Mary Jo Powell's Texas begins with a panorama of the vast landscape, from the Piney Woods to the Big Bend Country, before turning to the people of the land now called Texas. She begins with those that inhabited the area before the Spanish arrived, the story of the Alamo, the movement from independent nation to state, the role of slavery in Texas, the state's role in the Civil War and reconstruction, and how the state survived both World Wars and the Depression. Along the way, Powell addresses some uniquely Texan phenomena, such as the myth and realities of the Texas cowboy, how logging and the discovery of oil changed the land and its identity, as well as the rancorous and spirited world of Texan politics, which made its mark on US politics with the rise of Lyndon B Johnson and the Bush family. It also introduces readers to the spicier side of the state, including its food, music, writers, and the movies it has inspired.