In the Texas Observer’s article “In the age of trump, the First All-Latino Sci-Fi Anthology Hits too Close to Home”  author Roberto Ontiveros introduced and describes an anthology written and produced purely by Latino Americans in Texas. The publishing house is located in San Antonio, Wings Press and is a prime example of how small business in Texas can thrive. In the article, Ontiveros introduces a few stories and describes what makes them fascinating. He also takes the opportunity to point out how the isolationism from the Texas exceptionality one character displays in of one of the stories is very similar to what we are recently seeing with Trump and his “Brand” coming into office.  Ontiveros did an excellent job outlining and introducing the stories to the point of peaking One’s interest. Being a Texan I feel I should seek this book out for my coffee table.

I also think this article displays even further proof that the population demographic in Texas is shifting from a predominately Anglo population to a more Hispanic and Latino population.  I like how Ontiveros embraces the facts that this entire piece of work in all its glory and creativity is 100% Latino.  I am most intrigued by “Flying under the Texas Radar with Paco and Los Freetails” a comic short in the anthology, from his description of the piece provides a great example of Texas Exceptionalism because the main character is exiled from the planet for “Not being Texan Enough” and “a future in which Texas has become a corporation run by a billionaire politician/entrepreneur named Billy-Bob Paolozzi. Cultural criticism and sarcasm are verboten and words are not so much banned as made palatable. Some Spanish, for instance, is acceptable, but not without the proper Texas twang.” Ontiveros extends the metaphor even further to make comparisons to our Presidential situation, “The piece, which jokes its way through to isolationism’s terrible, logical end, would be frightening even if we didn’t have a president who was also his own brand. But we do, so it’s terrifying.”

Ontiveros does an excellent job of introducing the anthology and creating enough intrigued to make One want to seek out the book for purchase. Not only is the Sci-Fi Anthology a success for Latinos and Hispanics of Texas but it is also a success for small Texas business.