Robert Laxalt (September 25, 1923 – March 23, 2001) was a Basque-American writer from Nevada.

Biography

Robert Laxalt was born in 1923, a decade and a half after his father Dominique Laxalt and his mother Theresa Laxalt had emigrated to the United States in 1906 to herd sheep. His brother Paul Laxalt later became Governor of Nevada (1967–1971) and then a United States senator (1974–1986). After graduating from Carson City High School, Robert Laxalt attended Santa Clara University and then the University of Nevada at Reno. Robert Laxalt began his writing career as a journalist working for United Press International, before starting his own news service in Nevada in the 1950s. In 1957, Laxalt published his second book Sweet Promised Land, which was widely read and remains his best-known work today. This book tells the story of Laxalt journeying with his father back to France. Laxalt later published over a dozen books, among which several (like Sweet Promised Land and The Basque Hotel) are biographical or semi-fictional accounts of his family's history. In 1961, Robert Laxalt founded the University of Nevada Press and served as its first editor.

Basque identity

From the Basque Oral History Project:

Books by Robert Laxalt

Books and Selected Articles About Robert Laxalt