Rick Riordan
Air Date:11/27/08
Author
Rick Riordan transformed from a beloved teacher into a best-selling children’s author with The Lightning Thief, the start of a much-loved series about a 12-year-old demigod and his friends. The first book in his next series, The 39 Clues, hit stores in September, with a first run of one million copies. Not grown up enough for you? Riordan also wrote the award-winning Tres Navarre mystery series, set in his hometown of San Antonio.
Susan Orlean
Air Date:11/20/08
Author
Many people know New Yorker staff writer Susan Orlean as the author of The Orchid Thief, a bestselling book that became – sort of – the movie Adaptation. Her writing is so wide-ranging that there’s something for everyone, with perceptive magazine profiles, a cookbook for dogs (co-written by her dog) and now a children’s book called Lazy Little Loafers.
T. Boone Pickens
Air Date:11/13/08
Entrepreneur and Activist
T. Boone Pickens is a Texan’s Texan, known best for huge success in the oil and gas industry. But there’s far more to the story than that. Pickens has also given more than $600 million of his own dollars away. And he has become, in his words, “a surprising environmentalist,” working to push the U.S. away from dependence on foreign oil by developing new sources of power at home.
Post-Election Special
Air Date:11/06/08
Douglas Brinkley, Matthew Dowd & Mark McKinnon
If two years of talking about this election hasn’t been enough, this Texas Monthly Talks taping is for you. Evan Smith hosts a post-election roundtable with three of our state’s smartest political wonks: Douglas Brinkley, Matthew Dowd and Mark McKinnon. We explore what the results of key races mean for the economy, foreign policy, and other important issues.
John Cornyn
Air Date:10/30/08
U.S. Senator & Incumbent
It’s the biggest race in Texas in a white-hot election year. Incumbent Senator John Cornyn has represented the state for six years and earned the rare honor of selection to the the Republican Senate Leadership Team. He’s worked on issues of terrorism, spending, education, ethics and more. And he hopes to return to Washington for another term.
