Category Archives: Authors

Sophie Kinsella

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Madeleine Sophie Wickham, better known by her nom de plume Sophie Kinsella, passed away on December 10, 2025. Renowned for her Shopaholic Series, which was adapted into the film Confessions of a Shopaholic in 2009, her books sold over 50 million copies in more than 60 countries and were translated into over 40 languages. For more information, visit her official website.

The Talking Book Program has her Shopaholic Series as well as many of her stand-alone novels. They are listed below:

Shopaholic Series

1. CONFESSIONS OF A SHOPAHOLIC (DB 54435)
2. SHOPAHOLIC TAKES MANHATTAN (DB 54436, BRG 01865)
3. SHOPAHOLIC TIES THE KNOT (DB 55877, BRG 01739)
4. SHOPAHOLIC AND SISTER (DB 58896)
5. SHOPAHOLIC AND BABY (DB 64471)
6. MINI SHOPAHOLIC (DB 72457)
7. SHOPAHOLIC TO THE STARS (DB 80180)
8. SHOPAHOLIC TO THE RESCUE (DB 82890)
9. CHRISTMAS SHOPAHOLIC (DB 97255, LB 12678)

Stand Alone Novels

BURNOUT (DB 116400, LB 0001573) 2023
CAN YOU KEEP A SECRET? (DB 58052) 2004
FAIRY MOM AND ME (DB 86956) 2018
I OWE YOU ONE (DB 93772, LB 10945) 2019
I’VE GOT YOUR NUMBER (DB 74467) 2012
LOVE YOUR LIFE (DB 102035, LB 13322) 2020
MY NOT SO PERFECT LIFE (DB 87344) 2017
PARTY CRASHER (DB 105198, LB 13537) 2021
REMEMBER ME? (DB 66748, BR 17707) 2008
SURPRISE ME (DB 90228, LB 09343) 2018
TWENTIES GIRL (DB 70068) 2009
UNDOMESTIC GODDESS (DB 60741, BRG 00956) 2005
WEDDING NIGHT (DB 76736) 2013

Stand Alone Nonfiction

WHAT DOES IT FEEL LIKE? (DB 124794, LB 0001381) 2024

Texas Talking Book Program Author Talk: Char Miller

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Join the Talking Book Program for an author talk on Tuesday, February 24 at 7:00 p.m. (Central) with author, Char Miller.

Reader’s Advisory Librarian, Laura Jean, will discuss Dr. Miller’s career and his book SAN ANTONIO: A TRICENTENNIAL HISTORY (DBC 18818). Following the talk, there will be a Q&A session.

Our Author Talks are held via Zoom, but you can join using just a telephone!

Participating is easy:

  • Use your landline to dial in via phone.
  • Use the “one-tap” number on your smartphone.
  • Alternatively, join via computer using the Zoom invitation we’ll send a week prior to the event.

To ensure you receive the necessary details, please RSVP in advance.

We invite you to ask Char Miller questions about his book. Please submit your questions by February 12. We will select questions based on the responses to this form, and they may be asked during the event! Fill out the form here: Author Questions

To RSVP, you can fill out our online registration form: Register Here.

Or if you prefer, reply to this email, or call the Talking Book Program at 1-800-252-9605.

Please indicate if you would like us to mail you a digital cartridge with his book or if you prefer to download it from BARD. Also, please let us know if you would like a reminder via email or phone-call (or both).

SAN ANTONIO: A TRICENTENNIAL HISTORY by Char Miller (DBC 18818)

NLS Annotation: This is the first general history of San Antonio, Texas, the seventh largest city in the nation. Its past is complex and ranges across 300 years, from the community’s origins as a tiny Spanish frontier town to its contemporary status as a vital American mega-city. Site of some of the most violent struggles between warring empires and people–historians believe San Antonio may be the most fought-over city in U.S. history–it is perhaps most celebrated for the iconic 1836 Battle of the Alamo. The city is also home to four beautifully restored Spanish missions, which in 2015 UNESCO designated a World Heritage Site and have become integral to San Antonio’s robust tourist economy along with the fabled River Walk.. Some violence. 2018.

We look forward to having you join us on Tuesday, February 24!

Texas Talking Book Program Author Talk: James Wade

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Join the Talking Book Program for an author talk on Thursday, December 11 at 7:00 p.m. (Central) with author, James Wade.

Reader’s Advisory Librarian, Laura Jean, will discuss Mr. Wade’s career and his Spur Winning novel ALL THINGS LEFT WILD (DB 101305). Following the talk, there will be a Q&A session.

Our Author Talks are held via Zoom, but you can join using just a telephone!

Participating is easy:

  • Use your landline to dial in via phone.
  • Use the “one-tap” number on your smartphone.
  • Alternatively, join via computer using the Zoom invitation we’ll send a week prior to the event.

To ensure you receive the necessary details, please RSVP in advance.

We invite you to ask James Wade questions about his book. Please submit your questions by December 3. We will select questions based on the responses to this form, and they may be asked during the event! Fill out the form here: Author Questions

To RSVP, you can fill out our online registration form: Register Here.

Or if you prefer, reply to this email, or call the Talking Book Program at 1-800-252-9605.

Please indicate if you would like us to mail you a digital cartridge with his book or if you prefer to download it from BARD. Also, please let us know if you would like a reminder via email or phone-call (or both).

ALL THINGS LEFT WILD (DB 101305) by James Wade.

NLS Annotation: Caleb and his older brother Shelby commit a horse theft gone wrong and flee. As they wander the American Southwest, they are being tracked by bookish and inexperienced-despite-his-age Randall. He meets Charlotte who guides him in the ways of vigilante justice. Strong language including racial epithets, violence, some descriptions of sex. Commercial audiobook. 2020.

We look forward to having you join us on Thursday, December 11!

2025 Texas Writer Award – Dr. Peniel Joseph

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Austin-based historian, educator, and author, Dr. Peniel Joseph has been named the 2025 Texas Writer Award recipient. The award honors a writer who has made outstanding contributions to Texas literature. Dr. Joseph will be honored with a custom pair of handmade boots from renowned El Paso-based bootmaker, Rocketbuster, during a special Festival Weekend ceremony. Learn more about Dr. Joseph’s work and life in his interview with TBF Literary Director Hannah Gabel. Check out the interview on the Texas Book Festival’s website.

Included are all of Dr. Joseph’s books in the NLS Collection:

DARK DAYS, BRIGHT NIGHTS: FROM BLACK POWER TO BARACK OBAMA (DB 71445)
FREEDOM SEASON: HOW 1963 TRANSFORMED AMERICA’S CIVIL RIGHTS REVOLUTION (DBC 32386)
SWORD AND THE SHIELD: THE REVOLUTIONARY LIVES OF MALCOLM X AND MARTIN LUTHER KING JR. (DB 99933)
THIRD RECONSTRUCTION: AMERICA’S STRUGGLE FOR RACIAL JUSTICE IN THE TWENTY-FIRST CENTURY (DB 113669)
WAITING ‘TIL THE MIDNIGHT HOUR: A NARRATIVE HISTORY OF BLACK POWER IN AMERICA (DB 64301)

Nobel Prize Winner 2025 – László Krasznahorkai

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Hungarian author László Krasznahorkai took the prize this year for his “compelling and visionary oeuvre that, in the midst of apocalyptic terror, reaffirms the power of art,” said the Swedish Academy. For more information, check out the Nobel Prize website.

Books by László Krasznahorkai in the TBP Collection:

English Titles

BARON WENCKHEIM’S HOMECOMING (DB 97582)
HERSCHT 07769: FLORIAN HERSCHT’SBACH NOVEL (DB 125872)

Títulos Españoles

MELANCOLÍA DE LA RESISTENCIA (DB 129392)

Texas Talking Book Program Author Talk: Mark Pryor

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Join the Talking Book Program for an author talk on Thursday, October 30 at 7:00 p.m. (Central) with author, Mark Pryor.

Reader’s Advisory Librarian, Laura Jean, will discuss Mr. Pryor’s career and his Hugo Marston Series starting with BOOKSELLER: THE FIRST HUGO MARSTON NOVEL (DBC 04825). Following the talk, there will be a Q&A session.

Our Author Talks are held via Zoom, but you can join using just a telephone!

Participating is easy:

  • Use your landline to dial in via phone.
  • Use the “one-tap” number on your smartphone.
  • Alternatively, join via computer using the Zoom invitation we’ll send a week prior to the event.

To ensure you receive the necessary details, please RSVP in advance.

We invite you to ask Mark Pryor questions about his series. Please submit your questions by October 23. We will select questions based on the responses to this form, and they may be asked during the event! Fill out the form here: Author Questions

To RSVP, you can fill out our online registration form: Register Here.

Or if you prefer, reply to this email, or call the Talking Book Program at 1-800-252-9605.

Please indicate if you would like us to mail you a digital cartridge with his book or if you prefer to download it from BARD. Also, please let us know if you would like a reminder via email or phone-call (or both).

BOOKSELLER: THE FIRST HUGO MARSTON NOVEL (DBC 04825) by Mark Pryor.

NLS Annotation: Hugo Marston, head of security at the US embassy in Paris, watches helplessly as his friend, Max–an elderly bookstall owner–is abducted at gunpoint. In a race against time, Hugo enlists a beautiful and mysterious journalist, a semiretired CIA agent, and a reluctant police detective to help him negotiate political intrigue, police corruption, an escalating drug war, and the ghosts of Nazi collaboration that haunt some of Paris’s most prominent citizens. Violence, strong language, and descriptions of sex. 2012.

We look forward to having you join us on Thursday, October 30!

In Her Own Words: Paulette Jiles

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Paulette Jiles, American poet and novelist, died July 9 at the age of 82 from gastric issues. She is best known for her National Book Award finalist, News of the World, which was our Texas Center for the Book Texas Great Read in 2017, and later made into a movie starring Tom Hanks.

For a more in-depth obituary, check out this one from Texas Monthly.

Here are the titles by Paulette Jiles in the TBP collection.

ENEMY WOMEN (DB 54327, BR 14191)
STORMY WEATHER (DB 66134)
COLOR OF LIGHTNING (DB 69626)
NEWS OF THE WORLD: A NOVEL (DB 86668, BR 21741)
SIMON THE FIDDLER (DB 102013)
CHENNEVILLE: A NOVEL OF MURDER, LOSS, AND VENGEANCE (DB 119430)

Texas Talking Book Program Author Talk: Larry D. Sweazy

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Join the Talking Book Program for an author talk on Thursday, August 21 at 7:00 p.m. (Central) with author, Larry D. Sweazy.

Reader’s Advisory Librarian, Laura Jean, will discuss Mr. Sweazy’s career and his Josiah Wolfe Series starting with RATTLESNAKE SEASON (DBC 13590). Following the talk, there will be a Q&A session.

Our Author Talks are held via Zoom, but you can join using just a telephone!

Participating is easy:

  • Use your landline to dial in via phone.
  • Use the “one-tap” number on your smartphone.
  • Alternatively, join via computer using the Zoom invitation we’ll send a week prior to the event.

To ensure you receive the necessary details, please RSVP in advance.

We invite you to ask Larry D. Sweazy questions about his series. Please submit your questions by August 14. We will select questions based on the responses to this form, and they may be asked during the event! Fill out the form here: Author Questions

To RSVP, you can fill out our online registration form: Register Here.

Or if you prefer, reply to this email, or call the Talking Book Program at 1-800-252-9605.

Please indicate if you would like us to mail you a digital cartridge with his book or if you prefer to download it from BARD. Also, please let us know if you would like a reminder via email or phone-call (or both).

RATTLESNAKE SEASON: A JOSIAH WOLFE, TEXAS RANGER NOVEL (DBC 13590) by Larry D. Sweazy.

NLS Annotation: A character-rich western novel about a Texas Ranger, Josiah Wolfe, who is haunted by dark memories, on the hunt for a former friend turned killer. Some descriptions of sex. Some strong language. Violence.

We look forward to having you join us on Thursday, August 21!

Texas Talking Book Program Author Talk: Georgina Kleege

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Join the Talking Book Program for an author talk on Tuesday, July 15 at 6:00 p.m. (Central) with author and educator, Georgina Kleege. Note that this time is a bit earlier than our usual author talks.

Reader’s Advisory Librarian, Laura Jean, will discuss Georgina’s career and her latest book, MORE THAN MEETS THE EYE: WHAT BLINDNESS BRINGS TO ART. Following the talk, there will be a Q&A session.

Our Author Talks are held via Zoom, but you can join using just a telephone!

Participating is easy:

  • Use your landline to dial in via phone.
  • Use the “one-tap” number on your smartphone.
  • Alternatively, join via computer using the Zoom invitation we’ll send a week prior to the event.

To ensure you receive the necessary details, please RSVP in advance.

We invite you to ask Georgina Kleege questions about her book. Please submit your questions by July 8. We will select questions based on the responses to this form, and they may be asked during the event! Fill out the form here: Author Questions

To RSVP, you can fill out our online registration form: Register Here

Or if you prefer, reply to this email, or call the Talking Book Program at 1-800-252-9605.

Please indicate if you would like us to mail you a digital cartridge with her book or if you prefer to download it from BARD. Also, please let us know if you would like a reminder via email or phone-call (or both).

MORE THAN MEETS THE EYE: WHAT BLINDNESS BRINGS TO ART (DB 93533, BR 22550) by Georgina Kleege.

NLS Annotation: Author of Sight Unseen (DB 48328, BR 12149) critically examines the ways institutions make art accessible to blind people and the connection of visual arts with language. Uses personal experiences, scientific studies, and historical literary analysis to support her arguments. 2018.

We look forward to having you join us on Tuesday, July 15!

Texas Talking Book Program Author Talk: Lisa Fittipaldi

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Join the Talking Book Program for an author talk on Thursday, June 19 at 7:00 p.m. (Central) with world recognized artist and Texas author, Lisa Fittipaldi.

Reader’s Advisory Librarian, Laura Jean will talk with her about her career as an artist as well as her book, BRUSH WITH DARKNESS: LEARNING TO PAINT AFTER LOSING MY SIGHT (DB 60724, BRG 02047). A Q&A chat will follow.

Our Author Talks are held via Zoom, but you can join using just a telephone!

Participating is easy:

  • Use your landline to dial in via phone.
  • Use the “one-tap” number on your smartphone.
  • Alternatively, join via computer using the Zoom invitation we’ll send a week prior to the event.

To ensure you receive the necessary details, please RSVP in advance.

We invite you to ask Lisa Fittipaldi questions about her book. Please submit your questions by June 12. We will select questions based on the responses, and they may be asked during the event! Fill out the form here: Author Questions

To RSVP, you can fill out our online registration form: Register Here

Or if you prefer, reply to this email or call the Talking Book Program at 1-800-252-9605.

Please indicate if you would like us to mail you a digital cartridge with her book or if you prefer to download it from BARD. Also, please let us know if you would like a reminder via email or phone-call (or both).

BRUSH WITH DARKNESS: LEARNING TO PAINT AFTER LOSING MY SIGHT (DB 60724, BRG 02047) by Lisa Fittipaldi.

NLS Annotation: Author discusses her life after being diagnosed with vasculitis in her forties. Describes her feelings of despair during her first two years of blindness. Relates that a gift from her husband–a child’s watercolor set–became the catalyst for her new career as a renowned painter, and for her new outlook. 2004.

We look forward to having you join us on Thursday, June 19!