Land of the Permanent Wave: An Edwin "Bud" Shrake Reader

Southwestern Writers Collection Series, The Wittliff Collections

by Edwin Shrake

Edwin "Bud" Shrake is one of the most intriguing literary talents to emerge from Texas. He has written vividly in fiction and nonfiction about everything from the early days of the Texas Republic to the making of the atomic bomb. His real gift has been to capture the Texas Zeitgeist. Legendary Harper's Magazine editor Willie Morris called Shrake's essay Land of the Permanent Wave one of the two best pieces Morris ever published during his tenure at the magazine. High praise, indeed, when one considers that Norman Mailer and Seymour Hersh were just two of the luminaries featured at Harper's during Morris's reign. This anthology is the first to present and explore Shrake's writing completely, including his journalism, fiction, and film work, both published and previously unpublished. The collection makes innovative use of his personal papers and letters to explore the connections between his journalism and his novels, between his life and his art. An exceptional behind-the-scenes look at his life, Land of the Permanent Wave reveals and reveres the life and calling of a writer whose legacy continues to influence and engage readers and writers nearly fifty years into his career.

343 pages, Hardcover

First published April 1, 2008

Reviews

[Andrew · Rating 4 out of 5]

One of the more interesting Texas novelists/journalists of the 2nd half of the 20th Century. This compendium is a good mix of both. I'd only read Blessed Mcgill and a few magazine pieces before and now I'm interested in reading them all. Great job, UT Press!

[Scott Gilbert · Rating 4 out of 5]

Bud Shrake is a natural story teller with a broad spirit of invention and a wild soul. This is an excellent collection of his work indeed, as I would read any longer version of the tales encapsulated here (and in the case of The Borderlands, already have). His tale of the English survivor of both 19th century Afghanistan and Hell itself is particularly promising. The ultimate tale about the UT poetry prof who sells his soul to win the championship of golf is kind of sad in its circumcision actually, a tight little gag wrapped in travel and sports details, shopping for a screenplay adapter

[Robert Boyd · Rating 4 out of 5]

Pretty good book. Shrake is part of that group of Texas magazine writers that kind of come out of the hard-drinking sports/politics axis, who did lots of work for Sports Illustrated, Willie Morris's Harper's in the 60s, and Texas Monthly. Of that group, I rank Billy Lee Brammer as the best novelist, and Gary Cartwright as the best magazine writer--but Shrake is the best "all around" guy. This is a good collection.

[Brandon · Rating 5 out of 5]

A quite enjoyable read. Shrake is eminently quotable, a great down-home storyteller, adventurous and inspiring. One of my favorite passages:

"The puritans and the thought collectors, who rule much of the state and deny Texans such freedoms as the right to drink, bet on a horse or read an uncensored book, do not have much power in the Hill Country. The wide polished sky and the awesome land reduce their hysterias to absurdities."

[Belinda Fry · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is the second book I've read by Bud Shrake; enjoyed it a lot, sometimes laughing out loud, sometimes just shaking my head in amazement;