Going Back to Galveston

In this witty, thoughtful, and clear-eyed look at a place that has engaged the imaginations and energies of generations of Galvestonians, Texans, and others, writer M. Jimmie Killingsworth and photographer Geoff Winningham reflect on the various Galvestons—virtual and real, natural and artificial—that compete and overlap to create a location, a destination, and the defining experiences associated with “going to Galveston.”
From the tepid, still waters and steamy beaches of the Texas Gulf Coast to the computerized, air-conditioned seductions of places like Moody Gardens and the Rainforest Cafe, Galveston offers a wide array of opportunities for observation of the frequently ironic interplay of human and natural history. Killingsworth’s affectionate, wry prose and Winningham’s distinctive, surprising images offer a unique tribute to Galveston’s past, present, and future: a barrier island that once hosted native peoples, shipwrecked Spaniards, and buccaneers; a birding hotspot that draws nature watchers from all over the world to its estuarine and bay habitats; a hurricane-buffeted city built for tourism, with a storied—sometimes shady—nightlife, a restored historic downtown district, and a trucked-in beach.
Going Back to Galveston is a deeply personal meditation on why and how people relate to the places they love. With Killingsworth and Winningham as your guides, explore the multisensory realities: bays and beaches, birding and fishing; grand hotels and Victorian mansions alongside tumbledown docks and sleazy bars; glitzy, modern palaces of recreation and posh eateries competing with fast-food joints and vendors of tourist trinkets. Going Back to Galveston is an excursion you can carry in your hand—one you’ll want to take again and again.

M. JIMMIE KILLINGSWORTH is professor of English at Texas A&M University. An award-winning author, nature writer, and Texas Master Naturalist, Killingsworth’s books include Reflections of the Brazos Valley (with D. Gentry Steele, Texas A&M University Press, 2007). GEOFF WINNINGHAM’s photographs have appeared in the Museum of Modern Art and the Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, the Boston Museum of Fine Arts, and the major art museums of Texas. A professor of visual arts at Rice University, Winningham is the author of Traveling the Shore of the Spanish Sea (Texas A&M University Press, 2009).