COUNTING DOWN
TBF 2026
With only five days remaining until the start of the Texas Book Festival 2026, Dee Reads is looking back at previous festivals and waxing a bit poetic about some of the great reads discovered there. Nothing measures up to hearing an author speak about, and take questions from an audience eager to learn about their work. Dee Reads has had the enviable opportunity to attend the TBF four times and am happy to share with you some of the great reads discussed in Austin.
Nelson DeMille was a featured ticketed author at my very first Texas Book Festival in November 2022. He was as entertaining a verbal storyteller as an author. What particularly impressed me was the way in which he spoke about his son,
Alex DeMille, and their partnership in what is now a three-book series featuring Army CID Agents Scott Brody and Maggie Taylor. The pride in what they accomplished together was evident that day.
Shelley Read appeared at the TBF in
November 2023, where she participated in an on-stage conversation alongside author Alice Winn. I enjoyed Go As A River like few books and rated it one of my rare five stars. At the time, I had this to say about it, "This was an amazingly beautiful book. There are so many poetic and almost lyrical passages it’s like a piece of art. What a wonderful piece of work for a first time novelist."
Alice Winn also appeared at the 2023 Festival to discuss her acclaimed debut novel, In Memoriam. I pulled this from my TBR shelf this morning while researching for the blog. I simply can't believe I haven't read it in three years. It has now climbed the ladder to the top of my TBR. My apologies Ms. Winn.
Robert M. Edsel has appeared multiple times at the festival. Dee Reads happened to see him discuss his book, Remember Us, in 2025. And what an impression he made! My brother and I both went to the
BookPeople book sales tent and bought it before we did anything else. I've only read a few chapters, but it's easy to read a bit and come back for more later. It certainly tells a vivid story of how one town honors the veterans buried there, regardless of nationality.
Finally, one of my personal favorite authors, S. A. Cosby. Shaun appeared in a featured presentation at the TBF 2023. His book of the moment,
All The Sinners Bleed, had been released in June of that year. If like me, you walked into the State Theater in Austin that Sunday afternoon, expecting the focus to be on that one book, you were quickly disavowed of that notion. Cosby spoke about various aspects of his writing process and a bit about several books, but what truly impressed me was his down-to-earth manner. No airs, no affectations, just a regular guy wearing faded jeans, flannel shirt, and work boots who just happened to write some best-selling Southern Noir.
If 2026 will be your first year at the Texas Book Festival, I hope you find some of these same gems of reading as Jay and I have. If you're on your third, fourth, or fifth +++ I'm sure you would echo some of these sentiments.
”I think books are like people, in the sense that they’ll turn up in your life when you most need them.” – Emma Thompson
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