Did you make a New Year’s resolution to read more? How is it going?
Finding a good book can be difficult, especially if you are specifically interested in certain genres such as mystery, politics, westerns, crime, horror or coming-of-age.
With these categories in mind, here are ten novels set in Texas that you can borrow from your local library, purchase from your local bookstore, or add to your reading list.
“Aristotle and Dante discover the secrets of the universe” by Benjamin Alire Sáenz
Dante and Aristotle are loners, but completely different. Dante is confident, while Aristotle struggles with words. Dante is open, while Aristotle has built a wall around himself.
When the two teenagers meet at a swimming pool, a bond is formed between them that teaches them the most important truths of their lives and helps them become the people they want to become. Only through the power of their friendship and belief in each other will they be able to face the hurdles that come their way and emerge stronger in the end.
Year of publication: 2012
Genre: Grow up
“Blood Meridian or The Sunset in the West” by Cormac McCarthy
The novel is based on historical events on the Texas-Mexican border in the 1850s and follows the fate of The Kid, a 14-year-old who ends up in a macabre world where Native Americans are killed and the market for their scalps is booming.
The novel is difficult to read, as some readers felt that the individual chapters had no particular connection to each other and that the violence was excessive and graphic.
Year of publication: 1985
Genre: western
“Derby Girl” by Shauna Cross
Bliss Cavendar is a blue-haired, indie-rock-loving outsider stuck in Bodeen, Texas. Her beauty pageant-addicted mother expects her to enter the local competition for the crown, but Bliss decides to escape her mother’s world and immerse herself in the world of roller derby.
When she discovers a league in nearby Austin, her journey begins with boys in bands, new friends in tattooed girls, and some not-so-great realities she learns the hard way.
Year of publication: 2007
Genre: Grow up
“Holes” by Louis Sachar
Stanley Yelnats is under a curse that stems from his good-for-nothing, dirty, lousy, pig-stealing great-great-grandfather. The curse hits Stanley when he is sent to Camp Green Lake, a youth prison where boys build character by spending their days digging holes.
Stanley realizes that the constant digging is not only for character building, but also to help the camp director find something that was buried decades ago.
Year of publication: 1998
Genre: Grow up
The Killer Inside Me by Jim Thompson
Lou Ford, the deputy sheriff of Central City, Texas, is popular with everyone and is considered the nicest guy in town. But behind his friendly demeanor lurks a monster that unfortunately only a few have seen.
When his brother Mike falls to his death, Lou suspects that it was anything but an accident at work. He is determined to avenge his brother and is willing to do anything – even kill innocents.
Year of publication: 1952
Genre: crime
Leather Maiden by Joe R. Lansdale
Cason Statler is a Gulf War veteran and Pulitzer Prize-nominated journalist. However, after becoming embroiled in a scandalous affair, he loses his job in Houston and returns to Camp Rapture, Texas.
In an effort to get back on his feet, he takes a job at the local newspaper and stumbles upon notes on an unsolved murder case. As he delves deeper into the case, he realizes that the unsolved crime is connected to events that have recently occurred in the city and soon finds himself embroiled in a deadly game of blackmail and murder.
Year of publication: 2008
Genre: Secret
“Lonesome Dove” by Larry McMurtry
Woodrow Call and Augustua McCrae are two retired Texas Rangers who run the Hat Creek Cattle Company. Woodrow is growing restless in retirement and Augustus misses the love of his life in Nebraska.
After learning about the Milk River in Montana, the two and a group of five others lead a cattle drive from the small town of Lonesome Dove into the uninhabited areas of Montana. But will their mission succeed or fail?
Year of publication: 1985
Genre: western
“Lost Children Archive” by Valeria Luiselli
A couple and their two children plan to take a road trip from New York to Arizona in the middle of summer. The father wants to work on a project about the Apache Islands, while the mother wants to find information about her friend’s daughters – two children who crossed the border to seek asylum and disappeared into federal custody.
During the journey, the children feel the tension between their parents growing and realize that their family may soon fall apart. Worried about the missing children, the young son runs away with his younger sister, leaving the parents a map to reunite them after trying to find the lost daughters.
Year of publication: 2019
Genre: Politically
Midnight Cowboy by James Leo Herlihy
Joe Buck, a naive but ambitious Texan, decides to leave his state and move to New York City in the hopes of living a glamorous life as a gigolo. But the Big Apple turns out to be a more difficult place than he imagined.
As Joe reflects on his childhood in the Lone Star State, he soon finds himself in a difficult situation and meets street prostitute Ratso Rizzo, who changes the Texan’s life – (more or less) for the better.
Year of publication: 1965
Genre: crime
“The Outsider” by Stephen King
When the body of an 11-year-old is found in a city park in Oklahoma, eyewitnesses and fingerprints point to Terry Maitland, the town’s little league coach. Detective Ralph Anderson arrests him, but soon discovers that Terry has a rock-solid alibi and DNA evidence.
As the investigation progresses, Ralph, a private investigator, and others learn of an outsider named “El Cuco.” The sinister presence forces the group to travel to Texas and find out if Terry is really the killer or if a folk tale is true.
Year of publication: 2018
Genre: horror
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John Oliva covers entertainment and local news in South Texas. Contact him at [email protected] or X @johnpoliva.
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