Books
October 21, 2019
Why Earl Campbell Matters
A new biography of ’The Tyler Rose’ demonstrates that the legendary running back’s insistence that he wasn’t a transformative racial figure was too modest by half.
Books
Reviews, profiles, and interviews that capture the diverse voices adding to Texas’s rich literary tradition
Books
October 21, 2019
Lara Prescott: “Literature Has Lost None of Its Power to Change Hearts and Minds.”
On this week’s National Podcast of Texas, author Lara Prescott on ’The Secrets We Kept,’ a novel about a real-life CIA plot to publish ’Doctor Zhivago.’…
Energy
October 16, 2019
How One Desperate Energy Executive Launched the Fracking Revolution
When his Houston-based company was on the ropes, George Mitchell pushed his engineers to resuscitate a declining North Texas gas field. The solution they came up with transformed the world.
Books
October 16, 2019
When Texas Democrats Roamed the Earth
Two new books remind us that the Lone Star State once had a nationally powerful tradition of liberalism.
Books
October 11, 2019
Trapped Inside Don Hertzfeldt’s World
The reclusive Austin-based animator is reissuing his cult graphic novel.
Art
October 10, 2019
Illustrator Arturo Torres Brings Basketball, Movies, and Other Things to Life on the Page
The Dallas-based artist has collaborated with writer Shea Serrano on multiple ’New York Times’ best-sellers.
Books
October 8, 2019
Cristela Alonzo’s ‘Mixtape Memoir’ Is an Ode to Her South Texas Roots
South Texas–born Comedian Cristela Alonzo tells the story of her life through songs.
The Culture
October 4, 2019
Texas Monthly Recommends: Matthew McConaughey in So-Bad-It’s-Good “Serenity”
Plus, a melancholy Norah Jones duet, Austin singer Christelle Bofale’s EP, and chef Aarón Sanchéz’s new memoir.
Books
September 23, 2019
Austin Kleon: “Scumbags and Lowlifes Can Create Beautiful Art”
On this week’s National Podcast of Texas, a conversation with the writer/illustrator about sustaining a creative life, the state of self-help, and the perils of cancel culture.
The Culture
September 20, 2019
Texas Monthly Recommends: ‘Undone’ and Its Rotoscoped San Antonio
Plus, a bakery perfect for late-night cravings and an interactive Austin literary experience.
Books
September 16, 2019
Kimberly King Parsons: “Maybe We Call What I Do Queer Psychedelic Texas Fiction?”
On this week’s National Podcast of Texas, a conversation with the Plano-raised writer whose debut story collection, ‘Black Light,’ has garnered rave reviews.
Books
September 10, 2019
Resurrecting ‘Stories That Must Not Die,’ A Chilling, Seminal Collection of South Texas Folklore
The Tejano goth classic is an essential bilingual teaching aid and trove of the region’s most beloved tales, including ”La Llorona.”…
Books
August 23, 2019
Kimberly King Parsons’s Fiction Illuminates Intimate Texas Moments
The Lubbock-born author reflects on her debut short story collection, ‘Black Light.’…
Sports
August 20, 2019
What This Lifelong Longhorns Fan Learned From the New Earl Campbell Biography
Asher Price’s book about the legendary UT running back is full of surprises.
Books
August 20, 2019
A Filipino Family’s Journey to Texas
A New York Times reporter pushes back against xenophobia with an intimate portrait of a Galveston clan.
Books
August 19, 2019
Katherine Center: “I Don’t Want to Write Depressing Fiction”
On this week’s National Podcast of Texas, the Houston author discusses her new novel, ‘Things You Save in a Fire.’…
Books
August 9, 2019
Jia Tolentino Explores the Perils of Self-Delusion in Her First Book
The cultural critic, who grew up in Houston, reflects on her debut book.
Books
August 5, 2019
Chandler Baker: “Even With #MeToo, Speaking Out Can Be Risky”
On this week’s National Podcast of Texas, the author of ’Whisper Network’ discusses workplace harassment and using fiction to effect change.
Books
July 12, 2019
Houston TV Legend Dave Ward Got By With a Little Help From His Friends
In his new memoir, the longtime KTRK news anchor opens up about his nearly sixty years of Texas broadcasting.
Books
June 28, 2019
Farewell to the “Rambling Boy,” Lonn Taylor
The Fort Davis historian and raconteur knew and loved Texas and its people like no one else.
Books
June 26, 2019
What Happens When a Houston Energy Guru Messes With the Power Grid?
’Wall Street Journal’ reporter Russell Gold’s new book, ’Superpower,’ crafts an engaging narrative of one man’s quest to modernize the American energy business.
Books
June 25, 2019
Remembering Don Graham, the Demanding Critic Who Helped Put Texas Literature on the Map
The UT professor and longtime ’Texas Monthly’ contributor died on Saturday at the age of 79 after a stroke.
Books
June 11, 2019
The Best New Barbecue Books of 2019 So Far
This year's crop of smoked-meat cookbooks includes everything from an 18th-century recipe to the latest techniques for unusual dishes.
Books
June 3, 2019
S. Craig Watkins: “Millennials Are in Pursuit of Opportunity and Dignity, Not Wealth and Celebrity”
On this week’s National Podcast of Texas, the UT media scholar and ‘Don’t Knock the Hustle’ author outlines how millennials are defying stereotypes and creating a “new innovation economy.”…
Books
May 24, 2019
On Texas Time: Shea Serrano, Best-selling Author and the Pied Piper of Social Media
The author of 'The Rap Yearbook' and 'Basketball (and Other Things)' talks his latest book and his beginnings as a writer.
Books
May 21, 2019
Admiral William McRaven Tells Spellbinding ‘Sea Stories’
The new book by the retired special forces commander and former UT chancellor is filled with tales from an adventure-seeking life.
Books
May 20, 2019
Diana Kennedy Reflects on a Lifetime of Changing the Way Americans See Mexican Food
The fiercely passionate author, now 96, recently donated her extensive archives and rare cookbooks to UTSA.
Sports
May 20, 2019
Kirk Goldsberry: “In the NBA, Analytics and Aesthetics Aren’t Always Compatible”
On this week’s National Podcast of Texas, the UT professor and 'Sprawlball' author describes how data analysis has transformed basketball.
Music
May 17, 2019
Texas Monthly Recommends: Khalid and John Mayer Make a Summer Hit
Plus, Mary H.K. Choi’s novel about young adulthood in Austin, a classic Cyd Charisse film, and Liza Koshy’s YouTube series.
Books
May 14, 2019
Does Tony Horwitz’s New Book Get Texas Right?
In ‘Spying on the South,’ the author of the bestselling ‘Confederates in the Attic’ offers a few pungent opinions about the Lone Star State.
Books
May 7, 2019
San Antonio–Based Poet Naomi Shihab Nye Named Young People’s Poet Laureate
The Palestinian-American author is the first Arab to receive the Poetry Foundation award.
Music
May 6, 2019
Rhett Miller: “I Was Terrified I Wouldn’t Be Creative Without Booze”
On this week’s National Podcast of Texas, the Old 97’s frontman discusses his new book of poetry for children, the creative benefits of sobriety, and the song he’s dying to have Willie Nelson sing.
Books
April 24, 2019
The Psychedelic State of South Texas
Fernando A. Flores’s debut novel, ‘Tears of the Trufflepig,’ is an exhilarating borderland dystopia.
Books
April 24, 2019
Exclusive Excerpt: Oscar Cásares’s Border Novel ‘Where We Come From’
In Texas Monthly writer-at-large Oscar Cásares’s forthcoming novel, a retired high school teacher in Brownsville is reluctantly pulled into the world of human trafficking.
Books
March 19, 2019
In ‘Lot,’ Bryan Washington Brings the Polyphony of Houston to the Page
In his first fiction collection, Bryan Washington evokes a Houston that’s in Texas but not entirely of Texas.
Books
March 14, 2019
Houston’s Arte Público Press Gets a 40th Birthday Present
Tonight, the country’s largest Latino publisher receives a Lifetime Achievement Award from the National Book Critics’ Circle.
Food
March 8, 2019
Texas Monthly Recommends: Learning How to Cook Mouth-Watering Desserts From Dallas-Raised Chef Priya Krishna
Plus, the songs we can't stop listening to, from George Strait's latest to one of the first rock and roll songs to Weird Al Yankovic's classic Chamillionaire remix.
Best Thing In Texas
March 6, 2019
The Best Thing in Texas: This Beaumont Principal’s “Tucked In Tuesdays” Bedtime Reading Warms Our Hearts
Belinda George makes sure that every student at her elementary school gets read to at night.
Books
February 22, 2019
‘Letters From the Pit’ Tells Tales From an Austin ER With Humor and Empathy
In his new memoir, the former chief of emergency medicine at Brackenridge Hospital recounts stories that are by turns tragic, triumphant, and NSFW.
Books
February 19, 2019
How UT Press Scored Its First Best-Seller in Decades
Hanif Abdurraqib's new book about hip-hop pioneers A Tribe Called Quest has reached No. 8 on the New York Times list.
The Culture
February 8, 2019
Texas Monthly Recommends: Selena and David Byrne Recorded a Song Together and It’s So Good
Plus, rap from San Antonio, essays from Houston, and landscape photography from across the state.
Books
February 4, 2019
Q&A With Author Elizabeth McCracken: “Austin Is a City of Books As Much As Music”
The award-winning writer and UT professor talks about her new novel, 'Bowlaway,' and how teaching and Texas have affected her work.
Books
January 22, 2019
Joe Nick Patoski: “Austin’s Always Been Where Outsiders Come to Work Out Their Ideas”
On the latest National Podcast of Texas, we talk to the author about his new book, ‘Austin to ATX,’ which attempts to demystify Austin’s dramatic transition from small town to global city.
Books
January 3, 2019
Amy Gentry’s ‘Last Woman Standing’ Evens the Score
In her second novel, Gentry mines women’s commonplace experiences with abusive men to create a page-turning thriller.
Books
December 22, 2018
Texas Authors on Their Favorite Books of 2018
From a sophisticated thriller to a vulnerable memoir to imaginative short stories, Texas authors recommend their favorite books from 2018.
Film & TV
December 18, 2018
‘Where’d You Go, Bernadette’: The First Trailer for Richard Linklater’s New Film Is Here
The adaptation of the 2012 bestseller looks like quirky fun.
Politics & Policy
November 19, 2018
Michael Lewis: “Instead of Draining the Swamp, Trump Has Filled It With Slithery Green Creatures”
On our latest podcast, a conversation with author Michael Lewis about the consequences of what he believes is a federal government awash in corruption, special interests, and glaring conflicts.
Sports
November 19, 2018
A Look Inside ‘Rollergirls,’ a Photo Book About Flat-Track Roller Derby in Austin
Felicia Graham’s new book 'Rollergirls' tells the story of Austin’s thriving flat-track roller derby scene through photos.
Books
October 20, 2018
Octavio Solis’s Memoir ‘Retablos’ Offers a Vision of El Paso’s Border Beyond the News
Told through vignettes, 'Retablos,' a memoir by playwright Octavio Solis, depicts the myths and realities of a childhood along the border.
Books
October 19, 2018
Getting to Know Billy Lee Brammer
A new biography charts the rise and fall of the author of 'The Gay Place,' a book many regard as the Great Texas Novel.