Challenger Park    

The Gates of the Alamo      A Natural State    

Water and Light     Comanche Midnight     Aransas     Jacob's Well

Challenger Park

Now in paperback!

"Challenger Park is epic in scope but human in scale, a tale of grand adventure packed with individual emotions. This is incomparable twenty-first-century fiction from one of Texas's great authors."— Mike Shea, Texas Monthly

 

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"A fine, absorbing achievement. . . The payoff [Harrigan] achieves is subtle and intense; a marvel, really. . . This is a stately novel whose emotional precision is matched by the exactitude of its prose."—Thomas Mallon, The New York Times Book Review

 

"Harrigan's descriptions of space training and flight sound as though he could pilot the shuttle himself, but what's more impressive ultimately is his knowledge of the conflicted feelings of a woman struggling to figure out what matters to her most. "—Ron Charles, Washington Post Book World

 

"This is an intimate and soulful novel in which Harrigan balances love, family, and desire in a weightless vision as tragic and honest as America's love affair with space."—Library Journal

 

"A terrific book even by Stephen Harrigan standards: the fruit of careful research, vivid in detail, written with indefatigable elegance, exuding an authoritative sense of place, sympathetic with its imperfect characters."—Patrick Beach, Austin American Statesman

 

"Dazzling. . . a compelling and moving narrative that makes for one of the most extraordinary novels of the year. . . Harrigan questions the roles of ambition, duty, fealty and self-sacrifice in our lives. But always at the heart of this novel is the mystery of love and the relationship that exists between husband and wife, parent and child, God and humanity, man and his dreams, and, quite literally, the Earth and the heavens. . . This books—as scintillating and brilliant as the ocean of stars in a clear night sky. . . certainly puts him in the top tier of American novelists."—Edward Nawotka, San Francisco Chronicle

The Gates of the Alamo

"A time and a place, a vanished world in which gallant death and honor still held tangible appeal, while merciless slaughter was more likely the rule, are evoked with great skill."
-- New York Times Book Review

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The first great novel of the 21st century.... This is storytelling at its finest.— Fort Worth Star-Telegram

 

A picturesque historical saga comparable to Lonesome Dove and The Killer Angels...a new masterpiece in the literature of fact.— Christian Science Monitor

 

"Following the examples of novelists like Cormac McCarthy and Larry McMurtry . . . a genuinely moving epic and, paradoxically, yet another unforgettable Alamo."— Newsweek

 

"Riveting . . . The strength of Harrigan's extraordinarily authentic novel is in its superior storytelling." — The Washington Post

 

"In a large, lush book [Harrigan] eloquently and dramatically recasts the myth that was born on March 6th 1836. . . . [His] gift to us is an artful, intelligent novel that makes the hard work of memory terrifically worthwhile." — Boston Globe

A Natural State

"In his introduction to the eight essays in A Natural State, Stephen Harrigan writes with a becoming modesty: "I don' t know what nature is exactly-whether it is a category that includes human beings or shuts them out-but for me it has always contained that hint of eeriness, the sense that some vital information-common knowledge to all the universe-has been specifically withheld from me."

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“The personal essay at its best.  What Edward Abbey did for the desert Southwest and what E.B. White did for Maine, Harrigan has done for Texas; quite simply, he is just as good.”—The Houston Chronicle

 

“Harrigan defty weaves fact, historical perspective, and personal experience into a tightly interlaced evocative fabric.. . By the end of the book, he brings the vast Texas landscape within grasp of even the most skeptical reader.” —The Denver Post

 

“A very personal view of the vast yet diverse nature of the Texas landscape.  Harrigan’s observations are not those of an academically trained naturalist but rather the fresh outlook of a city-bred tourist rejoicing in the exhilaration of discovery.” —Booklist

 

“Though several of the essays display a strong ecological bent, the author is never shrill.  He is an accomplished prose stylist who combines accurate research with an unerring eye for detail. Highly recommended.” —Science

 

“With remarkable perceptiveness and genuineness Harrigan’s book gives us a close look at one man’s multi-faceted relationship with his environment.  A Natural State is an honest and sensitive work marked by a heartfelt and often lyrical voice.”—Austin American Statesman

 

“The quality that puts Harrigan into the league with the best nature writers. . . lies in his “search for those vibrant moments in which which one can believe that one’s existence belongs authentically to the world of nature.”  Always on the prowl for what he terms “power centers,” Harrigan sometimes uncovers these “vibrant moments,” sometimes not, but his prose remains steady in either case as he leads the willing reader along the path of his quest.” —New Orleans Times Picayune

 

“Harrigan tests the validity of [his] love of place in a series of essays about the Texas that does not appear on the television show “Dallas” or in the pages of the Neiman-Marcus catalogue.  And he finds a place of remarkable natural variety and peculiar beauty.  A place worth loving.  He explores the desert, which is to be expected.  And the zoo, which is not.  In what is perhaps the best essay in a consistently deft book, he spends a day along the surf line of a Gulf Coast beach.  His descriptions of the mix of life there. . . recall the best of Rachel Carson’s forgotten books about the sea. . . If this book is Harrigan’s search for what there is to love about Texas, then he succeeds in convincing not just himself but the skeptical reader as well.”—Outside

 

“While ‘luminous’ is not a word that you would think of in connection with the Lone Star State, that’s what these pieces are. . . They are filled with poetry, wit, and delightfully offbeat observations.”—San Diego Tribune

 

“A Natural State is a welcome addition to the same shelf which contains the works of Texas authors like John Graves and Roy Bedichek.“—San Antonio Light

 

“A Natural State refers to Harrigan’s native state of Texas, and to his peculiar feeling for its often inhospitable terrain.  . . The dispassionate rhythm of the natural order reverberates in these pieces.  It does so with a beguiling modesty.  For a literary man, Harrigan writes with an almost scientific precision.“ —The Raleigh News & Observer

 

“Nothing short of magnificent. . . Harrigan’s clean, crisp prose draws the reader into a crystalline world of detail that is centered in Texas but encompasses the universe.” —Small Press

 

“His observations are always striking and thought-provoking, with the same quality of the essays of John Graves or Larry McMurtry’s ‘In a Narrow Grave’--they grip the reader, they practically demand a second reading and they age very well.  Whether describing a turkey buzzard or a sunrise, Harrigan is painstaking and thorough, and we learn something new and valuable.”—Judyth Rigler

 

“A delightful collection of gracefully written essays.  Harrigan gives us a compassionate sense of a wild and natural Texas that is not always seen or understood.” —The Houston Post

 

“Like our best nature writers, he tells us not only what’s out there, but connects it to our everyday lives.  . . A Natural State is recommended reading not just for Texans but for all who would explore their connections to the natural world.” —The Washington Post

Water and Light: A Diver's Journey to a Coral Reef

''Moving, intelligent and, in the best sense, literary. . . . Stephen Harrigan is anchored in reality; he knows that the environment he's describing is in serious jeopardy. At the same time, he has made this book sparkle with his remarkable ability to discuss the metaphysical and spiritual aspects of underwater exploration without ever sounding saccharine or murky.''
--New York Times Book Review

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"Mr. Harrigan's voice is light, steady and honest. . . The reader emerges from the book feeling more graceful and fluid--diver-like--and enriched by both passion and knowledge.  Mr. Harrigan cares for the reader as much as he does the coral reefs. Water and Light takes the reader on a quiet, lonely, fulfilling journey."—Rick Bass, The Dallas Morning News

 

"Harrigan. . . captures the peacefulness of being rocked by salty currents, the massive beauty of the reefs, the exhilaration of the sport, and the mental scramble to retain fast-fading memories of sights almost unimaginable on land. Fellow divers will relish his camaraderie, while those who prefer staying topside will feel as though they've taken the plunge themselves."—Booklist

 

"Moving, intelligent and, in the best sense, literary. . . Stephen Harrigan is anchored in reality; he knows that the environment he's describing is in serious jeopardy.  At the same time, he has made this book sparkle with his remarkable ability to discuss the metaphysical and spiritual aspects of underwater exploration without ever sounding saccharine or murky."—Francine Prose, The New York Times Book Review

 

"What makes reading Water and Light so intensely pleasurable is Stephen Harrigan's craftsmanship as a writer. His prose is as confident and beautiful as a tropical sky, and as clear as a sheltered lagoon. The allure to dive into it is irresistible."—The Raleigh News and Observer

 

"There is something wonderful about this strange and fascinating book, about Harrigan's hopeless quest, his unrequited but potent passion. . . and, of course, the magical world he brings so vividly to life."—The San Francisco Chronicle

 

"[Harrigan] tells us about the people who live on Grand Turk, or come there on business, and he is given to reflecting on the subtleties of the underwater experience, but his real virtue as a writer is his ability to convey, in precise, lucid prose, the marvels of the sea bottom."—The New Yorker

 

"Water and Light: A Diver's Journey to a Coral Reef is a very special book. . .  For those of us who inquire into what it is that draws our very hearts under the sea, Harrigan is mighty stimulation."—Undercurrents

 

"Harrigan is an exceptional writer who has given the sea and his search for self a special meaning in Water and Light. Think of him as the most literate dive buddy you ever had."—Rodale's Scuba Diving

 

"Harrigan's subject and style are perfectly married, and his personal compulsion to know the underwater world lifts him and his readers to new levels of awareness."—The Austin American Statesman

 

"Harrigan combines insight and breadth of knowledge with an elegant style, painlessly delivering lessons in marine biology while conveying the otherworldly thrill of an alien environment. . . As a record of one human's response to the most life-filled and possibly most threatened environment on earth, Water and Light stands alone, a poignant testimonial on behalf of the spirit of nature."—Houston Press

Comanche Midnight

The title and opening essay of Texan Harrigan's (A Natural State) latest collection concerns the United States' continued affronts of the Comanche tribe. These affronts, Harrigan writes, have left a proud people torn between fading traditions and increasing social responsibilities.

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"In an age in which reading seems on the decline, it is refreshing to have a collection of literate, intelligent, sensitive, and factually sound essays to help situate ourselves in the past and present."—Southwestern Historical Quarterly

 

"Writing in a state known for its enormity, Harrigan is on the side of the small men who often die victims of a history that too quickly forgets. "—Publishers Weekly

 

"He is able to express an indefinable nostalgia for the magic of the past as well as the realities of the present, arriving at unforgettable depictions of place and character. "—Library Journal

 

"Mr. Harrigan leads the reader on a well-guided tour of the land, past and present, and the people who have graced that land for better or worse with their lives. This is territory of the soul. . . a terrific book. "—The Dallas Morning News

 

"He is fascinated by secrets of the deep, whether they lurk beneath the water, are buried in history or smolder in the human breast. . . Harrigan brings the same dreamy, ephemeral vision to all of humanity’s endeavors, and reading him, you think, that’s right, that’s the way it is. "—San Francisco Chronicle