State of minds : Texas culture and its discontents /
Graham, Don,1940-
Austin, Tex. : University of Texas Press,
2011.
In a strong personal voice--wry, humorous, and ironic--Graham offers his take on Texas literary giants ranging from J. Frank Dobie to Larry McMurtry and Cormac McCarthy and on films such as The Alamo, The Last Picture Show, and Brokeback Mountain. He locates the works he discusses in relation to time and place, showing how they sprang (or not) from the soil of Texas and thereby helped to define Texas culture for generations of readers and viewers--including his own younger self growing up on a farm in Collin County. Never shying from controversy and never dull, Graham's essays in State of Minds demolish the notion that "Texas culture" is an oxymoron.
Includes bibliographical references.
The ayes of Texas -- pt. 1. Lucas, Texas, Lucas, Texas ; Owens County ; White like me ; Cotton tale ; Catcher in the raw -- pt. 2. Cultre. Master class ; Fallen heroes ; The pits ; Accentuate the negative ; Giant ; The write brothers ; Expatriate act ; Nation state ; All the pretty corpses ; Dear Cormac -- pt. 3. Discontents. Wayne's world ; Picture perfect ; Donnie does Dallas ; Brokeback Mountain in my Rearview mirror.
In a strong personal voice--wry, humorous, and ironic--Graham offers his take on Texas literary giants ranging from J. Frank Dobie to Larry McMurtry and Cormac McCarthy and on films such as The Alamo, The Last Picture Show, and Brokeback Mountain. He locates the works he discusses in relation to time and place, showing how they sprang (or not) from the soil of Texas and thereby helped to define Texas culture for generations of readers and viewers--including his own younger self growing up on a farm in Collin County. Never shying from controversy and never dull, Graham's essays in State of Minds demolish the notion that "Texas culture" is an oxymoron.
American literature