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Did you know May is Texas Writers Month? Every May since 1994, Texas Writers Month has supported Texas-based authors and writers with book signings, readings, events, and celebrations across the state to celebrate the literary diversity and rich history that Texas has to offer. Below are some recent books that have Texas-interest content as well as authors who live in Texas (Austin, Houston, and Dallas). We think you should read these books to celebrate and support this year’s Texas Writers Month!
Books with Texas Content
Katie Graykowski– Austin, Texas Rose Happily Ever After
Romance | This Texas romance is built around San Antonio “T-Bone” Rose, the handsome farmer who unexpectedly meets a gorgeous princess in disguise, who is on a mission to find her mysterious grandfather.
John Yearwood– Austin, Jar of Pennies
Historical Crime Fiction | Jar of Pennies is based on the true story of a heinous murder in 1991 near Pineland in Southeast Texas that follows a newspaper editor after he finds a crucial piece of evidence that will help solve the murder.
Looking for more great reads for Texas Writers Month? Visit a local bookstore in Austin!
Texas Food and Drink
Mary Bryant Shrader– Austin, The Modern Pioneer Cookbook: Nourishing Recipes from a Traditional Foods Kitchen
Cookbook/Traditional Foods Preservation and Preparation | In her first cookbook, the founder and host of the wildly popular YouTube channel Mary’s Nest (produced in her home in Austin) helps you master the basics of a traditional foods kitchen and shows how to create delicious, made-from-scratch meals that are healthier and more economical than prepared foods, making use of every last kitchen scrap.
Andrew Braunberg– Austin, Fires, Floods, Explosions and Bloodshed: The History of Texas Whiskey
Spirits/Texas History | The story of Texas whiskey has never been documented, despite being full of exciting stories of floods, fires, explosions, and even occasional gun play, and now, Andrew Braunberg brings the stories of Texas whiskey distillers together in a must-have book for any whiskey lover.
Memoirists/Biographers Based in Texas
Kristin Abello– Houston, Sunrise: Life After Traumatic Brain Injury: a Healing Journey in Surviving TBI, an Empowering True Story
Memoir | Kristin Abello shares the story of her experience with a traumatic brain injury, telling how the support and prayers of her husband, family, and friends formed the basis of her miraculous recovery and her advice to others dealing with TBI.
Lynn Forney– Austin, Choosing Survival: How I Endured a Brutal Attack and a Lifetime of Trauma Through the Power of Action, Choice and Self-Expression
Memoir/Self-Improvement/
Amy Weinland Daughters– Tomball/Houston, Dear Dana: That time I went crazy and wrote all 580 of my Facebook friends a handwritten letter
Memoir/Christian Inspirational | When Amy Daughters reconnected with her old friend Dana on Facebook, she learned Dana’s son was battling cancer, and the news drew her to writing handwritten letters, not just to Dana, but to all of her Facebook friends; 580 letters later, Amy’s life would never be the same. When’s the last time you wrote a letter…to a stranger?
Rachel Silber Devlin– Dallas, Snapshots of My Father, John Silber
Biography | In this biography of John Silber, his daughter examines her father’s personality and temperaments, recounting his tenure at The University of Texas, making his mark in many well-known organizations, and the hardships he endured through his continued accomplishments.
More Texas Writers to Read for Texas Writers Month
Julie Rogers– Austin/Georgetown, Falling Stars
Fiction/Urban Fantasy | Nine-year-old Tommy Lucas needs a bone marrow transplant to survive, but he believes his disease is a curse on his bloodline and that he’s a vampire and the only cure is magic–or the same synthetic blood substitute developed for Viscount Claudius Falcon, an urban legend.
Roy Snarr– Austin, Guaranteed Monies: Getting the Most Out of Your Hard-Earned Social Security Money
Finance Management/Retirement Planning | Everyone deserves to get the most out of their hard-earned money, and with this book you will learn about social security credits, spousal benefits, filing for social security, paying taxes on social security, and full retirement age. As a Texas-based financial and insurance expert, Roy Snarr specializes in long-term care for the hundreds of families he helps every year.