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Loading... God save Texas : a journey into the soul of the Lone Star State (edition 2019)by Lawrence Wright
Work InformationGod Save Texas: A Journey into the Soul of the Lone Star State by Lawrence Wright
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Sign up for LibraryThing to find out whether you'll like this book. No current Talk conversations about this book. An interesting read, especially for a life-long Texan who also taught Texas history. I failed to uncover anything very revealing. Almost everything covered was information any Texan has reviewed often in the news. The main complaint I have is that there is not a thread that ties all the stories/reports together. It seems to be a series of separate essays gathered up from over the years. It is loosely tied together by the author telling about his travels to this place or that, stories of whom he met or traveled with at the time, and what he experienced there. I thought there would be an overarching theme or message to his stories, but if it's there it is well hidden. The only thread I noticed is a decidedly anti-conservatism throughout. He is quite critical of almost all Texas conservative politicians and political supporters. Nothing really offensive, but he just isn't equally critical of the more liberal Texans. Lawrence Wright's book "God Save Texas" is part memoir, part personal stories, and part a look into into Texas culture, history, politics and current events. Some parts are slow and drag, but other parts quite interesting. It's a little scary hearing about some of the people who get elected there though. One, on voting against bi-lingual education, explained ... "if English was good enough for Jesus, it should be good enough for everybody". Or, another official, on why there are no dinosaurs alive today, stated that it's because when Noah picked dinosaur pairs to board the Ark, he selected a pair too young, and they weren't able to breed. Overall, the stories contained are insightful and interesting, and told with a bit of humor. no reviews | add a review
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Texas is arguably the most controversial state in America. It is a red state in the heart of Trumpland that hasn't elected a Democrat to a statewide office in more than twenty years, but it is also a state in which minorities already form a majority, including the largest Muslim population in the country. The cities are blue and among the most diverse in the nation. Oil is still king, but Texas now leads California in technology exports. The Texas economic model of low taxes and minimal regulation has produced extraordinary growth but also striking income disparities. Texas looks a lot like the America that Donald Trump wants to create. Native Texan Wright portrays a state that not only reflects our country back as it is, but as it was and as it might be. No library descriptions found. |
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Google Books — Loading... GenresMelvil Decimal System (DDC)917.6404History and Geography Geography and Travel Geography of and travel in North America South Central U.S. Texas StatewideLC ClassificationRatingAverage:
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I learned a lot about the power and culture of Texas from Lawrence Wright's God Save Texas. The chapter that covers fracking can't be beat. The stories are funny, sometimes shocking and the author tends to meander off the subject sometimes. The book held my interest except for the meander which was mostly at the end. If you are thinking about moving to Texas, definitely read this book and then decide. Personally this state is too big for me. But I cannot find a more affordable place. ( )