Texas Books

If you like Michael Connelly, you'll enjoy Raymond Benson's Evil Hours. Unresolved questions about her mother's murder lead Shannon Reece to explore the seamy secrets of her home town. Along the way, Shannon must come to terms with her personal demons as she questions just how much she really needs to know.

Raymond Benson is known for writing the continuation James Bond novels, so when I picked up this, his first non-Bond book, I expected a tightly crafted fast moving mystery thriller. I wasn't disappointed. But what did surprise me was how darkly moving EVIL HOURS was as a neo-noir crime drama. I've heard other reviewers liken this book to Twin Peaks, and while I do see similarities, I think that's selling this book a bit short. I was reminded more of intense real-life crime dramas like The Onion Field and The Thin Blue Line. Benson's masterful use of detail makes the book so believable that, by the end, it has evolved from a mystery thriller into something that's very tragic and profound. And darn right creepy in a "this-only-happens-in-real-life" sort of way. The emotional reality of the book is what sets it apart from other thrillers by better-known authors, and what makes it surpasses even Benson's Bond books as a work of fiction (suggesting a bright future for Benson after Bond). By the end of this book -- with the ultimate revelation and CHILLING reenactment of the crime -- I found myself creeped-out and moved at the same time. Wild. This book was a real experience and one I would recommend highly, especially if you're a fan of character driven true-life crime. It would also make a terrific film.

Raymond Benson, author of the recent James Bond novels, has given us something completely different: a novel that reminds me of that movie "Lone Star" or similar-- it takes place in a small Texas town and is the story about a murder, or a mystery of a murder, and how one woman searches for the truth about what happened. The narrative is interesting, moving back and forth from the present to the past, and slowly revelations are unravelled. I found it to be haunting, moody, and compelling.

If you have ever wondered what really goes on at the White House, this is the book to buy. David Kennerly had more access to the inner workings of the White House than any other photographer, before or since. These photos certainly prove it. For any student of history, or photography, this is one book to have on your shelf. As a working photojournalist for 35 years, I have had the pleasure of working beside Kennerly and can say that besides being a great photographer, he is one of the gentlemen of the business, an old-school hero to many an up and coming photographer. Don't miss out on this book.

David Hume-Kennerly is one of the most gifted photojournalists of our generation. He was chosen by Gerald Ford to be the "eyes of the nation on the presidency" after the insanity of paranoia that was Nixon's Whitehouse. This resulted in David becoming a "member" of the Ford family and thus having total access to the reality of The Pardon, The End of The War, and everything else that happened in those short Ford years. (As a fellow Shooter, his was the only job that I was INSANELY jealous of because he was the permanent `fly on the wall'!)

This book shares with us those times and shows us how lucky this country was to have had this strong and honest man at the top when we needed those qualities the most.

I truly hope that DHK is awarded another Pulitzer for this work.

Marshall Darling on The Cape

Aside from the stunning photography which I'll get to, this important book gave me new insights into a mostly overlooked Presidency. Kennerly documented the Ford Presidency and shows us the actual moments that some of the most significant decisions in American history were made- the Nixon pardon and leaving Vietnam to name two- thus revealing Ford as a true leader and rare politician willing to act on his beliefs regardless of consequences. (I say this as a lifelong Democrat!) As you go through the book, the range of images and perfect moments add up to a master class of great photojournalism, timeless, classic and relevant. The access he gained to intimate family moments, such as Betty Ford recovering from breast surgery, is astounding and says much about Kennerly's sensitivity and the trust he gained. It feels very emotional, intimate and world's away from our current super-posed, photo-op political culture. What is truly amazing is how easy he makes the photography look. Almost every image here is archetypal, profoundly primal, and about the subjects, not the photographer. The beauty of his work is the Zen of it; the essence of the story and person is revealed in the most graceful way. "Extraordinary Circumstances" fills an important gap in American history from a rare talent given a ringside seat, an incredible achievement.

I'm the proud owner of the entire Eyebeam series. They are constantly out on loan. This book shows that humor can be brilliant, but not vulgar or cynical. Adults get it on a certain level and kids on another. Rare in that it has the nationally syndicated chracters from the Universal Features "Peaches" strip, as well as the ones that were too "grown up" for that strip, interacting together. Rod and Ratliff are developed in this book. I sure miss the old "Eyebeam" Strip..... This reminds me why.

This book of Eyebeam cartoons contains some classics--Ratliff leading the cops to the mall parking lot because a windshield sunshade says "Help! Call Police!"; the one about the Night Pedestals for cats (cars parked along the curb); the sequence in which Three-Initial Corporation is taken over by Brand X.

Direct, clear humor. Unusual drawing style. Characters include lawyers, children, pompous yuppies, hapless students, and the all-time favorite--"Hank the Hallucination." Captures Austin's surreal reality perfectly.

It is absolutely outrageous that the Eyebeam series is out of print. Example: Ratliff is in the tub singing Michelle Ma Belle, Eyebeam enters and says " is that ABSOLUTELY necessary?" and Ratliff innocently replies, "well no, but it sure makes me smell better." This was bar none the funniest comic ever done. OUT OF PRINT? Criminal.

I have become a Harvey Girl re-enactor with the El Paso Railroad Museum since January 2006, giving presentations & doing research. FAR FROM HOME is the main resource for Harvey Girl uniforms. Our number of re-enactors is increasing, so we now have begun monthly meetings to discuss scripts for presentations, costumes for the span of time periods that the Harvey Girls existed, along with participation in historical events with other groups covering a similar time period. In addition, we are collecting & exhibiting Fred Harvey dinnerware & Santa Fe Railway dinnerware & preparing/serving food samples from the HARVEY HOUSE COOKBOOK. Since I am a retired school teacher as of May 2005 & a nutritionist, this is a perfect retirement activity for me. Thank you Lesley for all that you have published on the Harvey Girls ! !

A story/paperdoll book that even adults love

I've been collecting paper dolls for years, and this is one of the best books I've found. There are 6 dolls (4 women and 2 men) with a nice variety of costumes. The clothes are beautifully drawn and obviously well-researched (but kind of tricky to cut out). As an easterner, I know almost nothing about western history, and the diary entries that tell the stories of two sisters who become Harvey Girls are very interesting and definitely made me want to learn more about them.

In the first lines of Rex Anderson's fourth and latest novel we meet the main character, Private Investigator Tony Aapt-- a clever and, well, apt name considering that anything is apt to happen in this fresh and funny story about a David-Duchovny-ish gumshoe who finds himself suddenly reunited with an aging bartender pal, 30 years a widow now and recently come into BIG money, who throws the goofy, charming Tony, teller of tall detective tales, a BIG job-- to prove her husband's alleged suicide was actually cold-blooded murder. It's questionable at first if Tony has the, uh, aptitude to investigate this long-dead case-- thus far his forays into solving crimes and misdemeanors have earned him only an apartment full of shabby furniture, a refrigerator full of low-end domestic beer, and an ancient auto. But off goes Tony through a labyrinth of crossing paths-- from esteemed professors at Rice University to gay bars and their sometimes surprising patrons, from a high schoo! l football star turned big-bellied baseball fanatic to the richest of Houston's rich to the pinnacles of political power. And, in the midst of it all-- the seemingly clear-cut autopsy photos, the clear-eyed newly rich widow who KNOWS who killed her husband and why-- stands the forlorn and baffling lawnmower...

Lawnmower Blues captures your attention like rapid gunfire-- and I promise you will not stop reading this book until Anderson's done with you. If you like murder mysteries heavily peppered with hilarity and the shrewd weaving of people's strange lives and (mis)deeds, this is a must read. If you only treat yourself to one private dick this summer, make it Anderson's Tony Aapt.

Rex Anderson did a great job on this book! It reads like a classic private detective story, but in a modern day setting. The plot moves along nicely and there is the right amount of history provided to fully understand the characters. The book kept me guessing right until the last page! A perfect 3-4 hour book for a trip on the airplane!

In 1999 Houston private investigator Tony Aapt inherited a ton of debt when his grandfather died and left him the family sleuthing business. Fiftyish former bartender Maggie Hawk recently won a sweepstakes that guarantees her 500K per year for twenty years. She wants Tony, who frequented her bar with exaggerated tales of his work, to look into the death of her husband George W. Hawk in 1966. Tony looks at the detailed information she provides him and agrees with the official ruling of suicide until she begins to make a case that her spouse did not kill himself; he was murdered to steal his invention, a safe lawnmower blade.

Needing the money but feeling guilty as the clues will be cold and he has no experience with this type of inquiry Tony begins his investigation. He soon becomes convinced that people were paid off by the legendary lawnmower king Jason Woods to hide a homicide and a stolen invention, but how to prove it proves difficult especially when the target of his case offers him a job he cannot afford to refuse.

Tony makes the case fun to follow as he fumbles and bumbles the investigation, but perhaps it is in the DNA because he keeps moving forward one clue at a time. The hero is apt to fail not only due to his lack of experience, but also he is going up against a highly regarded superheavyweight who has much more power than when he seemingly bribed the world three decades ago. Fans will enjoy the twists to LAWNMOWER BLUES as Rex Anderson provides a fine mystery starring a wannabe hard boiled detective who is undercooked and truly a softy.

Harriet Klausner

Fascinating new police series starring compelling heroine, Cezanne Martin. Cezanne wants nothing more than to leave the Fort Worth police department than to take a prosecutor position with the District Attorney's Office. But the day she finds out she passed the Texas bar exam, her partner is accused of murder. Cezanne stays on with the idea of clearing him, but the pressure heats up when she's stuck in an office with the wife of her former lover. The journey to save her partner leads Cezanne into the slimy underbelly of Fort Worth's strip joints, where she links a stripper named Hollywood to the Lady Godiva murder. During Cezanne's investigation, she discovers two more homicides tie-in to her case. Cezanne has gotten too close; officer turns against officer, and Lady Godiva's killer wants her dead. I didn't see the end coming to this exciting novel and it left me yearning to read the sequel. I understand The Wild Orchid Society will be released in 2004 and I can't wait. Laurie Moore writes with authority on this police community and I loved the cameo appearances from the Constable from one of her other books, CONSTABLE'S RUN. Pick up a copy. You won't regret it.

Cezanne Martin is a Fort Worth PD homicide detective who longs to be an assistant DA. But when her partner is accused of murder, she foregoes her prosecutorial dream to help vindicate him. This makes her a pariah within her own department, but that's not the half of it...someone doesn't want her solving The Lady Godiva Murder and will go as far as murder to keep her from finding the real killer. Moore's character, Cezanne, is quick-witted and smart, edgy and vulnerable, and quite endearing with the added backstory of how she got on the police department and the enemies she's made by doing her job. The ending is impressive. I'm hooked on this Fort Worth police community and I can hardly wait for the sequel, THE WILD ORCHID SOCIETY.

Laurie Moore is giving Sue Grafton and Janet Evanovich a run for their money! Cezanne' is a great character with a riveting back story. I cannot wait until the next book in the series is out.

This book does a very good job of listing fresh water fishing sites all over the state of Texas with information on what sort of fish to expect. It's geared to the fly fisherman of course but would be useful to anyone wanting to fish fresh waters of Texas. It list essentially all the rivers and lakes in the state and where the access points are. In a few cases it would be nice to have more specific instructions on how to get to the access point but it's still a very thorough listing of places to fish and what to expect when you get there.

Wow! What a terrific book! Fly fishers all over the state
are talking about the most comprehensive book written for
fly fishing Texas. This is the book to carry in your vehicle
when off gallivating in the hill country, the pineywoods
or the gulf coast. Congratulations Phil!
Constance Whiston

I have been an avid flyfisher for some 30+ years and have read countless books on the topic. Phil Shook provides a very interesting perspective, and although his observations and directions are specific to Texas, he does provide an excellent basis for any angler's personal quest for solitary fishing waters. As well as being very well written, providing interesting and helpful information, as well as tips on flies and equipment, the book contains locations, accommodations, and meal planning advise. This book will certainly be an asset to any angler, pro or novice wishing to improve their catches.

From the beginning, where Anderson announces that to understand present American politics, one must grasp that Texas is a third world country whose capitol is Houston, he grabs the reader's attention and doesn't let it go. (Not only is Texas a 'third world country,' but Bush et al. have tried to run the US the same way... and were successful for several years.) _Follow_ tracks several characters (DeLay, Bush, Abramoff) through a twisting maze of money laundering, fraud, and crooked politics.

Much of the book focuses on the Delay/Abramoff scandal, though he outlines clear ties between Abramoff and Karl Rove. (eg. Rove's personal assistant is Abramoff's former personal assistant.)

If you're not the sort of person who reads the news, this is not the book for you. If, on the other hand, you wish to know just how the American government was stolen by politicians more familiar with the Banana Republic known as Texas (and how it all fell apart...), buy this book.

"Follow the Money" begins in Houston, a city 62% minority, one of the most ozone-polluted areas in the country, and the largest city in the U.S. without zoning regulations. In 1994, top Texas officials were all Democrats, as was the majority of its House and Senate, and its Congressmen in Washington. The only exception was its two national Senators - both Republicans. George W. Bush won the Governor's seat in 1994, beating incumbent Ann Richards with 53% of the vote. (The author suspects that Rush Limbaugh's popularity in the state was a factor.)

After a brief introduction to James Baker (major player in the Bush I administration, and architect of Bush II's Florida win), the scene shifts inexplicably to Jack Abramoff, Tom DeLay, Grover Norquist, and Karl Rove. It's on to Abramoff's first clients (Marianas Islands - fighting to retain their exemption from U.S. labor laws, and a Mississippi Indian tribe trying to prevent new competition in nearby Alabama), DeLay's creation of the K-Street Project and relief for corporations from taxation and regulation.

Abramoff goes on to create a number of false front organizations to launder his fees and donations, double-cross one Indian tribe client (also worked for their competitor against them), made numerous contacts with Karl Rove and the White House (learned despite use of Republican National Committee e-mails to elude retention requirement), etc.

A well-detailed and sordid history of recent American politics.

"Follow the Money" is, as John Anderson writes, a "first pass at history," an effort to chronicle a "vast web of intrigue." He might well have said a vast web of corruption, as intricate as a Mark Lombardi diagram, for that is the book's subject -- the barely concealed but highly complex efforts of Tom Delay, Jack Abramoff, and a host of others, most with close ties to Texas, in their bald pursuit of money and power. Abramoff's story is particularly appalling -- for example, Anderson explains how Abramoff manipulated the anti-gambling Christian right in the service of his pro-gambling Native American clients who wished to crush competing tribes in nearby states, and then turned around to represent those same competing tribes in their efforts to legalize gambling -- but it is only one strand in Anderson's fascinating story.

Anderson's account is thoroughly documented and fair minded, acknowledging honesty and integrity on either side of the aisle whenever it presents itself. Witness the examples of Paul O'Neill, James Comey, and even John Ashcroft, all of whom come out quite well in Anderson's account.

Although George W. Bush is certainly an actor in this tale, his relative absence, compared to others, is telling in and of itself. Bush is not a prime mover in his own universe. That role falls to others, such as Dick Cheney and Karl Rove (yet another Texan).

Anderson's story, exposing the naked power grab of the Republicans in Washington, D.C. (and particularly in Congress), as well as in Texas, is a shocker. We can only hope the Democrats in Congress, and perhaps soon the White House, do a better job.

In our time of displeasure at government bureacracies, in a climate of cynicism and lost hopes, this story stands out and provides a light for us to follow. Although the suffering of the people of Burundi is brutal and truly sickening to the soul, the story of their plight and rise to move forward is heartening. Senator Krueger and his family displayed admiral courage in a theatre of true terror and life-threatening dramas. How many of us would have stood up to speak for the downtrodden when it meant our own lives were at risk...and those of our family?

This is more than an adventure story. It is a tale of the moral standards that can matter in the world, when the structure of civilized peoples is crumbling. We must learn from this and heed the wisdom of one of the last clear voices from the political estate left in the United States. Senator Krueger's appeal for peace and reconciliation is the call for action we must all heed or find ourselves caught in the disruption of our own alienated society.


Rick Tobin
Host of "The Road to Ready"
President/CEO
TAO Emergency Mangement Consulting

This book is well written and is very thorough. A must read for those interested in the realpolitik and history of Burundi and the internal conflict between Tutsi's and Hutus in the central African country. This book also provides great detail about the role and responsibilities of an Ambassador working on behalf of the United States and the ideological differences held within the State Department about the proper role the United States should play in Burundi.

This book is both harrowing and inspiring. Ambassador Krueger details how a dictator with an army used violence on his own countrymen to subvert a nascent democracy. Krueger's struggle to gain international attention for the genocide-in-progress reveals flaws in various national & international institutions -- flaws that still require scrutiny and improvement today. Mrs. Krueger's chapters vividly make the point that foreign service a family matter. Both authors provide moving portraits of individuals who worked in their own quiet or overt ways to stop the genocide; the ordinary-extraordinary courage of these people reminds one of Paul Rusesabagina's story. The Kruegers' conclusions about how a nation can move forward after genocide and autocracy offer hope for Burundi and much matter for thought for other areas of the world.