Lone Star

A History of Texas and the Texans

By: T. R. Fehrenbach

Narrated by: John McLain

Here is a must-listen history of the Lone Star State, together with an insider's look at the people, politics, and events that have shaped Texas from the beginning right up to our days. Never before has the story been told with more vitality and immediacy. Fehrenbach re-creates the Texas saga from prehistory to the Spanish and French invasions to the heyday of the cotton and cattle empires. He dramatically describes the emergence of Texas as a republic, the vote for secession before the Civil War, and the state's readmission to the Union after the War. In the 20th century oil would emerge as an important economic resource and social change would come. But Texas would remain unmistakably Texas, because Texans "have been made different by the crucible of history; they think and act in different ways, according to the history that shaped their hearts and minds."

©2000 T. R. Fehrenbach (P)2018 Tantor

Critic reviews

"Thought-provoking, highly original...a most distinctive chapter of American and Southern history." (Virginia Quarterly Review)

Great American History

This is one of the most extensive histories on any state that I have experienced. It details the history of Texas from prehistoric times to modern times in great detail.

Great book!

Narration was excellent and made the listen enjoyable, the book was very thorough, and gives a lot of insight into the Texas experience.

True history of Texas I did not learn in school.

I loved the details about my state history and wish I had learn all this in school many years ago. I am proud of being a many generation Texan.

Great book if you want to understand Texas

This should be required reading/listening for the God-knows-how-many people flooding into our state every darn day, or they’ll never get why every other car and truck have a Texas flag sticker proudly displayed on the back window. When you familiarize yourself with the struggle and obstacles the Texian settlers overcame, you’ll begin to see why a certain truck manufacturer’s slogan for in-State marketing purposes is “Built Texas Tough”.
If you buy this book, might as well look up the following words, as the author uses each one approximately 5024 times... each: “ephemeral”, “depredations”, “atomistic”. And don’t strain your ears, the narrator - whose darkly dramatic inflections resemble the voice of the Moviephone guy - keeps saying “drought” like it rhymes with “mouth”. While I enjoyed the thorough yet easy-to-follow history of the state I love best, I couldn’t help but think it would have been so much better narrated by the guy who voices the Whattaburger commercials...

What a story! Definitely makes you proud to be Texan if you are one!

This book will help you understand why students in Texas learn their state history in 4th grade and 7th grade; and if you were like me and experienced that, you’ll reflect with fond memories as you listen...

Much of this book may not be suitable for 4th or 7th graders, but it is very important to know your history - even, and maybe especially state history... or you’ll be doomed to repeat it!