Explore the vast range of titles available.

How can the life of one relatively unknown man change our understanding of Texas history and the American West? Peter Ellis Bean, a fairly minor but fascinating character, casts unexpected light on conflicts, famous characters, and events from the time of Mexican rule through the years of the Republic. Bean’s role in Mexico’s revolution against Spain and his service as an agent of the Mexican government, especially as Indian agent in eastern Texas, provide an unusually vivid picture of Mexican Texas, as well as new information about the Indians in his region. More explosively, Jackson’s research on Bean’s career as Indian agent casts doubt on the traditional characterization of Sam Houston as a friend to the Texas Indians. Bean’s career shows Houston as a rival for the loyalty of the Indians during Texas’ rebellion against Mexico, a rival who made false promises for military and political gain. After Texas independence, Bean acquired vast lands in Texas, at one point holding more than 100,000 acres. A good citizen and a good businessman, involved with real estate, sawmills, salt works, agriculture, and stock raising, he was also a bigamist. Meticulously researched, dramatically written, and embodying a unique understanding of Mexican Texas, Jack Jackson’s chronicle of Peter Ellis Bean not only rescues him from relative obscurity but also corrects key aspects of the history in which he was involved and brings to life an era more often consigned to myth.

This study considers the transformation of plays into novels (something less investigated than the inverse process), and the relationship between historical drama, historical fiction, and the corresponding events in history. Shakespeare’s Second Tetralogy and three late-twentieth-century novels serve as examples. Their differences include narrative method: Pargeter’s third-person novel is wholly, Giardina’s first-person novel largely, in the realist tradition, and both concentrate on Prince Hal, the later King Henry V. Nye’s novel, the central object of study here, is the fictitious autobiography of a figure whose place in history is at best marginal (accepting Nye’s identification Falstaff/ Fastolf), throwing an unusual light on the period. Moreover, it is a parodistical, fantastical, densely intertextual metanovel. Pargeter guides sympathies towards Hotspur, Giardina towards Hal, Nye determinedly towards Falstaff. The representational possibilities of fiction (as opposed to drama) are exploited by all three, though again their methods vary.

Songer takes a closer look of Ellis Peters's mystery novel entitled Brother Cadfael's Penance. Among other things, she says that with this work, it could be seen that there are indication that Peters used the 20th chronicle to conclude both a narrative thread and the Cadfael series. Accounts supporting her contention are discussed.

Chest pain and sweats struck [Peter Ellis Lesley Ellis], 47, while he was reading at home in North Canterbury on Thursday night. It had been a draining week for Peter Ellis, with the loss of two staunch supporters, relatives Gordon and Mollie Seatter. The couple died naturally within a few days of each other. [Tim Barnett] said yesterday he understood the Ellis family's frustration, but a report on the petition had required considerably more work than usual.