TheBookish Frog The Newsletter of Christian University Pre s s

VO L UME 6 / FALL 2003

\ Documenting NEWS NOT E S Mexican Two TCU Press titles—L i t e ra r y Fo r t Wo r th and Texas in Po e t r y 2 —we re among the 1,500 Fort Worth books on display at the opening of The Poets House Showcase in If an historian’s tools are written records N ew York City last spring. A l ways a Rebel: R i c a rdo Flores Magón and tangible artifacts, how does he write and the Mexican Rev o l u t i o n , by Wa rd a history of an undocumented people? A l b ro, has been adopted for class- room use at the University of In order to write the history of C h i c a go. Mexicanos in Fort Worth, Carlos This Stubborn Self:Texas A u t o b i og ra p h i e s , Cuéllar, author of Stories from the by Bert A l m o n , was a finalist for the Christian Gauss Aw a rd from Phi Beta Barrio: A History of Mexican Fo r t K ap p a . Wo r t h , q u i ckl y realized that he If We Must Die, a Chap a rral Book fo r would have to add oral history to the Young Readers, by Pat Carr, was a finalist in the juvenile catego r y of the scant written documentation available. 2003 PEN Center USA literary The result is a book blending archival research and in- c o m p e t i t i o n . This competition honors outstanding works published in 2002 depth interviews with a wide range of people from the Me x i c a n by writers living in the western community, giving a broad overview of this distinctive population. United States. Stories from the Barrio traces the history of Mexicans in Fo r t Longtime TCU Press board member Max Lale has been named an out- Worth from approximately 1872 to the present. Cuéllar inter- standing alumnus by OU’s Gay l o rd viewed three generations of Fort Worth Hispanics—descendants of College of Journalism and Mass C o m mu n i c a t i o n . M a x , who graduated the first Mexicanos who emigrated to the U.S. following the in 1938, has had a distinguished care e r Mexican revolution in 1910, the next generation who struggled as a writer, p u b l i s h e r, and historian. H e is among sixty-eight people so with balancing assimilation and their unique culture, and the h o n o red since 1984. He joined fe l l ow Chicano movement generation who fought for, and won, political h o n o rees at a banquet in Norman. and economic power. TCU Press joined with several others to host a meeting of Western Pre s s e s Cuéllar’s task was to spin whole cloth out of bits and pieces, (an informal regional group within the threads really, of family stories. His investigation into families’ Association of American Unive r s i t y P resses) in Fo r t Wo rth in October. lives, supplemented with the limited written materials, is organized We took them to Joe T. G a rc i a ’s fo r in themes reflecting how the Mexican population grew—early dinner and treated them to an after- dinner talk by James Wa rd Lee, a c q u i- arrival, employment, religion and education, community life and sitions editor. Editor Susan Pe t t y institutions, art, and political power. re c e i ved a Whiting Fe l l owship for p ro fessional development to attend Piecing together the colorful past of the earliest barrios, Cuéllar the meeting. shows how patterns of settlement were dictated by job and housing a v a i l a b i l i t y. He explores the many ways Mexicanos made their continued on page 2 Documenting . . . continued livings and describes the limitations placed on their achievements by discriminatory practices. Finally, he celebrates the entrepreneurial spirit that drove Mexicans in Fort Worth to succeed. Carlos Eliseo Cuéllar is assistant professor of history at Texas A&M International University in Laredo. He received his Ph.D. in Latin American history from TCU. In addition to his teaching duties at Texas A&M International, Cuéllar serves as director of the D.D. Hachar Honors Program at the u n i v e r s i t y. He is director of the Guerrero Viejo Archives Preservation Project to microfilm and d i g i t a liz e over 250,000 ch u r ch and municipal documents dating back to the 1750s. Stories from the Barrio is his first book. TCU Press announced Stories’ publication at an autograph party hosted by State Representative Lon Burnam in July. It was an emotional evening; many people, some in tears, thanked the author for resurrecting half-forgotten memories and for affirming their lives and culture. Representatives of city and state government took turns congratulating the author for his achievement—former city councilman Louis Zapata presented Cuéllar with the key to the city. Cuéllar has been a hit at half-a-dozen other book signings, and he has been asked to speak at con- ferences and book fairs. Fort Worth historians welcomed the publication of the long-overdue history; the public has embraced the book; the Texas literary world is taking notice; and orders are steadily com- ing in. In fact, a second printing might be in order. We at TCU Press couldn’t be prouder. n

What’s Ahead for TCU Press? Some exciting projects loom on our horizons. Next spring we’ll publish Texas Litera r y Outlaws: Six W r i t e r s in the Sixties and Beyond, by Steve Dav i s . S t eve is assistant curator of the Southwest Writers Collection, and he mined that arc h i ve fo r material about the lives and careers of Billy Lee Brammer, G a r y Cart w r i g h t , Dan Je n k i n s , L a rry L. K i n g , Bud Shrake, a n d , to a lesser extent, Peter Gent.This fascinating and lengthy study is a perfect fit for TCU Pre s s — we have published and/or reprinted work by Gary Cart w r i g h t , Dan Je n k i n s , L a rry King, and Bud Shrake. L a rry King writes, “ S t eve Davis is far too polite and political to rank the order of Talent of we famousart h u r s revealed in this fine book, and I am too modest to comment. I did learn a lot about my writing colleagues, h oweve r, i n c l u d- ing confessions they failed to make during our wilder drankin’ and dopin’ day s . I would enjoy this book even if I we re not its obvious star.” Jim Lee, our acquisitions editor who is often intro d u c e d , to his amu s e m e n t , as one of the godfathers of Texas litera- t u re, is hard at work on A d v e n t u res with a Texas Humanist: Essays on Texas Litera t u re and Fo l k l o re. The book will fe a t u re s everal new essays—including two on J. Frank Dobie and Larry McMurt r y—in combination with rewritten pieces fro m J i m ’s long career as an essay i s t . Fall 2004 will be sort of a Bryan Wo o l l ey season. B ry a n , who writes fe a t u res for the Dallas Morning New s ,is the author of several novels and essay collections. N ow he’s put togetherTexas Road Tri p : S t o ries from A c ross the Great State, with wide- ranging pieces—a horse-bre a ker/poet in Alpine who reads Yev t u s h e n ko ; people in Lamesa who own one of the last drive - in theaters; first-person pieces about growing up in Fo rt Dav i s ; going to the State Fair of Te x a s ; descendants of Quanah P a r ke r ; and a tour of Route 66. As series editor of the Texas Tradition Series,Jim Lee has chosen Bry a n ’s nove l , Sam Bass, for the fall season. F red Erisman will write the afterwo rd . And watch for much more—a history of Fort Worth’s Lena Pope Home, a photography book about Oaxaca’s Day of the Dead, a study of FortWorth’s notorious Marshal Longhair Jim Courtright, a history of live theater in FortWorth, and a proposed series of Texas biographies. n

2 SOME FACTS Donald E. Wo r cester ABOUT TCU PRESS

Year established: 1966 Books in print: 208 Books published annually: 6 - 9 Distribution: TCU Press belongs to a publishing consortium headquartered at Texas A&M University Press. Staff: Judy Alter, director James Ward Lee, acquisitions editor Susan Petty, editor

Editorial Advisory Board: TCU Press lost a devoted friend with the September 21s t d e a t h L a rry A d a m s , associate provost fo r of Donald Wo r c e s t e r. A renowned author, historian, and teach e r , academic affairs,T C U, ex officio Don was a lifetime honorary member of the Editorial Ad v i s o r y Joyce Pate Cap p e r, former pre s i d e n t Board and served as advisor and booster since the early 1980 s , of the Ta rrant County Historical when the Press was revitalized. Society TCU Press was proud to reprint Don’s children’s books—Wa r Theresa Gaul, assistant professor of English,TCU Pony, Lone Hunter and the Cheyennes, and Lone Hunter’s Gray Po n y —a s Douglas Harman, director, the first entries in its Chaparral Books for Young Readers. The three Fort Worth Convention are now available in one volume, The Lone Hunter Books. Don wrote & Visitors Bureau the text for The Texas Cowboy, a lavish book showcasing work of Max Lale, past president,Texas State Historical Association members of the Texas Cowboy Artists Association, and was co- Joyce Gibson Roach, author, with the late Maurice Boyd, of the landmark books, K i o w a author, historian, and folklorist Voices I: Ceremonial Dance, Ritual, and Song and Kiowa Voices II: My t h s , Gleniece Robinson, director, Legends, and Fo l k t a l e s . Fort Worth Public Library His books included The Ap a ches: Eagles of the Southwest, w h i ch Bob Seal, director, Mary Couts won the Southwest Book Award and a Spur Award from We s t e r n Burnett Library,TCU Writers of America. The Texas Longhorn, The Chisholm Trail, Man on Gene Smith, professor of history, TCU Two Ponies, and A Visit from Father, are also among his many books. He won three Spur Awards in three categories and in 1988 received The TCU Press is an affiliate member the Western Writers Golden Saddleman from WWA for lifetime of the Association of American a ch i e v e m e n t . University Presses. Chair of the TCU History Department from 1963 to 1972, Do n Questions: Call us at 817-257- 7822; write to Box 298300, Fort was devoted to students and teaching, supervising countless disser- Worth,Te x a s 7612 9 ; o r tations, encouraging young faculty to publish, and tirelessly reading e - m a i l , t c u p re s s @ t c u . e d u . manuscripts and offering suggestions. Check our Web page: In the words of Don’s colleague and fellow author Paul Boller, http://www.prs.tcu.edu/prs/ “If you ever knew him, even briefly, you would always remember Toll-free orders: 1-800-826-8911 him.” Like Paul, we treasured our friendship with him and will miss him greatly. n 3 TCU Press Non-Profit Org. Box 298300 U. S. Postage Fort Worth, TX 76129 PAID Ft. Worth, TX 76129 Permit No. 2143

The TCU Press Annual Autograph Extravaganza

HHH Friday, December 5, 4:00 – 7:00 P.M. HHH The Fort Worth Botanic Garden 3220 Botanic Garden Boulevard (off University Drive)

HHH The Friends of the TCU Library present HHH Elmer Kelton “Christmas at the Ranch”

Authors will include Judy Alter, Beth Alvarez with The Texas Almanac, Randolph Campbell, Mary Cimarolli, Luther Clegg, Carole Nelson Douglas, Glen Dromgoole, Helen Green, Sylvia Grider, Marilyn Komechak, Julie Lake, Dave Lieber, Jerry Lincecum, Quentin McGown, Kerry Newcomb, June Osborne, Rena Pederson, James Reasoner, Clay Reynolds, Carol Roark, Lou Rodenberger, Irene Sandell, Rebecca Sharpless, Carlton Stowers, Bryan Woolley, and others.

The TCU Press Annual Autograph Extravaganza is presented by TCU Campus bookstore in conjunction with the Fort Worth Star-Telegram and The Friends of the TCU Library.