Texas Talking Book Program Author Talk: Mark Pryor

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!

The Ride Ahead Documentary on PBS

The Ride Ahead, an episode of PBS’s POV series, profiles Samuel Habib, a young man with a physical disability. Samuel is turning 21, and he wants to do what many other young people his age do: leave home, attend college, and go out on dates. In The Ride Ahead, he seeks advice and learned experiences from a community of disability activists.

The documentary is available to view for free on the PBS website and the PBS app until September 20, 2025.

HAVIN Virtual Game Night

The Houston Area Visually Impaired Network (HAVIN) is hosting a virtual game night on Saturday, May 31, from 7:00–9:00 p.m. (Central).

In addition to playing games, the session will discuss games you can play using your Alexa speaker.

You do not have to be a member of HAVIN to attend.

Register for HAVIN virtual game night by filling out the Google form at this link:

https://tinyurl.com/4zrrzsd6

Announcing TBP 101

New to the Talking Book Program? Been here a while but want to know more? Join us for a live Zoom meeting called TBP 101 where you will learn everything you need to know about TBP, our services, and all the cool things we offer.

These will happen three times per year and the first meeting is on Tuesday January 14, 2025, at 7:00 pm central.

You will be able to ask questions, and you can attend more than once if you’d like.

Zoom Info: Tuesday January 14, 2025, at 7:00 pm.
https://us02web.zoom.us/j/83274106402

One Tap Mobile:
+13462487799,,83274106402#

Dial-in Number:
(346) 248-7799 

Meeting ID: 832 7410 6402

This event will be recorded and may be made publicly available on the agency’s website or other agency forum. Any images or messages submitted as part of the session may be included in that recording. All participants have the option of participating in listen-only mode and do not have to share their video or make comments.

Calling All Cooks!

Do you have a favorite recipe that brings up good memories? Perhaps a cookie recipe that reminds you of your dad, or a chili recipe you remember from a best friend? Now’s your chance to share them with your fellow talking book patrons.

Our partner libraries in Florida and North Carolina are compiling a cookbook of recipes and memories from patrons across the country. They will turn these into a cookbook available in audio and in braille for any NLS patron to check out!

We would love for you to submit your own recipe and related memory to be included. The deadline is February 1, 2025.

You can submit your recipe via this online form: https://forms.office.com/r/L5E7fGRGY0

Or by mailing a copy of the full recipe with your name and related memory to:

Talking Book Program
Texas State Library and
Archives Commission
PO Box 12927
Austin TX 78711-2927

Summer Reading Program Presents: Texas Cuisine

Featured Collection: What’s Cooking, Texas? Texas Cuisine through the Ages

By Aly Head, Reference Librarian

Food is the great unifier, a staple of every major occasion from celebration of life to mourning of loss. It reflects culture, socioeconomic status, and history. As such, by looking at the food of a people, researchers may learn more about them. The Texas State Library and Archives Commission (TSLAC) is therefore celebrating Texas food in all its forms with a new featured book display.

  • [Chili Festival]. Texas Tourist Development Agency photographs and audiovisual materials, 1991/077-703-1. TSLAC.

TSLAC has a variety of artifacts related to dining throughout Texas history. Many of these artifacts were included as part of our exhibit, “Setting the Texas Table.” Want another taste? Check out our blog post, “Setting the Texas Table: ‘Dishing’ on the Artifacts Collection at the Texas State Archives,” which explores some of the dishes intertwined with Texas history at the Governor’s Mansion in detail.

  • [Chili Festival]. Texas Tourist Development Agency photographs and audiovisual materials, 1991/077-703-10. TSLAC.

Whether you believe beans belong in chili or not—a debate for the ages—TSLAC has materials relevant for a variety of diets, historic and modern. Food can be viewed through the lens of genealogy to build a timeline into the past, affected by availability of certain foods and spices through trade, exploration, climate, and times of economic hardship or prosperity.

  • Military Plaza-Chili-Con-Carne, or Mexican Supper. Places Collection, 1/103-628. TSLAC.

While food isn’t allowed in the Reference Reading Room, the collections at TSLAC hold a wide variety of materials highlighting Texas cuisine, both historical and modern. Some of these materials are currently on display in the Reference Reading Room through July. Other items, listed below, are available remotely via E-Books. More information about our location and hours can be found on our “Visit Us” webpage. For more information about access to the titles on display, please contact TSLAC reference services at ref@tsl.texas.gov or call 512-463-5455.