‘Oldest Houston’ Book Deep-Dives H-Town’s Character and Cultural Diversity

NEW ARRIVALS TO or longtime residents of Houston who are curious about the city’s history are invited to take a deep dive Sat., Jan. 21 at Brazos Bookstore with Houston journalists Lydia Schrandt and Biju Sukumaran, authors of the guidebook Oldest Houston. The event begins at 6:30pm.

Published by Reedy Press, Oldest Houston is one in its Oldest series of travel books, in which local authors dig into their respective city’s historic neighborhoods, buildings and businesses, including its restaurants and bars (both crucial to Houston), to create a unique type of historically and personally informed guidebook.

Included in Oldest Houston are stories about H-Town’s oldest park, music hall, brewery and BBQ joint, as well as an 80-year-old Tex-Mex restaurant, the nation’s oldest running recording studio where Willie Nelson and Beyoncé tracked their hits, and a house built in 1847 located in the shadows of Downtown’s skyscrapers.

Schrandt and Sukumaran currently live and work in Houston, and are each uniquely qualified for the job of documenting the city’s history while acknowledging its cultural diversity. Originally from Albuquerque, N.M., Houston-based Schrandt is a writer and award-winning photographer whose travel writing and photography has appeared in Time Out Beijing, USA TODAY, San Francisco Chronicle and many other publications.

Sukumaran has traveled widely, penning travel articles for National Geographic Traveler, Esquire and Lonely Planet. Since returning to his native Houston, Sukumaran has dedicated himself to “uncovering the back streets and fusion eats that make his hometown famous.” His next book, Secret Texas, is due out in 2024.

The pair also share the Instagram account That’s So Houston, where they explore “secret spots and best eats in Houston and beyond.”