Author of ‘Yonderings’ (TCU Press)
‘Destiny’s Way’ (Creative Texts Publishers)
‘Out There: Essays on the Lower Big Bend’ (Creative Texts Publishers)
‘The Uvalde Raider’ (Creative Texts Publishers)
‘Black And White: Tales of the Texas Highway Patrol’ (Creative Texts Publishers)
Facebook: Ben H. English
Webpage: benhenglish.com
‘Graying but still game’
Ben H. English is an eighth-generation Texan who was born in Uvalde and grew up in the Big Bend. At seventeen he joined the Marines, ultimately becoming a chief scout-sniper as well as an infantry platoon sergeant. Later he worked as a counterintelligence specialist and traveled to over thirty countries on four continents.
At Angelo State University he graduated Magna Cum Laude along with other honors. Afterwards Ben had a career in the Texas Highway Patrol, holding several instructor billets involving firearms, driving, patrol procedures and defensive tactics.
After retirement and a few years of teaching high school, he decided to try his hand at writing. His first effort, ‘Yonderings,’ was accepted immediately by a university press and garnered several awards. His second, ‘Destiny’s Way,’ led to a long term, multi-book contract.
This was followed by ‘Out There: Essays on the Lower Big Bend’ and his second historical fiction work, ‘The Uvalde Raider.’
Ben’s fifth effort, ‘Black and White: Tales of the Texas Highway Patrol,’ was released in June and stayed on the Amazon Number One Release list for six weeks straight. This book has already been mentioned for more literary awards, and many claim it is the best book they have read in years.
The great western novelist Louis L’Amour once advised to ‘write what you know.’ When Ben started writing six years ago, he took that experienced advice to heart.
His intimate knowledge of what he writes about lends credence and authenticity to his work. Ben knows how it feels to get hit and hit back, or being thirsty, cold, wet, hungry, alone or exhausted beyond imagination. Finally he knows of not only being the hunter, but also the hunted.
Ben and his wife have two sons who both graduated from Annapolis, and served their country with distinction. He still likes nothing better than grabbing a pack and some canteens, and heading out to where few others will ever venture.
Just as he has done throughout most of his life…