Hardscrub is vegetation so tough and resilient that it can withstand the heat, aridity, and wind of West Texas. Lionel G. García’s third novel examines characters living hard in this hard land. García’s central character comes of age while trying to salvage his identity and his family’s integrity from the mindless whirlwind created by his father, who is meaner and tougher than the West Texas desert. Through drought and depression, the young protagonist and his family become the helpless victims of the drinking, brawling, scamming and wandering of what is bound to become one of literature’s most memorable rednecks. Hardscrub is fast-paced, breathtaking, and overwhelming.