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Jun 07, 2011

Sarah rated it:

As a lover of historical fiction, I knew I would love this book. And, I was not disappointed. I loved how Michener set up this story--a task force has been selected to research the curriculum that will be taught to schoolchildren regarding Texas history, and the history is told through the stories of their families (not the heroes--despite them being mentioned as well).
Michener's research in the affairs of Texas is astounding, and his writing was brilliant throughout. The earlier char More...

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Jun 02, 2011

carl rated it:

This edition came out for the Texas sesquicentennial, which is
also when I read it. I don't know what the sales were for the
previous initial release in 1980, but it seemed like there were
a lot of copies of this Texas flag dust cover around.

Following the Michener formula, he starts with a rock and
a river, then builds a whole state around it, with dozens of
characters to carry the story.

The American Southwest had the most ornery More...

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Nov 14, 2010

Robb rated it:

I don't know if you've ever been to Alberta, but I've carved enough soil there to fill the Saddledome in Calgary; well, not be but the guys movin dirt on our crews. You'll never see a land like burying pipe, we'll do as much as four kilomters a day. And we go places, though sections of farmland, the puplic can't go. So, I've seen to river crossings on the North Saskcatuan, Peace, Red Deer and Bow rivers the public never will, few people ever have; save the families that have farmed that land, so More...

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Aug 14, 2011

Karen rated it:

I first picked up Michener's Texas because I am a fan of Edward Rutherfurd. Both authors tell the story of a specified place through the interlocking stories of certain families through the ages, a method which I usually enjoy. This novel then, is meant to be a fictional narrative of Texan history. Michener examines important events like the battle at the Alamo and the Civil War and factors like religion, the immigration of various different ethnic groups, oil and American football and examines More...

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Sep 07, 2010

Benjamin rated it:

I have read most of Michener's work, and I rate Texas among the big three, not only in size but in quality. (The other two are Centennial and Chesapeake). I particularly like the way Michener presents the entire history of Texas, and yet focuses on the key aspects of change that make this region so interesting. We see how cotton, cattle, oil, barbed wire, football, etc have changed the very culture of the people of Texas. Each long chapter is another window from which we can see the evolution of More...

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Jul 22, 2011

SB rated it:

James Michener is not for everyone. His books are incredibly long- averaging about 900-1,000 pages (if we exclude The Bridges of Toko-Ri, that is). Personally, he is one of my favorite authors. Texas was the first book of his that I read, and it was a good one to start on. I really enjoy Michener's style of showing the reader an area's history by following a set of families over a number of generations. Michener not only explains history by showcasing a particular individual or set of indiv More...

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Dec 18, 2009

Lindsey rated it:

The only other book of Michener's I have read thus far was "Chesapeake," and while I enjoyed that as well, "Texas" basically blew it out of the water. As I said when I finished it, "'Chesapeake' was interesting because it told the story of the start of the country and that's a necessary base for any American history. But 'Texas' is where all [American:] stereotypes come from."

I love the way Michener writes, mixing fact and fiction, storytelling with li More...

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Dec 03, 2011

Rapidio rated it:

Typical Michener. A multigenerational traipse through a focused history of a region, a people, a society. Fortunately this is limited to only a history from the 1600's through 20th century Texas, as opposed to, say, his "Alaska", or "Hawaii", hich take us all the way back to prehistoric times. Overall a good read which follows characters and their descendants up to modern times, covering the Spanish in Mexico, the Southern migration, both before and After the Civil War, th More...

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Jan 17, 2010

Karen rated it:

Oh, this was such a long read. I have never read a Michener work before, but my dad just moved from California to Houston, TX, and I wanted to get some information about that great state.

Michener does a masterful job creating a storyline that crosses counties and generations in ways that gives a great context for the innumerable details packed into this 1,000 plus page novel. I was very captivated in learning about the various stages of Texas' history:

The Spanish explor More...

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Feb 28, 2010

Weathervane rated it:

I liked the book overall. Michener has incredible skill when it comes to narrative. Unfortunately, the epic scope of the novel comes at the expense of character development. The people populating Texas never transcend basic sketches, and as a result, the reader ends up running out of steam near the end. There's just not enough invested.

Part of the problem is that Michener loves his details. Not details of description, but the minutiae of plot points, like the exact cost of every item More...

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Aug 29, 2009

Jason rated it:

You wouldn't think there would be such a thing as "too much information about Texas." This book was like being in a warm bath of Texas; it's comfortable and unchallenging and it can go on forever and eventually you have to get out or puke. I made it about 30% of the way through it, so this doesn't count as a point for me.

This book was based on a new used book store algorithm: find the book with the most copies on the shelf and that's going to be a good book. The flaw wit More...

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Feb 15, 2010

Mom rated it:

I dearly loved this book and can hardly wait for Vol.II to arrive via interlibrary loan.

Long -615 pages- heavily researched and exciting. With a daughter's family and a granddaughter's family living in Texas, this was even more intriguing to know the conflicts, successes and characters who made history. Even his fictional characters are realistic. Of course, my favorite is Otto and I hope there is more about him in the Vol.II.

Want it, Val?
The Vol.I is mine, but More...

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Dec 19, 2009

Rachel rated it:

I finally finished it. Not quite history, not quite fiction, this book was... well, historical fiction. And it really taught me why I don't like historical fiction. Many of the made-up historical "facts" are pointless, the characters are one-dimensional, and everything about Texas has to make it into the plot, no matter how unrelated. Armadillos... football... hunting... Dallas Cowboys cheerleaders... chicken-fried steak.

That said, there were reasons I kept reading th More...

1 comment like (2 people liked it)

Nov 18, 2008

Garrett rated it:

Kind of hard to get through. Very dense stuff. There are some jewels in here, and the way he choose to structure the book is very interesting: the story within the story.

Well, after about 2 years I have finally managed to complete this one.

The first third was very hard to get through (remember that the entire book was over 1300 pages). The middle part was really pretty good and enjoyable. The last third was just OK. I read the final two thirds in 4 months. However, I only More...

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Feb 23, 2008

Jamie rated it:

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here

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Jan 06, 2010

Trisch rated it:

A deeply historical book, Texas took me by surprise in it's in-depth descriptions of the many twists and turn that made Texas. I enjoyed getting to know the families used to tell the tales of Texas history and through them came to understand some of the idiosyncrasies. This book was a long read, but it kept me interested by not laboring too long on a topic. If you like history and you want to better understand the very unique state of Texas, this book will give it all to you.

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Oct 29, 2011

Rob rated it:

Just like a marathon, this book is long with some very good chapters and some which are a bit of a struggle to get completed. I selected this book to gain some historical perspective on the state which I now call home. I definitely go it... although I feel Michener did portray in an unnecessarily negative light at times. Hard to get excited when the characters have too many flaws.

As a historical fiction fan, I was a little dissappointed. I read Michener's Centennial and Tales of More...

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Sep 03, 2011

Charyla rated it:

I like historical fiction because it seems to "stick" in my head better than a history book. Also I liked the fact that Michener also made it clear what was true and was was fiction in the front of the book!
If you are ever considering moving to Texas, this is a great read because it covers the state pretty thoroughly: weather, landscape, occupations, pros and cons of attitudes that have been and are . . . .

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Dec 14, 2010

Van rated it:

Big and long but engaging. Some parts were drawn out but I like the plainness of some of Michener's descriptions. I don't want to give any spoilers, but when a character you like is killed if the author has built them strongly you don't need a dramatic scene. You feel it and it's heartbreaking because you know how the rest of the characters will feel about it. That's a great writer.

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Feb 19, 2010

Aaron rated it:

TO read this and Mexico go hand in hand with all the other great books he wrote on the region. Fantastic story-telling, mind-blogging adventures. After reading this, it feels like I've been in Texas for hundreds of years! Particular interest is how religion is treated in the book as well as the fantastic intimate story about how a river crossing turns into a business empire.

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Jul 27, 2011

Kristin added it

I couldn't finish it. It became entirely too tedious. I got about 75% through it before giving up, which has only happened one or two times in my life! I couldn't pick up any other book and read it for months. Not to say that there wasn't interesting historical stories woven by him. It just got to be too much as he approached the 20th century.

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Aug 23, 2009

Joe rated it:

This is a great book with a great story, it doesn't ramble as much as some of his books and at the end the various story lines are tied together very well. At no point was the book exceptionally difficult to put down, but it was always easy to pick up and to read. The only problem with this is that it was very very long. A 1300 page book is fine if there is a great deal of information to present, or if it is a page turner that you can't put down. In this case, it was 1300 pages of enjoyable More...

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Apr 21, 2011

Megan rated it:

As a new Texas resident, I was advised to check out this book for more background on why Texas is the way it is today. I'm only about half way through, but I would recommend it for anyone new to Texas or thinking about moving here. Probably a good read for long-time residents too - might help with a little self-reflection.

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Dec 20, 2011

Lucy rated it:

I read this when I was a little too young, skipping a page or two here and there when it went into long boring descriptions of war. It's not something I would reread. Personally, I don't like historic novels and I'm not going to read another. Even though James A. Michener is a great writer.

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Apr 27, 2011

Lee is currently reading it

Here. We. Go! I've read Chesapeake (about Virginia) so feel it's necessary to find out what's the big deal about my dog and boyfriend's home state. The state pride here is really unprecedented so hopefully this book will reveal the secrets!

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Apr 15, 2010

Chuck rated it:

This is a novel but it is an accurate and believable history of Texas from it's origins to present day. I may have been influenced in my rating of this one because I am a Texan. It was slow in spots and others may not rate it as highly.

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Feb 25, 2009

Josh rated it:

long......
so i have a tendency to like long books, but this one, even though terrific, i just didn't care anymore once i got to page 995 or so.

too many generations of families to keep up with over too long a reading period.

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Nov 01, 2010

Val rated it:

I am 3/4 way thru and its without doubt one of my favorite
Michener books. I probable never would have just picked it up but Rosie told me how good it was. You get alot of Mexican history in this book, and he makes the characters really come to life. Great history lessons and a great read.

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Jun 19, 2010

Bess rated it:

This book gave me a new appreciation of Texas. Unfortunately, around page 980 I began to lose interest. Too many characters over too many generations. I would read it again but maybe stop once it reaches the oil drilling period.

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Mar 20, 2009

Cindy rated it:

I have lived in Texas for 17 years, in Fort Worth and San Antonio. After reading this book, I understand so much more of what Texas is all about. Fascinatingly researched, brilliantly documented. Michener does it again!

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