Author Description

The Sordid Lives series has certainly been the gift that keeps on giving to its fans. It was a play, then a film, then a series, then there was a sequel. And now there’s this book, which takes you along on a trip—before Peggy’s infamous trip over G.W.’s wooden legs that did her in. Del Shores went deeper with these characters than he's ever gone, celebrating the denizens of small-town Texas and the eccentric family that gave him so much to write about. “Del Shores is a master of the Texas comedy.” Los Angeles Times “Del Shores is the grand master of Southern lowlife sensibilities.” Daily Variety FROM THE AUTHOR: The LA Times review that changed the course of my career was written by F. Kathleen Foley and appeared on May 24, 1995. The first paragraph of her review of my latest play read: “Del Shores’ ‘Sordid Lives’ at Theatre/Theater has more laughs than a hunting dog has ticks. In his long-running hit at the same venue, ‘Daddy’s Dyin’... Who’s Got the Will?’ (later made into a film), Shores proved himself a master of the Texas comedy. His sprawling new work is just as funny—maybe funnier.” For thirteen months after that review came out, that tiny 64-seat theatre was packed! Hearing those laughs, that applause, seeing those nightly standing ovations, I soon realized that this play was a gift to myself—allowing this native Texan, the son of a Southern Baptist Preacher and a high school drama teacher, to love that gay part of himself that he had loathed for so long. The closet door was shattered, and Sordid Lives had much to do with my newfound freedom. So in the words of my buddy Leslie Jordan, “Y’all sit back, turn these pages and enjoy these characters as you visit with Brother Boy, Peggy, LaVonda, Noleta, Latrelle, Juanita, Ty, G.W. and all the rest of your favorite Sordid characters.” —Del Shores