This volume brings together five essays that Mr. King considers "true facts", ten that constitute "tall tales", and four short stories that he classifies as "pure fiction". All of these pieces represent an ongoing attempt to define and understand his native place and his mind's country. They cover subjects ranging from a rape trial to dubious recipes and points between: writing, politics, Little League baseball, Texas basketball, racial integration in the military, dogs, sinning, and stories of troubled lives.

Many of these pieces were previously published in such magazines as Texas Monthly, Story, The Washingtonian, and Parade, while several appear here in print for the first time. All of them bear the trademark humor and style that characterize Mr. King's hit Broadway plays, The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas and Tire Night Hank Williams Died. For fans of Larry L. King -- as well as for people just discovering the broader range of his work -- this collection proves once again why he is one of America's preeminent, and funniest, essayists.