Texas Books

We recently chose this great little self published book as our March Selection, It is written in a folksy, charmingly funny style, and contains plenty of wisdom. There are short chapters about all kinds of subjects; relationships with wives, kids, dogs, work, etc. It is great choice for book clubs that want to alternate their deep. dark, reads with something happy that everyone will relate to. We all enjoyed it.

As a Texas now living in North Carolina I had read Dave Lieber's column for years and still do online. In 1996 I had the privelege of meeting both him and Sadie the dog at the walkathon in Bedford, Tx where I took my beloved dog, Jake. (Like Sadie Jake is no longer with me but still in my heart. Last week I was in Texas and saw this book and had to buy it. It is well written and brought back many memories of thing from Dave's columns. My favorites were always when he wrote about Sadie. Great book!

This is a wonderful heartwarming book that I found hard to put down. The story of Dave's dog is especially funny and sad. I wouldn't want to give away any plot secrets but the dog sounds pretty sharp. You will feel like you've been transported to Texas and invited to be part of a special family when you read this book. I hope there is a sequel.

As a longtime reader of Fort Worth Star-Telegram columnist Dave Lieber's work, I was privileged to purchase an advance copy of his book off his new Internet web site before the actual publication date. It's thrilling to see his best stories from the past decade collected in one attractive volume. Dave writes laughers that remind me of Dave Barry at his best. He also writes stories about people that, well, you better darn well have a box of Kleenex nearby. The one about how Dave brought former Dallas Cowboys running back Emmitt Smith to the classroom of a teacher who was dying of cancer (true story; it was her dying wish) is unbelievable! The book has almost 90 stories, each of them short and easy to read. They cover every conceivable subject -- from family, kids, love, education (Dave calls it 'Texas Edukation'), nutty politicians, quirky Texans, Sept. 11, a writer's life, becoming a cowboy, etc. There are probably about 50 photographs in the 288-page book, too. I guess what I like about this book is that it's full of surprises. You never know what is going to be on the next page. There's a story about Dave's relationship with a convicted murderer and then what happened when the guy got released from prison. It's surprising as heck. There's a story about Dave's first meeting with the Texas governor and the strange comment made by Gov. Perry. But the signature story of the book is about Dave's beloved Psycho Dog. Dave loved the dog, but the dog hated Dave. This opening chapter is a real tear jerker, reminiscient of My Dog Skip. I think it's wonderful that Dave is giving a portion of the proceeds of this book to the Humane Society in honor of his late dog. I promise you'll love this book. I'm already on my second reading. - M.W.

This is a very helpful book for Texas gardeners. The format is user friendly and it would be a great addition to anyone's gardening library.

Excellent book! Very beneficial to both long-term and novice gardeners.

Excellent format and the month to month guide is very useful.

Great choice.

I like the layout of this book. I read it cover to cover within the first week but have continued to use it as a reference. I like the month-by-month layout and it covers the majority of topics that a Texas gardener wants to know about. It's sort of like combining the best parts of several books...and the format is easy to read and is slightly humerous. The book covers several areas of Texas, so no matter where you live the book covers your area. There are some topics where I wanted more depth, so I used the internet or library to find more detailed information. This book also debunked some of the theories I had learned about specific gardening methods...old wives tales that were truly tales. All said, I would purchase this book again and recommend it for novice to experienced gardeners (stopping short of master gardeners, but they're the ones writing the books anyway).

Finally we have a companion to the nationwide Farmer's Almanac -

designed for our unique state - our climate and our plants.

Doug Welsh's Texas Garden Almanac is the definitive almanac on

Texas gardening, covering indepth topics such as pruning trees,

attracting butterflies, and managing fire ants.


In addition, readers will find handy quick-tips including: using

clear plastic soda bottles for mini greenhouses, avoiding the

epidemic of crepe murder (over-pruning crepe myrtles), and creating

herb gardens in mini containers.

Hundreds of delightful illustrations by Aletha St. Romain -

including a beautiful amaryllis illustration for the chapter on

December - make the book a joy for the eyes.

It is so jam-packed with information, tips, and useful

illustrations, it would make a life-long garden guide for a new

gardener. Then too, experienced gardeners would find the book a

wonderful edition to their gardening book library.

As we become more dependent on food sources from millions of miles

away, the need to garden more closely in our own area is of primary

concern. For this reason, every school should consider ordering

copies for students. And if a high school student shows any

inclination toward gardening, this would be a treasured gift.

Medium weight slick paper with fading violet and lime colored edges

make the book wonderful to browse. Every library in Texas needs

this gem.

Valerie Brown, Texas Master Gardener

I have several guides for birds, butterflies, snakes, reptiles and amphibians. I just started learn about dragonflies this year and this is one of the best guides I have seen. In fact, it was highly recommended by an individual who has a Masters Degree in dragonfly study. I recommend it for individuals just starting out with dragonflies as the photos are great but it also provides enough information (range maps) to let you narrow down and identify the more difficult species.

This field guide is the one to own. It covers not only all the dragonflies of Texas and the Southcentral US, but all the damselflies as well. The photographs are superb and this make for easy identification of species in the field. However, because of these pluses, the result is a rather sizable guide that is just a bit too heavy to really qualify as a handy field guide. If you can deal with its size and weight, it more than makes up for this handicap in thes helpful information it provides. The only drawback and the reason I gave it 4 stars instead of 5, is because it is a tad less user friendly for the novice or non-professional (i.e. The species identification keys are a bit confusing). Nevertheless, it is destined to become the standard to measure all other guides.

As an admirer of dragonflies and damselflies I was quite delighted to find this book by John C. Abbott. It is a mix of the very technical and (at least in part because of the 64 plates of magnificent color photos) the very useful for the non-specialist. The range maps are invaluable as a way of adding clues for the identification of similar species. The line drawings of anatomical parts are important in separating closely related species and the glossary of terms, the check list, and the large bibliography round out a very useful or even indispensable volume for the dragonfly watcher. In short, this book is a serious guide to an area with the highest odonate diversity in the United States. "Dragonflies and Damselflies of Texas and the South-Central United States" simply is a must for anyone interested in the odonate fauna of the five states involved. Its production, along with at least three earlier regional and national books on the subject, is a testimonial to the growing popularity of these beautiful and fascinating insects.

This is not a book that you can skim; rather, it is one intended for the serious student of Odonata in Texas. Written by an acknowledged expert in the field, it covers everything you might want to know about the dragonflies found in Texas.

Be warned, though, that you cannot approach this book lightly. The author uses scientific terms liberally: you will have to spend time acquiring the vocabulary.

For the serious Texas "Odo-nut" this is an absolutely essential part of your library.

Roger Hart's voice draws real emotions from characters who in their sincerity speak deeply to an attentive reader. The collection reads like a novel and the characters linger through the pages.

Roger Hart's Erratics is a book of stories about real people who we cannot help but learn to love. No artificial fictions here. Just people like us, suffering the slings and arrows of outrageous fortune and trying to survive. Les and Walt and Highway and the other characters who people these stories are lonely and looking and sometimes find the love they need. And they are always vulnerable. There is a lot of Raymond Carver in this work. I recommend it to anybody who wants soft-edged stories with a punch.

Enthusiastic Recommend: Erratics, Stories by Roger Hart
Twelve stories and 130 pages - a nice book to carry and read in short stretches. All these stories have a haunting dark side, but are not really dark. They are a little like a painting that you see as yellow at first glance, but a longer look reveals a midnight blue under-painting. The first couple of stories in this book don't require you to look too closely to see the blue. It's there. In the later stories, you can choose not to see the blue at all if you don't want to. I liked the later stories better - the ones where the yellow paint was thicker. But every one of Hart's people is believable and worth remembering. Their dialogue, sprinkled with humor, rings true. I liked these people, rooted for them, even those whose disturbing dark side is not covered up very well.

I found this book to be a wonderful surprise. If you enjoy the fiction of Raymond Carver, Chekhov, or Tim O'Brien, I would recommend you pick it up. I realize these are big name authors but "Erratics" has the same kind of style and content that I personally can't get enough of. He is able to mix charming characters, witty dialogue, and often dismal circumstances to form a collection of short stories that will leave you smiling.

In typical McMurtry style, there is a good deal of humor and whimsy in this novel. For the first 400 pages or so I felt it was a bit overdone, but once I saw where the novel was headed, it made perfect sense. About the ultimate destination of the novel: it packs quite an emotional punch. Rare indeed is the novel that can make me cry, but this one did it.

Larry McMurty gives us another masterpiece of humor and tears in the continued saga of Aurora Greenway

No writer in the last half of the 20th century was better at character development than McMurtry. In "Terms" he introduced us to Aurora Greenway; here he he expands and burnishes her character while he folds in a supporting cast of almost equally fascinating lesser characters. This was one of those rare tomes I wished would never end. You don't have to like her, but if you finish this book unaffected by la Greenway, you'd best read it again. Aurora's successful plan to ensure her young Grandson would never forget her is one of the most moving sequences I have ever read. Two years after first reading this novel and I still well up just thinking about it.

McMurtry's characters become so real to me that I can barely stand to let them go at the end of his books. I am so glad that I got to see what happened to the people from Terms of Endearment.

Pablo Neruda writes in a style that is so accessible and yet so elegant..
Extravagaria is the first of his books of poems that I have read (having only read some selected poems of his before) - to read the poems as they were meant to be read in this collection is a delight.. I only wish I could read them in Spanish - I guess I will have to hit the books...

A wonderful collection of Naruda's work. There is a sense of settling down in these collection of his work that is really quite beautiful. I also find Alastair Reid's translation more beautiful than others I've seen. The original spanish text on the opposite page is also nice and handy to have.

One of the most interesting books I have ever read. It taught me that there's poetry in every movement we make and every moment we live.

Pablo touched me as no poet that I have read in the last 25 years. His lines particularly sees the world with wisened eyes, writen in his later days. He embraces his past occationally crushing it with bittersweet energy. At the same time he looks forward to rest and what's next. He never stopped Becoming, as Sarte would say, through the years. "Her" declares the need and joy of loving and working life together with his spouse. "Larnyx" chills with news from the doctor that all of humanity dreads.

The spanish on the facing page lets one glimpse at hidden meanings, reaching back for our Spanish 101 or Elementary Latin, a treat. If you buy one poetry book this year, this should be the one. If you are silver haired, as I, then this is the poetry of the decade for you.

Though a part of Texas A&M's military history series, this book often serves as more of a study in the political conflicts between the Defense and State Departments. As a result, it details enough of the conflict between the two to intrigue both Koreaphiles and those interested in the political process and posturing.

The author was in the unique position to know fully about both positions during key moments in Korea's modern history. The result is a read that is sometimes funny, often insightful, and always interesting.

Perhaps what is best about this book is that while it helps to have a basic understanding of Korea's recent history in advance, it is by no means required. Young's straightforward style makes otherwise complicated issues seem as simple as night and day. It also provides a wealth of information in under 200 pages without overwhelming the reader.

Eye on Korea is a tremendous contribution to modern Korean history. It is a very easy and entertaining read. It will appeal to those who know nothing about Korea, and to those of us who have lived or travelled there extensively. There is little to no jargon, things that would not be familiar to the average reader are explained quickly and clearly.

I have spent the better part of my adult life in Korea or working with Koreans. I was surprised and delighted by the things I learned by Eye on Korea. It filled many gaps in my understanding of how things went down in the late 70's and 80's. It was full of names, places and events that I recognized, but had never before had a coherent picture of how they all related. Eye on Korea provides that coherence.

If I am forced to complain about anything, it would be the brevity. I would have enjoyed a couple hundred more pages. It's evident from what Col. Young tells us--and from what he doesn't tell us--that he knows enough to fill volume upon volume.

This is a MUST BUY for anyone interested in Modern Korea or Korean-US relations.

James Young, one of the American military's first area specialists, has written what may well be the most interesting and definitive book on recent Korean-American diplomatic and military relations in print today. Young, a former Army Colonel, spent almost 20 years in Asia, including 14 in Korea, where he was an advisor to five American ambassadors and several Secretaries of Defense. In this appealing memoir, he writes with the expertise of an old Korea hand.

After four years of training in Korean language and culture, Young was a first hand witness and participant as American diplomats convinced South Korean President Park Chung-hee not to develop his own nuclear weapons. The lessons from this experience might well be of use today in dealing with North Korea's nuclear ambitions.

From the perspective of a military attache,Young provides new insights into the intrigue and behind-the-scenes efforts to derail President Jimmy Carter's troop withdrawal policies. His on-the-scene account of the military coup of 1979, and subsequent events, is extraordinarily authoritative and comprehensive, and provides new information for historians. He provides personal observations on the imposition of martial law and the Kwangju incident that followed, when Korean military forces ran amok during protests in the city and killed and wounded hundreds of civilians. For the first time, he details how the United States was caught flat-footed, and how policy makers at the time failed to respond, thus sowing the seeds of anti-Americanism in the years to come.

Additionally, Young's insider account of dealing with the senior leadership in North Korea in both diplomatic negotiations and business settings makes a major contribution to understanding the internal dynamics within this secretive state.

"Eye on Korea" is a great mixture of contemporary military and diplomatic history. It offers stories that are entertaining, provocative, and often humorous. Those interested in the region, the issues, and modern Korea will value this book.

Colonel Jim Young has developed a keen analytical eye for things Korean developed over a multi-decade career of study, friendship and focus on this fascinating but enigmatic country. Young uses the vehicle of autobiography to detail some of the high points in the modern developmental history of South Korea and along the way opens the curtain to an insider's view of US governmental machinations. The Colonel had an uncanny way of being involved over many years with key events in US-Korean relations such as threatened troop withdrawals under President Carter, assassination of President Park, the death of dictator Kim Il-sung in North Korea, the murder of US Army officers and many, many other events. Final chapters discuss nuclear North Korea and the complexity of the tense situation there.
This book offers the reader a fresh insight to events and analysis not seen elsewhere. It is written for a non-technical audience but is valuable for the cognoscenti as well. I recommend 'Eye on Korea' most enthusiastically to every concerned person who wonders what the future holds for America in the vital but tumultuous environment of the Korean Peninsula.

It sounds crazy, but Carter really did a good job of capturing these horses' feelings. What's more, is that he photographed them so well. This is a must have for horse lovers and for people that are wanting a great coffee table addition.

You'll love this.

iKnow

Whoa! No one can begin to describe Keith Carter's style and vision. You have to experience it. It's not just what he sees, it's how he renders it, making it new and timeless too. This is a book you'll want to open often.

i admit i was skeptic when i first heard about this book, and i had no intentions of buying it. i'm not that crazy about horses. but i got a look at an advanced copy, and i saw the the work was just beautiful and i had to have it. be sure to look at orange tree and nude and arabian, which are my two favorite pictures.

I appreciate a good horse as much as the next guy. Looking at horses through Keith's eyes makes me love them. I'm not going to run out and buy tight pants and a helmet because of this book, but you get the idea. The images are well made and seen. Not all of the pictures have the tilt-shift look which has been overdone so that's good. The layout is great. A square book for a square image. Keith's little ditty about Ezekiel's Horse is a warm piece of writing. If you're a Keith Carter fan, buy the book. If you like horses, buy the book. If your interested in photography, buy the book. If your name is Mr. Ed, look for your portrait on page 29, then call your lawyer.

They say that everything in Texas either pricks, bites, or stings, and that isn't COMPLETELY true, but it's close. With this book in hand, you can identify your multi-legged assailant rapidly and accurately and decide whether you need hospitalization and an exterminator or just a Benadryl and a fly swatter. Besides, not all the bugs of Texas are bad bugs--they might still bite and sting, but YOU might not be the target species and the target species might be your enemy: look them up BEFORE you swat.

I was impressed by the overall quality of this book. I wanted an easy-to-use resource book to identify the hundreds of insects I routinely see at my central Texas home, and that's what I got and more! The book was clearly organized with well written description of insects, and in center of book were 63 pages of beautiful, high-quality color photos of the 381 most common insects found in Texas. My only constructive suggestion would be that the "Life Cycle" commentary did not always provide the life expectancy of specific insects.

I found this book to extremely useful for quick field identifications. The pictures are great, as is the accompying descriptive text. The book is well organized so looking up a particular insect is easy. Also the book not only describes various insects but also gives vital information about them, such as their life cycles, impact on man and the enviroment, where they can be found, and what they eat.

This book is very helpful in identifying common Texas insects. Our children love to look up bugs in this book. The only bad thing is having to flip back and forth from the color pictures to the description of the insect. Otherwise, a good book.

Constable's Apprehension is the most entertaining book I have read in a very long time. Laurie Moore's sense of humor is just plain funny. All through out this book, I would laugh out loud on a regular basis. Her characters are quirky and funny. The story flows very well and I couldn't wait to get to the next page to see what would happen next.

Raven's back! And Tarrant County Constable Jinx Porter thinks she's out to get him in the page-turning sequel to the critically-acclaimed CONSTABLE'S RUN. But Raven can't be responsible for the attempts on Jinx's life...not while she's being held hostage in her home by Yucatan Jay, a schizophrenic rogue who claims to be in the CIA. While Jinx's deputies track a slippery fiend who's trying to do in their boss, Fort Worth Police Lt. Sid Klevenhagen sets out to pin the caper on Raven (who's suffering from Stockholm syndrome), and you won't believe who's being paid for leaking confidential information to the crooks! Laurie Moore, attorney and 24-year law enforcement veteran, writes with authority in the latest in the Jinx Porter and Raven series. Climb on the roller-coaster and strap yourself in as you ride it through the heart-pounding, blood-pumping showdown where Jinx comes face-to-face with the person behind the bombings, attempts on his life and the lives of his staff. Moore, the author of THE LADY GODIVA MURDER, cleverly introduces Cezanne Martin into the equation, leaving me to wonder: will she pair up Cezanne and Raven in her next book about these Fort Worth lawdogs? I can hardly wait.

Raven returns in the sequel to CONSTABLE'S RUN, and getting past the vigilant nurses at Our Lady of Mercy Hospital to see her ex-boyfriend, Tarrant County Constable Jinx Porter, is the least of her worries. When she returns home, dejected, she finds herself held hostage by Yucatan Jay, her schizophrenic cousin who claims to be in the CIA. While Jinx befriends Sid Klevenhagen, a former homicide lieutenant who thinks Raven's out to kill Jinx, they divine a plan to keep an eye on her by hiring her to find out who's leaking confidential information from the office and endangering the lives of the staff. There's Dixie, the new secretary from the temporary agency, Georgia, who refuses to come back to work until the assailant is caught, and tough but gentle Dell, who can't seem to get through to Raven that he's the man for her. This was a great amusement park ride and I enjoyed every page of every chapter. You'll never believe who's selling information to the crooks, and it looks like Moore, who writes with authority on all of her police procedurals, is setting up a future book where Raven and Cezanne Martin (THE LADY GODIVA MURDER) pair up as super-sleuths. I can't wait! While it's not imperative for the reader to read these books in order, you must eventually pick up a copy of CONSTABLE'S RUN and THE LADY GODIVA MURDER. Satisfy your lust for a great read! You'll thank me.

Jinx Porter has returned as the Tarrant County constable following the resignation of his former girlfriend Raven. However, his second coming is not quite as pleasant as his first sixteen year term was. Deputy Ivy did everything wrong as the team went to arrest Newton Marble Eye. Instead the felon escapes but not before he shoots Jinx.

Jinx resides in the hospital with his roommate being former homicide detective Sid Klevenhagen, who abruptly dies but his body vanishes. Sid sneaks back into his room to inform Jinx that he obviously did not die, but that Jinx was the target. As Jinx struggles to survive, everyone wonders if Raven is the culprit even while every single male that she knows proposes marriage to her except the one stud she loves.

The latest Jinx-Raven police procedural is a fun tale that provides immense entertainment to sub-genre fans. The story line is as exciting as the previous books in the series, but much more personal as Jinx is the target. Laurie Moore continues to furbish a solid series with a novel that hooks the audience from the moment Jinx explains to his outrageous bunk mate what went wrong.