This volume brings together five essays that Mr. King considers "true facts," ten that constitute "tall tales," and four short stories that he classifies as "pure fiction." All of these pieces represent an ongoing attempt to define and understand his native place and his mind's country. They cover subjects ranging from a rape trial to dubious recipes and points between: writing, politics, Little League baseball, Texas basketball, racial integration in the military, dogs, sinning, and stories of troubled lives.