Mr. Texas

A novel

By: Lawrence Wright

Narrated by: Steven Weber, Lawrence Wright

AN NPR BEST BOOK OF THE YEAR • From the Pulitzer Prize winner and best-selling author, a hilarious, sharply drawn send-up of local politics • A novel about a dark-horse candidate who risks his personal happiness for a career in the Texas House of Representatives • "Required reading in these politically turbulent times.”—Susan Orlean, author of On Animals

“A rollicking satire . . ."— Paul Begala, The New York Times Book Review

Sonny Lamb is an affable, if floundering, rancher with the unfortunate habit of becoming a punchline in his Texas hometown. Most recently, to everyone’s headshaking amusement, he bought his own bull at an auction. But when a fire breaks out at a neighbor’s farm, Sonny makes headlines in another way: not waiting for help, he bolts to the farm where his heroic actions make the evening news.

Almost immediately, and seemingly out of nowhere, a handsomely dressed lobbyist from Austin arrives at his ranch door and asks if he’d like to run for his West Texas district’s seat in the state legislature. Though Sonny has zero experience and doesn’t consider himself political at all, the fate of his ranch—and perhaps his marriage to the lovely “cowgirl” Lola—hangs in the balance. With seemingly no other choice, Sonny decides to throw his hat in the ring .

As he navigates life in politics—from running a campaign to negotiating in the capitol—Sonny must learn the ropes, weighing his own ethics and environmental concerns against the pressures of veteran politicians, savvy lobbyists, and his own party. In tracing Sonny’s attempt to balance his marriage and morality with an increasingly volatile professional life, Lawrence Wright has crafted an irresistibly funny and clever roller-coaster ride about one man’s pursuit of goodness in the Lonestar State.

Content/storyline

A great listen, funny, insightful and well written. The reading was terrific and very comical. I really enjoyed the journey.

Incredible satire that explains much of today’s political environment

Although it is i tended as a satire about Texas politics, it seems more a cautionary tale about America. Wright does an incredible job of untangling the web of political corruption, lobbying influences and power brokers. Scary clear.
This novel needs to be resurrected as a mini-series.

Great Political Theatre

The insights into the sausage production of politics was masterful. Thought provoking and captivating was the depiction of Big Bob’s cognitive dissonance and his final reconciliation. Unfortunately, Sonny’s character took on a progressive manifesto in the final chapters. Better to have let the readers come to their own political conclusions.

Had Its Moments

The book tried to create a sympathetic narrative for the Leftist perspective, but in doing so it failed to genuinely convey the motivations and concerns of conservatives.

Texas Politics can be fun

David Axelrod & Michael Murphy host an excellent politics podcast. One a Democrat and one a Republican. They enthusiastically recommended this novel by Larry Wright. That set a high bar. The characters are unique and developed to make them relevant. The plot twists are fun but half of them were predictable. In the final chapter the storylines race to a tidy finish and half of those conclusions stretch credibility. People don’t act this way even in Texas. I am a Democrat and Wright’s hero is a Republican rancher. The quest for his Texas ideal embraces more Democratic philosophies than Republican and that made me feel good all over it’s just not realistic.