Upcoming Meet the Author dates

Meet the Author Series at Paragraphs

Saturday October 12^th  2019  1-3 PM

 and Saturday January 25^th 2020  1-3 PM

Book signing and conversation with author, W. F. Strong

WF Strong and his book have been so popular throughout Texas that sales have required multiple printings.  Paragraphs has scheduled two signings just to insure everyone a chance to meet Mr. Strong and get a copy of his book.  This will be his second (and third) appearance at Paragraphs.  Because we ran out of books his first time around, a call to reserve a copy will insure a book will be waiting for you.

You might call W.F. Strong a student of all things Texas. In 2010, he began sharing his “Stories From Texas” vignettes on public radio stations, most recently on the Texas Standard news show's 30 stations. For this book celebrating his home state, Strong has collected 75 of his broadcasts. You'll hear his inimitably Texan voice in your mind's ear as he weaves stories on subjects ranging from how to ''talk Texan'' to Texas bards and troubadours; from tall Texas tales to Lone Star icons like Charles Goodnight, Tom Landry and Blue Bell ice cream; from legends and unsung heroes of the past to some heartfelt memories of his own. Strong agrees with John Steinbeck that ''Texas is a state of mind . . . a mystique closely approximating a religion,'' and every one of his stories embraces the Texas state of mind.

W. F. Strong, PhD, is a Fulbright scholar and Professor of Communication at the University of Texas - Rio Grande Valley. He grew up in Texas and holds degrees in communication and literature from Abilene Christian University and the University of North Texas, as well as a doctorate in Communication and Rhetoric from the University of Arizona. His storytelling influences range from Mark Twain, on whom he wrote his doctoral dissertation, to former public-radio host Garrison Keillor.

Strong has pursued a lifelong fascination with Texas literature, history and culture, having immersed himself in the classic books of the great Texas novelists and historians, from Walter Prescott Webb’s Indians of Texas to Larry McMurtry’s Lonesome Dove series to Philipp Meyer’s The Son.

He grew up working on farms and ranches in South Texas and so has had a long connection with the Texas soil, as did his ancestors, who farmed and ranched in North Texas for more than a century. Two of his distant relatives signed the Texas Declaration of Independence from Mexico. This familial history has nurtured his love for the vibrancy of Texas culture, both historical and modern.

All these influences came together in the development of a series of brief, often humorous, sometimes dramatic radio vignettes called "Stories From Texas." Intended to teach and amuse and inspire, he seeks to celebrate the Texas character in all its toughness; to showcase poignant passages from the vast literature this land has produced; and to provide a narrative for Texas pride, entrepreneurial success and Texas mythology. Celebrating Texas' charismatic culture and revealing the diverse forces that forged it, Stories From Texas airs biweekly on Texas Standard Radio, a daily news program produced in Austin that is carried on 30 NPR stations across Texas.

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Meet the Author Series at Paragraphs

Friday, October 18^th 2019       4-6 PM

                      Book signing and discussion with author, David Harry          

 Jimmy Redstone and Angella Martinez, working as insurance investigators, are tasked to find a valuable missing bronze sculpture known as the Pirate.  The trail leads to the Three Rivers Arts Festival in Pittsburg where they become embroiled in the dark underbelly of the international art world where originals and fakes are routinely interchanged and where terrorist money laundering is coordinated by a Mexican drug lord.  Wrapped into the mix is the Israeli Mossad on the trail of Holocaust art rumored to contain the assumed names of Nazi war criminals.

Join us at Paragraphs for a special Friday afternoon with David Tannenbaum celebrating the release of book #8 in the Padre series. He is looking forward to having a discussion with his readers and telling behind the scenes stories on the writing of Padre Pirate.  Refreshments will be served.

David Harry and his wife Mary live in Florida but still have a home on South Padre Island with their dog Franco. When he isn’t writing, David enjoys kayaking, biking, and traveling. If David is off the island, he, Mary and Franco can usually be found enjoying their old stomping ground of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania and more recently, Miromar Lakes, Florida.

This event is free and open to the public.

Paragraphs On Padre Boulevard, 5505 Padre Blvd. South Padre Island, TX

For information call us at 956-433-5057