Willis brings Southern-French fushion to entertaining, Y'all

Virginia Willis continues her blend of Southern dishes with a French flare just in time for the holidays in “Basic to Brilliant Y’all: 150 Refined Southern Recipes and Ways to Dress Them Up for Company.” Many readers will know Willis by her award-winning “Bon Appétit, Y’all,” and her latest is a “body of basic recipes that can stand on their own,” she writes, “but they can be transformed to brilliant by a short recipe, presentation tip, or technique — all accomplished without ‘dumbing down’ the basic to make the brilliant work, and without the overuse of expensive or hard-to-find ingredients.”

Talk about my kind of book.

The opening features “fundamental recipes” such as stocks, sauces, pie crusts and the like. Then readers move to “starters and nibbles,” with lovely ideas that run the gamut, such as Southern ratatouille, shrimp rillettes and pigs in a blanket bites. Other chapters include typical meals — soups and salads, fish and shellfish and beef, pork and lamb, gospel birds and game birds and vegetables. In Southern fashion there’s rice grits and potatoes; eggs and dairy, a section on daily bread with items honoring cornmeal and sweet potatoes and, of course, desserts.

And the book is full of helpful hints, anecdotes and ways to turn the basic recipes into brilliant ones.

Here’s a great example. This sweet potato grits recipe can be enhanced into a soufflelike spoonbread; the book offers both. I’ll include it here as grits and lets you check out the book if you wish to know more. Note: If you live in the Lafayette area, there are folks who sells stone-ground grits at farmer’s markets and festivals.

Sweet Potato Grits

2 cups water

2 cups low-fat or whole milk

1 cup stone-ground grits

2 medium sweet potatoes, peeled and grated

Coarse salt and freshly ground white pepper

1/4 teaspoon ground ginger

Pinch of ground cinnamon

1 tablespoon unsalted butter

Direction: In a large, heavy saucepan, combine the water and milk and bring to a gentle boil over medium-high heat. Slowly add the grits, whisking constantly. Add the sweet potato. Season with salt and white pepper. Decrease the heat to low and simmer, stirring often, until the grits are creamy and thick, 45 to 60 minutes.

            Taste the grits and sweet potato to make sure both are cooked and tender. Add the ground ginger, cinnamon and butter. Taste and adjust for seasoning with salt and white pepper. Serve immediately.

           

Book events today

The UL Press Annual Holiday Book Sale will be from 5 p.m. to 7 p.m. today (Nov. 30, 2011) at the UL Alumni Center, 600 E. St. Mary Blvd. on the UL campus, and from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. Thursday at Bourque’s Social Club, 1109 St. Mary St. in Scott. There will be new releases, clearance titles, signed copies and complimentary refreshments, tote bag and giftwrapping. Every title will be discounted by at least 20% off of the regular retail price.

James Nolan will read from and sign his novel “Higher Ground” at 7 p.m. today at the Jefferson Parish Library, 4747 W. Napoleon Ave. in Metairie. He will also sign at 2 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 2, at the Latter Memorial Library in New Orleans.

Cheré Coen is the author of “Exploring Cajun Country: A Historic Guide to Acadiana” and co-author of “Magic’s in the Bag: Creating Spellbinding Gris Gris Bags and Sachets.” She teaches writing at UL-Lafayette’s Continuing Education. Write her at chere@louisianabooknews.com.

Take 5 with Robin Miller

Looking for cookbooks that make life easier?

Robin Miller, host of “Quick Fix Meals” on the Food Netwood has published a cookbook chock full of ideas. “Robin Takes 5: 500 Recipes, 5 ingredients or less, 500 calories or less, 5 nights a week at 5 p.m.” features 500 easy to make recipes that keep your life simple and won’t pile on the calories. Everything you can imagine is contained within this fat cookbook, from flatbread and calzones to a variety of entrees. Side dishes include stuffed artichokes within 20 minutes, a 10-minute chickpea salad with shrimp and scallions and interesting vegetable dishes such as roasted cauliflower with Granny Smiths and Parmesan. Desserts ran the gamut as well, and still stay within the 500 calorie threshold.

Another great book for those who don’t want to spend time in the kitchen is “50 Simple Soups for the Slow Cooker” by Lynn Alley. There’s a black bean soup with tomato, cumin and coconut milk, a new potato and parsley soup with olive tapenade and Swedish rhubarb raspberry soup, to name a few. It’s a handy little hardback that opens easily, as simple to use as its recipes.

Here’s a recipe from Robin Miller that’s perfect for the holidays when cooks are strapped for time and want to watch their calorie intake:

Nicoise Pizza with Olives, Red Peppers and Gruyère

1 pound fresh or frozen bread or pizza dough, thawed according to package directions

2 cups thinly sliced roasted red peppers

½ cup pitted kalamata olives, sliced into thin rounds

1 cup shredded Gruyère or Swiss cheese

1 teaspoon dried oregano

Direction: Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Roll the dough out into a large circle or rectangle about ¼-inch thick. Transfer the dough to a pizza pan or baking sheet. Top with peppers, olives, cheese, and oregano. Bake for 15 minutes, until the crust is golden brown and the cheese is bubbly.

Nutrients per serving: 322 calories, 12g fat, 4g saturated fat, 20mg cholesterol, 39g carbohydrates, 12g protein, 1g fiber and 826mg sodium.

UL Press Holiday Book Sale

The UL Press Annual Holiday Book Sale will be from 5 p.m. to 7 p.m. Wednesday, Nov. 30, at the UL Alumni Center, 600 E. St. Mary Blvd. on the UL campus, and from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. Thursday at Bourque’s Social Club, 1109 St. Mary St. in Scott. There will be new releases, clearance titles, signed copies and complimentary refreshments, tote bag and giftwrapping. Every title will be discounted by at least 20% off of the regular retail price.

Cheré Coen is the author of “Exploring Cajun Country: A Historic Guide to Acadiana” and co-author of “Magic’s in the Bag: Creating Spellbinding Gris Gris Bags and Sachets.” She teaches writing at UL-Lafayette’s Continuing Education. Write her at chere@louisianabooknews.com.

Ruby Tuesday's 'Simply Fresh' cookbook lets readers bring it home

If you’re a lover of Ruby Tuesday, you can bring home those dishes in a new cookbook by Jeff Morgan titled “Simply Fresh: Casual Dining at Home.” The cookbook features recipes from the popular restaurant founded by Sandy Beall, who credits its success with its “full-of-flavor dishes, prepared with the very best ingredients, never fancy for fancy’s sake, always generously served with gracious hospitality.”

            Readers will find cocktail recipes and appetizers and side dishes such as chicken wings three ways, sautéed carrots with cumin seeds and cilantro and corn and edamame succotash. There’s chapters on brunch, salads and soups, pasta, seafood, beef and desserts. The Ruby Tuesdays burgers are here (with tips on how to barbecue) along with some of their fun entrée dishes, from gourmet crab cakes with corn and pineapple chutney to meatloaf and everything in between. There’s even the restaurant’s elegant and popular take on mac and cheese.

             For lagniappe (what we call in Louisiana a little something extra), there’s a $5 coupon in every book to use with a $15 food purchase at any Ruby Tuesday restaurant in the mainland United States.

            Here is an easy recipe from “Simply Fresh” that’s as appealing to the eyes as it is to the taste buds:

Oven-roasted Potato “Fries” with Rosemary

5 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil

3 pounds large red potatoes, unpeeled, cut into 1/8-inch-thick rounds

1 tablespoon dried rosemary

Salt and freshly ground black pepper

Directions: Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Coat a large roasting pan with 2 tablespoons of the olive oil. Arrange the potato slices in long rows, each slice slightly overlapping the next one, in the prepared pan. Drizzle the remaining 3 tablespoons olive oil evenly over the potatoes, then dust the potatoes with the rosemary. Season with salt and pepper. Bake the potatoes for about 30 minutes, or until they are golden brown and crisp around the edges but still soft in the middle. Serve hot.

If you love restauranteurs and Food Network celebrities Pat and Gina Neely, you’ll be pleased to know they have a new cookbook out in time for the holidays. “The Neely’s Celebration Cookbook: Down-Home Meals for Every Occasion” includes 120 recipes for entertaining year-round, including Hoppin’ John Soup and Deep-fried Cornish Game Hens for New Year’s Day, Smothered Pork Chops and Creamy Garlic Mashed Potatoes for “Welcome Home, Baby,” One-handed Turkey Burgers and Mint Tea for “Spring Cleaning.”

Cheré Coen is the author of “Exploring Cajun Country: A Historic Guide to Acadiana” and co-author of “Magic’s in the Bag: Creating Spellbinding Gris Gris Bags and Sachets.” She teaches writing at UL-Lafayette’s Continuing Education. Write her at chere@louisianabooknews.com.

John Besh scores with new cookbook

            Chef John Besh, owner of seven acclaimed New Orleans restaurants, offers simplistic yet flavorful advice in his new cookbook, a tome to entice readers to enjoy fine foods at home. “My Family Table: A Passionate Plea for Home Cooking” is a gorgeous coffee table book filled with recipes, photos of John and his family, plus engaging food dishes. Besh’s reason for publishing a book that may keep people out of his restaurants is for Americans to return to the family table with simple but healthy meals, free from processed foods and hormones.

            “Our food world today is a cacophony of mass-produced this and instant that, of genetically modified vegetables and prepared, processed, point-and-click meals,” Besh writes in the book’s introduction. “I urge you to set aside manufactured convenience and to cook real food instead. You’ll be amazed at what this elemental act does — not only for the people you feed, but for you as well.”

            The “passionate plea” is evident when you open the book, greeted by a Norman Rockwell-esque holiday meal with John at the helm. Perusing these pages of “Sunday Supper” pecan-baked ham or learning how to cook potato chip-crusted drum with sambal mayonnaise accented by photos of South Louisiana living will make anyone want to relive a simpler time of slow food and good company. Interspersed in the recipes and photos are Besh’s reminiscenses of learning life lessons from grandparents, enjoying one-pot meals and teaching his son to cook.

            The bottom line, Besh stresses, is to make cooking for the enjoyment of all and not relegated to the elaborate creations of TV chefs.“If we as humans are to continue to evolve as a civilized society, we most certainly must find the time to slow down, to figure out how to make time to cook and eat with each other,” Besh writes. “This kind of communication is more fulfilling and more satisfying than anything that goes out through the airwaves.” Here’s a fun and easy recipe to try:

Marinated Crab Fingers

1 cup olive oil

¼ cup rice wine vinegar

2 tablespoons mayonnaise

1 teaspoon horseradish

1 teaspoon lemon juice

4 green onions, chopped

2 cloves garlic, minced

Few pinches Zatarain’s crab boil or Old Bay seasoning

2 dashes Tabasco

Salt

Freshly ground black pepper

1 pound crab fingers

Directions: Whisk together all of the ingredients for the marinade and toss with the crab fingers about 15 minutes before you’re ready to serve.

I'll be reviewing cookbooks all this week so check back every day for a new cookbook review and recipe!

Book events this week

The UL Press Annual Holiday Book Sale will be from 5 p.m. to 7 p.m. Wednesday, Nov. 30, at the UL Alumni Center, 600 E. St. Mary Blvd. on the UL campus, and from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. Thursday, Dec. 1, at Bourque’s Social Club, 1109 St. Mary St. in Scott. There will be new releases, clearance titles, signed copies and complimentary refreshments, tote bag and giftwrapping. Every title will be discounted by at least 20% off of the regular retail price.

Warren Perrin will sign copies of “Vermilion Parish” from 5:30 p.m. to 8 p.m. Thursday, Dec. 1, at New to You, 117 S. Main St. in Abbeville, as part of the Abbeville Christmas Stroll in Abbeville.

James Nolan will read from and sign his novel “Higher Ground” at 7 p.m. Wednesday at the Jefferson Parish Library, 4747 W. Napoleon Ave. in Metairie. He will also sign at 2 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 3, at the Latter Memorial Library in New Orleans.

Ken Meaux, illustrator of “Tout Bec Doux,” will share stories from the book in between acts at the “Rendez-Vous Des Cajuns” radio and TV show beginning at 6 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 3, at the Liberty Theater in Eunice.

Cheré Coen is the author of “Exploring Cajun Country: A Historic Guide to Acadiana” and co-author of “Magic’s in the Bag: Creating Spellbinding Gris Gris Bags and Sachets.” She teaches writing at UL-Lafayette’s Continuing Education. Write her at chere@louisianabooknews.com.

'Louisiana Christmas' offers great cooking ideas, makes ideal gift

            There have been so many wonderful cookbooks arriving on bookshelves that it’s difficult to know where to start. I decided to celebrate a few here this week for those wanting ideas for holiday cooking and continue the list next week. The beauty of cookbooks is they don’t just offer the buyer wonderful new ideas for the kitchen, but they make excellent holiday gifts as well.

            Carol Stubbs and Nancy Rust of Lafayette have compiled wonderful recipes from friends, family, notable chefs and owners of Louisiana attractions in “A Louisiana Christmas: Heritage Recipes and Hometown Celebrations.” The book also includes a handy list of holiday events and attractions statewide, plus lovely photos of the Hanley-Gueno Neopolitan Presepio collection of the Cathedral of St. John the Evangelist Museum in Lafayette.

            The Louisiana-produced book sells for $20 and is available online, plus at Classic Golden Pecan, Pieces of Eight, The Kitchenary, The Cottage Shoppe, Louisiana Hot Stuff, Jewelies, Caroline & Co and the Vermilionville Gift Shop in Lafayette and Rip Van Winkle Gardens, Books Along the Teche, Shadows-on-the-Teche Gift Shop and Conrad Rice Mill in New Iberia. Also available at The Kitchen Shop in Grand Coteau, Crawdaddy's in Shreveport, Follette Pottery Store in Dubach and The Sanctuary and Paper N Things in Baton Rouge.

            The River Oaks School in Monroe has published a delightful fund-raising cookbook titled “Oaks and Rivers,” choke full of recipes and graced with a cover of the Ouachita Riverby renowned Monroe artist Tommie Sue Sartor Hubenthal. Hubenthal’s work has been shown in numerous galleries, including the Masur Museum of Art.

            The cookbook offers the usual categories, from appetizers to desserts, but also sections on international cuisine, “Men Who Cook” (featuring recipes by men) and “This & That” for all those sauces, jellies and spiced nuts. “Oaks and Rivers” will delight cooks year-round, but there are plenty of ideas for Thanksgiving and surrounding holidays, from homemade breads to the endless array of sweet treats.

Both cookbooks are full of delectable recipes for winter holidays, so get one for yourself for Thanksgiving ideas, then more for under the tree.

            One of my favorite aspects of Thanksgiving is oyster dressing. Just in time for the holidays is the latest installation of Jerald and Glenda Horst’s “Louisiana Seafood Bible” series by Pelican Publishing of New Orleans, this time spotlighting oysters. “Louisiana Seafood Bible: Oysters” features not only 75 recipes but the history of the state’s industry, shucking techniques, interviews with fishermen and much more.

            Need some holiday dessert ideas? TV foodies Kimberly “Momma” Reiner and Jenna Sanz-Agero, known as the “Sugar Mommas,” have produced a cookbook titled “Sugar, Sugar: Every Recipe has a Story.” There are fun stories behind a host of recipes, from the Kentucky Derby Bars derived from a college friend to the Southern traditional Hummingbird Cake sent in by Irene Mangum of Baton Rouge. If you like homespun stories with your recipes, this book is it. I can’t wait to try the chocolate cloud cookies from an early 1930s recipe.

            Fans of the Joanne Fluke Hannah Swensen mysteries, which always included dessert recipes, will be pleased to learn there is now the “Joanne Fluke’s Lake Eden Cookbook: Hannah Swensen’s Recipes from the Cookie Jar.”

            And from Andrews McMeel Publishing comes two delightful little cookbooks: “Cutie Pies: 40 Sweet, Savory, and Adorable Recipes” by Dani Cone and “So Sweet! Cookies, Cupcakes and Whoopie Pies, and More” by Sur La Table. Both are filled with easy-to-read recipes, photos and helpful baking advice.

            Next week I’ll review John Besh’s new cookbook, plus “Lost Restaurants of New Orleans,” “The Lexicon of Read American Food” and more.

            Signing locally will be Neal Bertrand, who will share ideas for one-pot meals and sign copies of his “Slow Cooker Meals: Easy Home Cooking for Busy People” at 11 a.m. Friday at Barnes & Noble, 5707 Johnston St.

New releases

Libby Gardner of Lafayette has published “Barefooted” under the pen name of Lizzie Garrett, a book about her struggle with depression and addiction.
“Much like the lives of millions of others I struggled throughout my life with tragedies, molestation, and then addiction and clinical depression,” she wrote me by email. “From attempted suicide to Godly revelations the story shows the power of depression and addiction and the spirituality required to penetrate and overcome the darkness.”

The book is for sale online at Amazon.com and barnesandnoble.com.

Mystery author June Shaw of Thibodaux has published a book about her mom, “an amazing yet ordinary woman named Nora Shaw,” she wrote me by email. “Mom inspired everyone, becoming spunky and great fun during her senior years.”

“Nora 102 ½: A Lesson on Aging Well” is available on Shaw’s web site, www.juneshaw.com and createspace.com (discount code: YCRWQHRE). Shaw will sign copies, along with her mysteries, at 1 p.m. Sunday at LA Cajun Stuff in Houma.

Cheré Coen is the author of “Exploring Cajun Country: A Historic Guide to Acadiana” and co-author of “Magic’s in the Bag: Creating Spellbinding Gris Gris Bags and Sachets.” She teaches writing at UL-Lafayette’s Continuing Education. Write her at chere@louisianabooknews.com.

New Louisiana releases

            Documentary photographer Lori Waselchuk of Baton Rouge spent two years visiting the Louisiana State Penitentiary at Angola, where more than 85 percent of the 5,100 inmates will never be released before their deaths. In her book, “Grace Before Dying,” Waselchuk documents the many incarcerated members who have become hospice volunteers to dying inmates. Her poignant photos portray caring individuals who have taken the time to administer to terminally ill inmates. The book includes a history of Angola and its hospice program by historian Lawrence N. Powell.

            In time for Thanksgiving but encompassing more than one holiday comes a beautiful children’s book of gratitude. “Giving Thanks” follows a young boy in the woods with his father, who gives thanks to every living creature he passes. The boy learns that nature is a gift and we must give thanks back in return. ”Giving Thanks” is written by Jonathan London, and lovingly illustrated by Gregory Manchess.

            Author Ed Shankman and illustrator Dave O'Neill, who have teamed up for children’s books focused on the northeast, tackle New Orleans and a time when the music stopped and was resurrected in “The Bourbon Street Band is Back.” Proceeds from the sale of this book will be donated to the New Orleans Musicians Assistance Foundation.

John Travis edits a new anthology titled “Something in the Water: Louisiana Stories,” which includes 20 original short stories about the Bayou State.

            Curt Iles of Dry Creek, La., has published “A Spent Bullet: Louisiana 1941,” about military life in central Louisiana and the largest army maneuvers undertaken on American soil. Visit www.creekbank.net/a-spent-bullet-its-here for more information.

            Rochelle Staab teams up characters Liz Cooper, a pragmatic Los Angeles psychologist, and Nick Garfield, a professor of religious philosophy, in the first book of her new series titled “Who Do, Voodoo?”  Cooper doesn’t believe in the supernatural, but when her best friend finds a tarot card tacked to her front door, and is then accused of murder, Cooper must embrace the occult to find the killer.

Book events

            Warren Perrin will sign copies of “Vermilion Parish” at 2 p.m. Monday, Nov. 15, at the Vermilion Teachers’ Association meeting at the Abbeville Library in Abbeville.

            Walter Isaacson of New Orleans will discuss and sign his latest book, “Steve Jobs,” from noon to 2 p.m. Thursday, Nov. 17, at Garden District Book Shop in New Orleans.

            James Nolan, author of “Higher Ground,” will sign copies of his book at 6 p.m. Thursday, Nov. 17, at the Maple Street Book Shop, 7523 Maple St. in New Orleans.

            The South Regional Library is having an Author Alley, featuring numerous regional authors and their books for signing, from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. Saturday, Nov. 19. 

            The Louisiana Society of Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators will hold its November meeting at 1:30 p.m. Saturday, Nov. 19, at the Bluebonnet Library in Baton Rouge. Those interested in writing or illustrating for children are free to attend or may email Terri Dunham at louisianabook@yahoo.com with SCBWI in the subject line for more information.

            R. Reece Fuller will discuss and sign “Angola to Zydeco” from 1 p.m. to 3 p.m. Saturday, Nov. 19, at Garden District Book Shop in New Orleans.

Playwright Rosary Oneill will speak on “Dialogue” at the South Louisiana chapter of Romance Writers of America (SOLA) at 10 a.m. Saturday, Nov. 19, at the Jefferson Parish Eastbank Library, 4747 W. Napoloen Ave. in Metairie.

Cheré Coen will be speaking about my book, “Magic’s in the Bag: Creating Spellbinding Gris Gris Bags and Sachets,” at 2 p.m. Saturday, Nov. 19, at the St. Charles Parish Library in Destrehan.

Fuller's book showcases Louisiana's many colorful people, stories

            One of the many great aspects of the Louisiana Book Festival on the grounds of the state Capitol is listening to authors speak wisdom where politicians once spoke…well, I’ll leave that up to you kind readers. First, you have to be body scanned to enter the Capitol building, then you get to hear literature discussed with massive TVs watching your every move. And authors get to have those fun little committee room mics at their disposal. Makes you want them to say, “If I may, Mister Chairman…”

R. Reese Fuller, author of “Angola to Zydeco: Louisiana Lives,” brought his family to Senate Committee Room F, to watch dad speak about his debut book. They were enjoying the exploration of its political technology, his young son happily using the mic to inform us he was writing a book himself. When Fuller was introduced, his wife, Heather, suggested she reign in the kids but the crowd disagreed, something about innocence gone wild in the halls of power that made us all happy. Plus it added to Fuller’s presentation, who read from his book while his daughter danced about him, a sweet reminder of the stories that continue to surround us.

“Angola to Zydeco” is a collection of 25 articles Fuller published in the Times of Acadiana and The Independent of Lafayette, essays on South Louisiana notables such as Ernest J. Gaines, Buckwheat Zydeco, Marc Savoy and Eddie Shuler.  Although Fuller now teaches English and history at the Episcopal School of Acadiana, his foray into journalism produced fascinating tales, which he recounted at the festival.

            There’s the eclectic story of Greg Kerr of Opelousas, who claimed to be “an anointed cherub” able to heal and the secret of writing from best-selling author James Lee Burke (“There is no secret”). Fuller examined both hurricanes of 2005, visited Angola prison and spent “one day in Jena” during a rally where nearly 30,000 descended on the small town. My personal favorite, and one Fuller read at the festival, was a tribute to Elemore Morgan Jr. who painted Louisiana prairie horizons “where our planet ends and where the limitless universe begins,” Fuller writes. Morgan’s art graces the book’s cover.

            “Angola to Zydeco” showcases what makes our state great — its people and their endless colorful stories. What makes this book even more special is that it’s written by a native, a writer who spends more time letting the subjects speak for themselves than explaining how colorful Louisiana is.

Fuller will be part of a literary reading with Martha Garner and Chamir Murphy, who teach English at Southeast Elementary School in Opelousas, at 7 p.m. Thursday at Casa Azul Gifts in Grand Coteau. Have a story of your own? An open mic follows their reading.

            For more informaiton about “Angola to Zydeco,” visit www.reesefuller.com/angola-to-zydeco.

Book news

            “Furnishing Louisiana: Creole and Acadian Furniture, 1735–1835,” published by The Historic New Orleans Collection, has been recognized by the Southeastern Museums Conference’s 23rd Annual Publication Design Competition with a Gold Award in the Books and Catalogues category, as well as the Best in Show award. Designed by Tana Coman, “Furnishing Louisiana” features more than 1,200 full-color images, including several by Louisiana photographer Jim Zietz, and presents a comprehensive catalogue of furniture forms produced in the upper and lower Mississippi River valley.

            James Nolan will read from and sign copies of “Higher Ground,” a novel published by the University of Louisiana at Lafayette Press, at 6 p.m. Wednesday, Nov. 9, at Octavia Books in New Orleans.

The Friends of Dupré Library Annual Book Sale will be Thursday through Saturday, Nov. 10-12, at the library, 400 E. St. Mary St. on the UL campus in Lafayette. Times are 8-4:15 Thursday and Friday and 10-3 Saturday. For information, call (337) 482-6677.

            The North Louisiana Storytellers meets from 11 a.m. to noon Saturday, Nov. 12, at Bossier Central Library History Center, 2206 Beckett St. in Shreveport. Louisiana fantasy writer Faith Hunter will speak on “Your First 5 Pages – Make It or Break It.” Participants should bring the first five pages of their work in progress to get the most from this workshop. For information, visit nolastars.com.

'Tout Bec Doux' compilation a fun examination of Cajun life

Beginning in August, 1969, French teacher Earl Comeaux and graphic artist Ken Meaux of Vermilion Parish began the country's first comic strip in Cajun French. Titled "Bec Doux et ses amis," the strip featured Bec Doux, his sidekick Zirable and a few others, including wives, children and friends. It was published with an English translation in The Kaplan Herald, then later in other southwestern Louisiana newspapers, and offered a good laugh at Cajun culture, daily Cajun life and sometimes the difficulties pronouncing both English and French (as in Continental French) well.


The University of Louisiana at Lafayette Press has compiled all of the Bec Doux comics and published it in a large format book that's a delight to enjoy. "Tout Bec Doux: The Complete Cajun Comics of Ken Meaux & Earl Comeaux" features an introduction by Fabrice Leroy and Barry Ancelet and includes two of Meaux's early strips — Louisiana Folklore and The Cajuns — plus a comic strip publishers refused to print.

This Saturday, Nov. 5, at 2 p.m., Meaux, Leroy and Ancelet will sign copies of "Tout Bec Doux" at Barnes & Noble, 5707 Johnston St. in Lafayette.