Coen to speak in Thibodaux

I (your Louisiana Book News host Cheré Coen) will be giving a talk about Cajun Country, in connection with my travel guidebook, “Exploring Cajun Country: A Tour of Historic Acadiana,” at noon Tuesday to the Rotary Club of Thibodaux at Envie restaurant, 203 N. Canal St in Thibodaux, followed by a 1:30 p.m. signing at Cherry Books, 1050 Canal St. in Thibodaux.

Heartla luncheon

            New York Times bestselling author and New Orleans native Sabrina Jeffries, with more than 5 million books in print, will be the guest speaker at the Heart of Louisiana's Annual Romance Readers Luncheon Saturday, Nov. 5, in Baton Rouge.

            The event will be from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. at Juban’s Restaurant, 3739 Perkin Road, and will feature book signings in addition to Jeffries’ talk and lunch.

            Tickets to the “Fall in Love With Romance” luncheon are $40 and available through http://heartla.com/luncheon/index.htm.

Obama’s choice

            While Pres. Obama was on vacation, he purchased some books for he and his family to enjoy. Among them was “The Bayou Trilogy,” a trio of crime novellas by Daniel Woodrell that’s set in fictional St. Bruno Parish of Louisiana and features Detective Rene Shade, a part-French, part-Irish ex-boxer turned cop.

There’s an App

       Shreveport’s William Joyce, known for his charming children’s books and Disney movies, has added another interesting talent to his resume. Joyce’s short animated film, “The Fantastic Flying Books of Mr. Morris Lessmore,” created by Moonbot Studios of Shreveport, debuted at Lafayette’s Cinema on the Bayou film festival last January. The ebook version of “Lessmore” was later released as an iPad app and has sold more than 55,000 copies so far, making “Lessmore” the first ebook app to hit number one on the iTunes store.

Back to school

            Literary lovers — and let’s hope our kids are — will get a kick out of the new sneakers and iPhone cases that pay tribute to great literature. There’s fleur de lis-inspired sneakers for “The Three Muskateers,” romantic designs for “Romeo and Juliet” and a farm yard for “Animal Farm,” among many more. Styles can be found at http://www.zazzle.com/foreverRebuilt.

Folktales series

The Vermilion Parish Library Abbeville branch will host a six-week series of readings and discussions titled “Folktales and Stories of the South and Louisiana.” The program is free and open to the public and will be held from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m.  Thursdays, Sept. 15 through Oct. 20.

“Folktales and Stories” will be conducted by Denise Rogers of UL’s Department of English. The six sessions will cover creation myth traditions; tricksters: animal and human; heroes and outlaws; why the world is; ghosts and magic in the South; and tales about people in the South. Texts to be used include “Swapping Stories: Folktales from Louisiana” edited by Carl Lindahl, Maida Owens and C. Renée Harvison; “Favorite Folktales from Around the World” by Jane Yolen; “Cajun Folktales” by J. J. Reneaux; and John Burrison’s “Storytellers: Folktales and Legends from the South.”

Pre-registration is strongly encouraged because of the limited number of books and expected public response. To register, call (337) 893-2674 or stop by the Abbeville Library.