The Barber, The Astronaut, and the Golf Ball
Barbara Radnofsky & Ed Supkis
Biography / Golf /Space Travel
Stoney Creek Publishing
October 2024
202 pages
The Barber, The Astronaut, and the Golf Ball offers a rare glimpse behind the scenes of America’s space program at its pinnacle and shows the ordinary people who supported one of the nation’s most monumental scientific endeavors.
Barbara Radnofsky and Ed Supkis grew up in the 1960s in the shadow of NASA’s Manned Spacecraft Center and married in 1982. They have three children and five grandchildren. The couple —with many other community members — are co-owners of Brazos Bookstore, an independent bookseller.
As children of NASA scientists, Barbara, and Ed had front-row seats to the development of the space program and the community built around it on rural cow pastures near Webster, Texas.
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Bound in SilenceChristena Stephens
True Crime / Texas History / Nonfiction
Stoney Creek Publishing
February 2024
286 pages
On a nearly moonless night in October 1943, a single gunshot rang out in Littlefield, Texas. A prominent Texas doctor and his wife were found bound, shot, beaten, and murdered. The only witness: their five-year-old daughter, who was bound to silence and refused to speak about what happened. Author and historian Christena Stephens spent more than a decade researching, re-examining every twist and turn in the legal process, uncovering new evidence, and drawing new conclusions about who might have been responsible. She also convinced Jo Ann Hunt to break 70 years of silence and tell her story for the first time. Bound in Silence is a true crime tour-de-force, a meticulously researched, impeccably told tale of unsolved murder on the High Plains.
Christena Stephens is a native Texan growing up amongst cotton fields and spending time exploring the nature of the Llano Estacado. After earning two Master of Science degrees, she started a project to preserve a historical Texas ranch, thus began her interest in history, research, and writing. She did not intend to be a historian but was mentored by the best Texas historians. Several of her writings have been published in anthologies, along with her photographs. In science and history, truths need to be accurately told. That is her mission-truth and authenticity. She still resides on the Llano Estacado enjoying sunsets and chance porcupine encounters. She is an ardent advocate of wildlife conservation and her heart belongs to her dogs.
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Everything’s a Two-Step but a Waltz: The Reluctant Texan Comes Home
Chick Morgan
Memoir
Mezcalita Press, LLC
April 2024
294 pages
EVERYTHING'S A TWO-STEP BUT A WALTZ: THE RELUCTANT COMES HOME is a "coming of aging" story of a late-life collision between New York Class and Texas Sass, the idyllic life Chick Morgan was living that crashed and burned on a single day with an unimaginable double heartbreak, forcing her to return to Texas after swearing she'd never live there again, and wondering how she got to this point so late in life when she's certainly old enough to know better.
Eileen S. ("Chick") Morgan, PhD, is the author of three books, ranging from international business with the Soviet Union, cross-cultural business ethics, and her first memoir. Chick is a singer-songwriter, cabaret performer, podcast host, radio host, Arts Entrepreneur. Chick produces music, storytelling, and writers' events both in Wimberley and internationally.
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Juan Tejeda
Memoir / Biography
FlowerSong Press
February 2024
330 pages
Utilizing interviews with family and close friends, plus, 127 photos, documents and newspaper articles, Mi Carnal Frank chronicles Frank’s early years being raised by poor Mexicano parents on the southside of San Antonio, through his Marine Corps service and combat duty in Vietnam, college education, and 20-year career as a politician and elected public servant, first as a Texas State Representative, then a Texas Senator and U.S. Congressman. During these twenty years, Frank was a fierce advocate for social, educational, economic and environmental justice, the rights of the poor and his Mexican American community, and the people he represented. This book also tells the tale of how Frank developed and was the leader of a grassroots political alliance of elected officials in San Antonio known as the “Southside Coalition” (who some called a “political machine,” while others called it the “Brown Mafia”), and in the process became one of the most powerful Mexican American/Chicano politicians that San Antonio and the State of Texas have ever known.
Juan Tejeda retired in 2016 as a professor of Mexican American Studies and Music at Palo Alto College in San Antonio, Texas. A writer, musician, educator, arts administrator and activist, from 1980 to 1998 he was the Xicano Music Program Director at the Guadalupe Cultural Arts Center where, among his many duties, he founded and directed the annual Tejano Conjunto Festival en San Antonio. He is the button accordionist for the Conjunto Aztlan, and he and his wife, Anisa Onofre, are the publishers of Aztlan Libre Press, a small, independent publishing company based in Yanawana that is dedicated to the publishing, promotion, and free expression of Indigenous/Xicanx literature and art.
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The Pink Dress: A Memoir of a Reluctant Beauty Queen
Jane Little Botkin
Memoir
She Writes Press
September 2024
277 pages
Growing up in West Texas, Jane Little Botkin didn’t have designs on becoming a beauty queen. But not long after joining a pageant on a whim in college, she became the first protégé of El Paso’s Richard Guy and Rex Holt, known as the “Kings of Beauty”—just as the 1970’s counterculture movement began to take off. A pink, rose-covered gown—a Guyrex creation—symbolizes the fairy tale life that young women in Jane’s time imagined beauty queens had. Its near destruction exposes reality: the author’s failed relationship with her mother, and her parents’ failed relationship with one another. Weaving these narrative threads together is the Wild West notion that anything is possible, especially do-overs.
Having scoured the West for firsthand sources in family, library, and museum collections, award-winning author Jane Little Botkin melds personal narratives of American families with compelling stories of western women, labor radicals, miners, lawmen, and outlaws in settings rich with a history that transitions into the New West.
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Rosser Coke Newton, Sr.
History / Biography
November 2024
Stoney Creek Publishing Group
300 pages
Richard Coke played one of the most crucial roles in Texas history. His leadership of his beloved Texas still resonates today – 150 years after he became governor. Richard Coke: Texan weaves a rich mosaic of real people and events that immerses the reader in the life and times of Richard Coke.
Richard Coke brought Texas out of Reconstruction following the Civil War and is often credited for restoring democracy to the state after this perilous time. Richard Coke: Texan is his story – one in which a young Virginia lawyer emigrates to a Texas frontier village and changes history. It follows Coke as he starts a new life in Waco, Texas, serves in the Civil War, endures the hardships of Reconstruction, and is called into service as governor to rebuild the state and return rights to local government and the people of Texas. The story of Coke and his legislature taking office is one of the more spectacular in Texas history, with Coke’s predecessor, Edmund Davis, engaging armed forces to occupy the Capitol to remain in office. But the true story is the leadership shown by Coke as a committed citizen, an honored soldier, a dedicated governor, then as a respected senator—the results of which still impact the government of Texas today.
Before the advent of digital technology, much of the record of this time was inaccessible to researchers. Authored by Rosser Coke Newton, Sr., an indirect descendant of the governor, the book is enriched by first-person accounts, Coke family records, Richard Coke’s direct correspondence, as well as actual events documented by journals and debates from constitutional conventions, the Secession Convention, and legislative sessions. These are supplemented by newspaper articles, census records, city directories, and a myriad of other sources of information compiled at the time. These sources have been combined into Richard Coke: Texan which not only delivers a rich history of the era, but a personal look at one of Texas’ greatest leaders.
Rosser Coke Newton, Sr is a prominent businessman and an indirect descendent of Richard Coke. An avid collector of Texas memorabilia, Newton is a trustee for the Dallas Historical Society and a co-founder and co-chair of the Alamo Letter Society. He is the author of Reflections on Love, Time and Nature and The Need for a Little More.
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Savoring the Camino de Santiago: It's the Pilgrimage, Not the Hike
Julie Gianelloni Connor
Travel Guide/ Memoir
September 30, 2020
Bayou City Press, LLC
276 pages
Are you interested in the Camino but afraid of the walking? Do you like art, architecture, history, and culture? Does learning about one woman’s Camino journey appeal to you? Would you like tips on designing a unique Camino trip? Then this book is for you.
Pilgrims have traveled the Camino de Santiago in Spain for over a thousand years, and a recent resurgence in walking this storied route now brings more than 300,000 travelers a year to Santiago de Compostela.
After thinking about making a pilgrimage to Santiago de Compostela for more than 40 years, Julie Gianelloni Connor set out on the French route. She followed her 49 days on the Camino with visits to Madrid and Toledo. Julie’s philosophy differs from that of most other authors since she believes in emphasizing the joy of this adventure by taking the time to savor its delights, rather than just walking as quickly as possible along the route.
Julie Gianelloni Connor is the owner and editor of Bayou City Press in Houston, Texas, which specializes in travel writing, Houston, and international affairs. The Bayou City Press website (BayouCityPress.com)carries columns on travel and on Houston.
Julie founded Bayou City Press after spending 33 years as a diplomat in the U.S. Foreign Service, working on a variety of areas, ranging from nuclear non-proliferation to international women's issues.
She has one son, James, and two cats, Halloween and Mimi.
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Suddenly Jewish: The Life and Times of My Jewish Mother
Joan Moran
Memoir
October 15, 2024
288 pages
From the bustling streets of Odesa to the vibrant cities of London, Montreal, New York, and San Francisco’s Jewish Fillmore District, Joan Moran’s captivating historical memoir of her mother weaves a vivid portrait of one woman’s quest for identity and freedom against the backdrop of a rapidly changing world. This story blends history and religion as it takes the reader through an engaging saga about what it means to deny one's Jewish identity.
Suddenly Jewish is not just one woman’s story — it's also the story of a family torn between tradition and rebellion, and the secrets that shape their lives: Rose, the matriarch, Esther, her rebellious daughter, and Joan, Esther’s daughter who learns the secrets of her family on the eve of her wedding.
The backdrop is San Francisco, the Jewish Fillmore district and the time in 1920s, 30s, and 40s. Meet Esther, a young Jewish woman struggling to find her place in the world and escaping from antisemitism in America. From her humble beginnings in 1911, she embarked on a journey in pursuit of reinvention, to hide her Jewish identity and to be accepted in to a gentile world.
Joan Moran worked in Hollywood as a screenwriter and producer, and eventually wrote her memoir 60, Sex & Tango: Confessions of a Beatnik Boomer. She is the author of An Accidental Cuban, optioned for a streaming series, and Once a Homecoming Queen.
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The Thoughtful Travel JournalAmber Royer
Nonfiction
Golden Tip Press
July 26, 2024
206 pages
The Thoughtful Travel Journal includes prompts and ample space for recording your travel adventures. Its small size makes it easy to carry, while still allowing for over 150 pages for your insights and memories. The accompanying text covers ways to deepen your journaling experience. It discusses the rich history of travelogues and travel journals, as well as ways to use your journal to improve your writing and storytelling skills. There is also some discussion of how to share your journal, through blog entries or other media. This journal will guide you through designing your travel bucket list, and help you find a style and intention for your journal. It will also help you develop your observation skills and use sensory writing to create more vivid journal entries.
Amber Royer writes the Chocoverse space opera series, and the Bean to Bar Mysteries. She is the author of Story Like a Journalist: a Workbook for Novelists, and has co-authored a chocolate-related cookbook with her husband. She also teaches creative writing and is an author coach.
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Todd Allen & Heath Hamrick
Political Memoir / Humor
TCU Press
September 2024
318 pages
In contemporary American politics, where absurdity often overshadows reality, Worse Than You Think emerges as a refreshingly candid and witty account of what happens when ordinary individuals, fueled by a blend of idealism and frustration, leap into the political arena. This narrative dives into the real-life journey of a high school teacher, Edward "Todd" Allen, who took the bold step of running for Congress in 2018. Along for the ride was his best friend and fellow educator, Heath Hamrick, who had a simple job: make everything work out in the end.
Todd and Heath embark on a quest to fix the "crazy circus" of our partisan divide, only to find themselves in a series of comical and eye-opening situations, encountering bizarre characters that could only arise deep in the heart of American politics. Worse Than You Think offers laughter, surprises, and perhaps a spark of inspiration to those contemplating their role in democracy. Whether you're seeking validation for your political cynicism, a guide on what not to do in a political campaign, or just a good laugh, this book promises to be an engaging read.
Todd Allen and Heath Hamrick are award-winning educators, creative consultants, and just possibly the most naive, idealistic, and clueless political neophytes in the long history of American politics. Both Todd and Heath graduated from Trinity University in San Antonio with degrees in political science, and by 2004 both were in Texas classrooms, facing the surprising knowledge that they were born educators. In 2018, Todd Allen ran for US Congress in Texas CD-24 as a Democrat, with Heath as his campaign manager, media guru, and wartime consigliere who dispensed the kind of idealistic advice that only works on television shows scripted by Aaron Sorkin.
