San Antonio College Library

In 1957, Barbar Smith, a gifted black music student at the University of Texas is cast in an opera to co-star with a white male classmate, fueling a racist backlash from members of the Texas legislature. This small-town girl, whose voice and spirit stem from her roots in East Texas, eventually will become an internationally celebrated mezzo-soprano and she will headline on stages around the world.

"New York Times bestselling author Jim Dent pens the compelling story of how a black and white player came together to break the color barrier in Texas football in 1965. Jerry LeVias and Bill Bradley bonded as friends at the Big 33 high school all-star game, producing a dramatic finish that fans still talk about. Jim Dent takes the reader to the heart of Texas football with the incredible story of how two young men broke the chain of racism that had...

Texas writer/historian Mike Cox explores the inception and rise of the famed Texas Rangers. Starting in 1821 with just a handful of men, the Rangers' first purpose was to keep settlers safe from the feared and gruesome Karankawa Indians, a cannibalistic tribe that wandered the Texas territory. As the influx of settlers grew, the attacks increased and it became clear that a much larger, better trained force was necessary.

"At the very heart of Texas mythology are the Texas Rangers. Until now most histories have justified their actions and vilified their opponents. But Anderson tells how the Texas government encouraged the rangers to annihilate Indian villages, including women and children, spreading terror so that the survivors and neighboring Native groups would want to leave. The policy succeeded: by the 1870s, Indians had been driven from central and western Texas....