of a college organization that has become, literally, a state institution. Being in the Aggie Band is not simply membership in a music outfit; rather, it is a comprehensive, fully consuming Way of Life. Rich with details about how the present-day Band evolved, the Powells' account also grandly illuminates other facets of Texas Aggie history - the Corps of Cadets, A&M athletics, campus development, memorable faculty folks and general local color (in native lingo, "good bull."). Numerous photos trace Aggie traditions from their earliest days to the present. It was startling to this reader how some campus/Corps images are practically ageless. Many of the pictures - fish standing on the wall, Elephant Walk, Ags working on the Bonfire, meals in Duncan Dining Hall - could have been taken in 1930 or 1950 or 1975 OR 1995, since the traditions, and the scenes they propagate, are so firmly embedded at A&M.

This book definitely needs to be made into a movie. Not only would it offer remarkable settings, dramatic events, dynamic characters, stupendous role models, intricate Band drills and tantalizing college-life plots, but it would feature, without a doubt, the very best film soundtrack in the history of the world.

I was the drum major at my little high school in Louisiana a long long time ago, and I never heard anything about the Texas Aggie Band until almost three decades later, when I saw them at a parade in San Antonio. Soon after that, I visited the A&M campus one football weekend and got to see them rehearse their pre-game Saturday morning drill performance. They are absolutely stupendous, the best in the world. No one else compares or even comes close. I found this book at A&M's Memorial Student Center and bought it immediately. You simply MUST go see the Aggie Band.

One of my life's greatest regrets, now, is that I knew nothing about this organization when I was eligible to march in it. Musically, and personally, I can imagine no higher achievement. Everything about this precision machine exudes excellence, from their music, to their marching, to the striking friendly politeness of all the members I was fortunate to meet. These fine kids are motivated beyond belief, and they welcome you into their world -- they know they are a part of something special, and they generously share with you the admiration for their Aggie heritage.

Their drum cadence (I was a drummer) is absolutely captivating. It has five "verses," and is militarily simple but, once you've heard it, the beat stays with you wherever you walk, any time you are walking -- you wish that you were marching with the Fightin Texas Aggie Band, every time you put one foot in front of the other.

I got to see the film, "We've Never Been Licked," a 1943 World War II story, and became a permanent Aggie "groupie." From now forward, I will always be a Texas Aggie in my heart. As Pop Lambert said in the movie, "God bless the Aggies." The Spirit of Aggieland is now an forever. World Without End, A&M.

Gig 'em. And Beat The Hell Outta t.u. !!!