When the Grass Is Rising

Long before he defeated Santa Anna at the Battle of San Jacinto in 1836, a rebellious sixteen-year-old Sam Houston ran away from home to live in the wilds of East Tennessee as an adopted son of the Cherokee. At nineteen, without any formal education, he taught school to earn money to pay off his debts and then made a lasting impression on General Andrew Jackson during the Battle of Horseshoe Bend in the War of 1812.

Sam Houston's accomplishments rival those of George Washington. He commanded a ragtag army against the vastly superior forces of Mexico and won a war of independence that led to the formation of a new country-the Republic of Texas. Like Washington, Houston served as its first elected president. How did this impulsive, headstrong middle child, deemed hopeless by his father, become the George Washington of his time?

Discover the incredible coming-of-age story of the boy who would become Sam Houston-the most polarizing figure in the history of Texas.