06/18/2026
Day 27 of the Things We Love About Texas celebrates the printed word. Texas is endlessly interesting and, even in this day of information by sound bite, Texas is worth chronicling. Luckily, we have a whole mess of great magazines that do just that. Publications explaining and extolling Texas started all the way back in 1836 when Stephen F. Austinâs cousin, Mary Austin Holley, authored the first English book about the new land, Texas, published in November 1836.
Holleyâs work was a book, but many periodicals followed. In the earlier years, these periodicals were essentially advertisements designed to encourage immigration to the newly opened land. Today, we have multiple offerings for general interest, special interest, and geographic interest. We love many of them, but particularly extoll Texas Highways, published by the Texas Department of Transportation since 1953 to promote Texas tourism. Texas Highways is not a for-profit effort, so there is less advertisement to wade through. The focus is travel so it tends to be useful and the photography is exquisite.
Texas Monthly began in 1973 as a decidedly for-profit enterprise. While we adore the content in Texas Monthly, it comes at the cost of thumbing through the 1,500 best dentists, realtors, lawyers, and stockbrokers in Texas. If you are willing to do that, however, the reward is some of the best writing anywhere. Skip Hollandsworth, Gary Cartwwright, Mimi Swartz, Stephen Harrigan, and Daniel Vaughn have brought Texas and its people to life for decades.
Finally, Authentic Texas is a quarterly publication and a great blend of Texas Highways and Texas Monthly. Highly recommended. What is your go to read when you want a good Texas story?
