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Description
Fiction. Literature. Thriller. Historical Fiction. HTML:Spanning four and a half centuries, James A. Michener’s monumental saga chronicles the epic history of Texas, from its Spanish roots in the age of the conquistadors to its current reputation as one of America’s most affluent, diverse, and provocative states. Among his finely drawn cast of characters, emotional and political alliances are made and broken, as the loyalties established over the course of each turbulent age inevitably collapse under the weight of wealth and industry. With Michener as our guide, Texas is a tale of patriotism and statesmanship, growth and development, violence and betrayal—a stunning achievement by a literary master. BONUS: This edition includes an excerpt from James A. Michener's Hawaii. Praise for Texas “Fascinating.”—Time “A book about oil and water, rangers and outlaws, frontier and settlement, money and power . . . [James A. Michener] manages to make history vivid.”—The Boston Globe “A sweeping panorama . . . [Michener] grapples earnestly with the Texas character in a way that Texas’s own writers often don’t.”—The Washington Post Book World “Vast, sprawling, and eclectic in population and geography, the state has just the sort of larger-than-life history that lends itself to Mr. Michener’s taste for multigenerational epics.”—The New York Times.… (more)
User reviews
Michener ably combined a mixture of true events and people with fictional characters and circumstances, crafting a survey of the development of Texas that was both broad and focused. As an example, he discussed the development of cattle ranching that had a wide-angle view, as well as looking at the specific situations of several people involved in ranching as their primary vocation. In a similar fashion he walked through the significant portions of Texas history and development, such as its time as a part of Spanish Mexico, its independence as a Republic and settlement during and after the Civil War.
Texas was a delight to read. I see that I have one more volume by Michener sitting unread on my library shelf. After having this pleasant reacquaintance with Michener's work I suspect that I'll be picking it up sooner rather than later.