Glorie Martinez
Living With Discomfort and Ambiguity in ‘Finding Home in Boomtown’
The 22-Hour Drive Between Houston and Los Angeles Inspired This Hypnotic Art Show
Eerie and evocative, Will Boone’s Highway Hex considers the sprawling concrete jungles of Houston and Los Angeles.
Texas and California are the two most populous states in America. Accordingly, they boast three of the nation’s 10 most highly populated metro areas. But between these masses of humanity, where steadily increasing populations strain against the indefinite boundaries of … Read More
In ‘Yellow Rose,’ the American Coming-of-Age Story Finally Includes Undocumented Youth
Set in Austin, the film tracks a Filipina teen dreaming of a country music career—and fighting to keep her family together.
“I never fit in,” croons Rose Garcia in one of the early scenes of Yellow Rose. For the young protagonist—a Filipina teen who sports a cowboy hat and blows off homework to pen songs—the lyrics land just a tad on … Read More
Author Saeed Jones on Empathy, the Power of Memoir, and Growing up Gay in North Texas
“My mission has always been to help people understand that we are never alone in the world.”
Saeed Jones possesses the rare ability to see himself with uncompromising clarity. He also has the courage to put his insights down on paper, chronicling the shame, vulnerability, and self-destruction that marked his journey into adulthood in a fervent memoir … Read More
‘How the Gringos Stole Tequila’ Tells the Complex Story of Mexico’s Favorite Spirit
Amid corporate buyouts, environmental threats, and cultural appropriation, can tequila keep its ties to the land?
How the Gringos Stole Tequila is the sort of book title that speaks for itself. “It was kind of tongue-in-cheek,” author and culinary travel writer Chantal Martineau recalls of suggesting the phrase to her publishers. “I’m actually shocked they kept … Read More
Beautiful Ruins: ‘Anthropocene’ Is a Sobering Ecological Prophecy
In this visually stunning documentary, ingenuity is humanity’s fatal flaw.
One of the first shots of Anthropocene: The Human Epoch, a new documentary chronicling how humans have changed the earth, features a massive pile of severed elephant tusks. The dismal scene takes place on a nature preserve in Kenya, where … Read More