New book examines Forest Hill, Louisiana, history

             I’m pleased to announce that my latest book, “Forest Hill, Louisiana: A Bloom Town History” by the History Press, will be released to bookstores on Tuesday. The book examines the central Louisiana town of 900 residents that is also home to 200-plus plant nurseries that make up a multi-million dollar industry. Most gardeners know about Forest Hill and its nurseries but the town has a long and varied history. Plantation owners from the Bayou Boeuf area had summer homes near present-day Forest Hill, and plantation owner and Baptist minister William Prince Ford ran a mill there; he would become the first owner of Solomon Northup who later penned “12 Years a Slave.” By the end of the 19th century a timber boom began, with companies clearing away acres of longleaf pine. World War II brought Camp Claiborne, part of the largest peacetime war maneuvers in U.S. history. But it’s the nurseries that survived and grew, to borrow a pun, starting in 1901 by Sam Stokes and continued today by later generations of many of the original owners. I’ll be signing copies of Forest Hill at 2 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 18, at Barnes & Noble Lafayette and at the Louisiana Book Festival, among other events.

           

Book launches

            Two new books are out this week with events to celebrate their launches.

            James Nolan signs copies of his delightful new short story collection “You Don’t Know Me: New and Selected Stories” (UL Press) at 6 p.m. Thursday, Oct. 2, at Garden District Book Shop in New Orleans. Alexander McCall Smith, author of the “No. 1 Ladies’ Detective Agency” novels, calls the book, “One of the most vivid pieces of writing I have come across for some time…it leapt from the page.” I couldn’t agree more.

            Designer Andi Eaton chronicles 300 years of New Orleans fashion in “New Orleans Style” and will sign copies (as well as meet and greet with specialty cocktails) from 5 p.m. to 8 p.m. Wednesday, Oct. 1, at the book launch at Bellocq lounge in the Hotel Modern, 936 St. Charles Ave. in New Orleans.

New releases

            Cay Gibson of Sulphur has transformed a classic trickster tale in the fun new children’s story “Cajun ‘Ti Beau and the Cocodries,” published by Pelican Publishing. A young boy leaves home with a new set of clothes and a parasol but must hand them over to appease a group of hungry alligators. Soon the gators fight over the new prizes and spin themselves into a puddle of roux. The book, illustrated by Colleen D’Antoni, incorporates many French names and expressions and includes a glossary in the back.

            The Bayou Writers’ Group of Lake Charles will release its first anthology of poetry and prose titled “Journeys” on Saturday in both paperback and ebook formats. For more information, visit http://bayouwritersgroup.com.

            Mark A. Stevens is a former Lafayette resident and Advertiser editor and I mentioned his self-published book about the fabled Clinchfield No. 1 steam engine in previous columns. He’s since published the book with the History Press, titled “The Clinchfield No. 1: Tennessee’s Legendary Steam Engine,” along with author A.J. “Alf” Peoples. The book features nearly 80 vintage photographs, many never before seen by the general public, along with decades of media coverage. “The No. 1 had it all — intrigue, rebirth and revival mixed with sadness, anger and celebration,” Stevens wrote me by email.

Letters contest

            The 22nd annual Letters About Literature contest, a national reading and writing competition for students sponsored by the Center for the Book in the Library of Congress in association with its affiliate state centers, is now accepting entries. Fourth through 12th grade students write personal letters to living or dead authors from any genre explaining how what the students read changed their views of the world or themselves. Students may enter on their own or through their schools or local libraries in three levels: grades 4–6, grades 7-8 and grades 9–12. There will be 50 entries in each level from each state. Louisiana’s first place winners’ entries will be submitted to the Library of Congress for the national competition with the chance of winning up to $1,000. State winners will be recognized at next year’s Louisiana Book Festival. The student’s letter and entry coupon, available online, must be sent to Letters About Literature, P.O. Box 5308, Woodbridge, VA 22194. The postmark deadline for Level 3 is Dec. 15; for Levels 1 and 2, the deadline is Jan. 15, 2015. The entry forms and information may be downloaded at www.read.gov/letters. 

           

Book events

            The LSU-Eunice Performing Arts Series presents former Louisiana Poet Laureate Darrell Bourque at 6:30 p.m. Tuesday, Sept. 30, in the auditorium of the Health Technology building. Bourque will read from his latest book, “if you abandon me, comment je vas faire,” in which he explores the life of early 20th century Creole musician Amédé Ardoin. The presentation is free and open to the public and books will be on sale for $10 with all proceeds benefitting the foundation to erect a statue in honor of Ardoin. 

            A film series honoring Ernest Gaines begins at 6:30 p.m. Wednesdays at the South Regional Library; this week’s film is “A Gathering of Old Men.” The Ernest J. Gaines Center at UL Lafayette also has events planned throughout October; visit ernestgaines.louisiana.edu or facebook.com/ErnestGainesCenter.

            Kit Wohl signs copies of her new cookbook, “New Orleans Classic Creole Recipes” from 1 p.m. to 3 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 4, at Garden District Book Shop in New Orleans.

Cheré Coen is the author of “Forest Hill, Louisiana: A Bloom Town History,” “Haunted Lafayette, Louisiana” and “Exploring Cajun Country: A Historic Guide to Acadiana” and co-author of “Magic’s in the Bag: Creating Spellbinding Gris Gris Bags and Sachets.” Write her at cherecoen@gmail.com.

Katy Simpson Smith debuts impressive novel of loss and love, 'The Story of Land and Sea'

            Katy Simpson Smith hails from Jackson, Miss., but she’s ours now, serving as an adjunct professor at Tulane. Her debut novel, “The Story of Land and Sea” (HarperCollins) follows three generations of loss, love and faith around the time of the American Revolution along the North Carolina coast.

            There’s unforgiving Asa, owner of the turpentine plantation who loses his wife in childbirth, and his headstrong daughter Helen who elopes with John, a man whose career spans piracy, soldiering and shopkeeping. John also experiences the death of his wife through childbirth and escapes to the sea when his ten-year-old daughter Tabitha contracts yellow fever. Rounding out the story is Moll, a slave bought as Helen’s companion who is married off against her will, bearing several children, including her beloved Davy who offers John a new beginning.

            Smith chose Beaufort, N.C., as the book’s setting after being inspired by a gravesite there, and because of the town’s changing economic character. “The Revolution was coming to a close, but few people knew what a United States would look like,” she is quoted in the book’s press materials. “The town of Beaufort was in a period of decline, losing townspeople to larger cities as economic centers shifted. And the landscape itself was amorphous; on the coast, the land slides into the ocean in bands of marsh and swamp with few clear boundaries. This setting, then, was ideal for characters with similarly tenuous lives.”

            “ ‘The Story of Land and Sea’ is the best novel I have read all year,” said best-selling author Anita Shreve. “The writing is word-perfect with its nearly biblical cadences, its taut and relentlessly spare sentences, and its unusually wise utterances, all of which contribute to the sheer joy that come from finding oneself in an imagined universe that feels as real as a splinter in a finger.”

            We look forward to more novels from this impressive debut artist.

            Note: Smith is also the author of “We Have Raised All of You: Motherhood in the South, 1750-1835.”

Cheré Coen is the author of “Forest Hill, Louisiana: A Bloom Town History,” “Haunted Lafayette, Louisiana” and “Exploring Cajun Country: A Historic Guide to Acadiana” and co-author of “Magic’s in the Bag: Creating Spellbinding Gris Gris Bags and Sachets.” Write her at cherecoen@gmail.com.

UL-Lafayette to host Banned Book Read Out

            Banned Books Week begins tomorrow and runs through Sunday, bringing focus to the censorship of books throughout America. The event began in 1982 in response to a sudden surge in the number of challenges to books in schools, bookstores and libraries. You might remember in the 1984 film, “Footloose,” a group of citizens burning books in front of the library.

            If you think things have cooled off, think again. Since 1982, more than 11,300 books have been challenged, according to the American Library Association, and 307 challenges happened in 2013. Some of the most challenged titles that year included “Captain Underpants,” “The Bluest Eye” by Toni Morison and “The Hunger Games.”

            Banned Books Week is sponsored by the American Library Association, the American Booksellers Foundation for Free Expression, the American Society of Journalists and Authors, the Association of American Publishers, the Comic Book Legal Defense Fund, the National Association of College Stores, the National Coalition Against Censorship, the National Council of Teachers of English, PEN American Center and Project Censored.

            At 3 p.m. Wednesday, the University of Louisiana-Lafayette Dupré Library will host its third annual Banned Book Read Out in celebration of Banned Books Week. Students, faculty and community members are invited to read a passage from one of their favorite banned or challenged books outside the Ernest Gaines Center on the third floor of the library. The event is free and open to the public.

 Acadie launch

            Warren A. Perrin and Mary Broussard are launching “Acadie Then and Now: A People’s History,” a collection of 65 articles by 55 authors that showcase Acadians from around the world, at 11 a.m. Sunday, Sept. 28, at Vermilionville in Lafayette. The book focuses on the Acadian communities in the United States, France and Canada. All profits from the book will be donated to 22 Acadian museums located in three countries. The book was also co-directed by Phil Comeau, an award-winning filmmaker and author living in Montreal. Prior to his death, Cajun artist George Rodrigue gave permission to use his painting, “Spinning Cotton in Erath (1977),” for the book’s cover. Contributors to the book include Louisiana singer, songwriter, poet and activist Zachary Richard; Cajun folklorist, author and UL-Lafayette professor Dr. Barry Jean Ancelet; Acadian poet, playwright and professor Dr. Herménégilde Chiqsson; and activist and journalist Jean-Marie Nadeau, who catalyzed the inaugural Congrès mondial acadien.

AWP Award

            Acadiana Writing Project Teacher Consultant and Iberia Parish teacher Margaret Simon has been named the recipient of the National Council of Teachers of English’s 2014 Donald H. Graves award for excellence in teaching writing. Simon will receive the award at NCTE’s annual national meeting in November. 

Faulkner’s birthday

            William Faulkner’s birthday is Thursday, but it falls in the middle of the Jewish high holidays so the Pirate’s Alley Faulkner Society will celebrate the novelist’s birthday at 1 p.m. Sunday, Sept. 28, at 818 St. Charles Ave. in New Orleans. Also, because of the Saints game, the event will include a festive brunch instead of a summer supper, not to mention the fun starts after church services, since it’s a Sunday. Talk about being inclusive! Net proceeds from the event will go to support the non-profit Faulkner Society. For more information, visit http://www.wordsandmusic.org.

Book events

            Michael Marshall will discuss his book “Gallant Creoles: A History of the Donaldsonville Canonniers” at 6 p.m. Wednesday at the Jeanerette Museum, 500 E. Main St. in Jeanerette. Composed of Creole and Cajun citizen-soldiers, the Donaldsonville Canonniers were originally organized as a militia company in 1837 and were one of the most active and highly regarded Louisiana units during the American Civil War. The event is more suitable for an adult audience.

For information, visit JeaneretteMuseum.com.

            A film series honoring Ernest Gaines will be held at 6:30 p.m. Wednesdays at the South Regional Library in Lafayette; this week “A Lesson Before Dying” will be shown. Visit ernestgaines.louisiana.edu or facebook.com/ErnestGainesCenter for more information.

            Michael Rubin will be speaking and signing “The Cottoncrest Curse” from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. Thursday at the Old Governor's Mansion, 502 North Blvd. in Baton Rouge. Light refreshments will be served at 6 p.m. at the event presented by the Foundation for Historical Louisiana. For more information, visit www.fhl.org.

            Delphine Hirasuna will sign “The Art of Gaman” from 5 p.m. to 8 p.m. Thursday at the World War II Museum in New Orleans. She will offer a presentation at 6 p.m. at the
Stage Door Canteen, following by the signing. During World War II, the 120,000 Japanese Americans living on the West Coast were ordered into barbed-wire enclosed internment camps, allowed to bring only what they could carry. “The Art of Gaman” relates how the internees practiced the discipline of gaman enduring the seemingly impossible with patience and dignity by creating objects of beauty and utility out of scrap and found materials. For information, call (504) 528-1944.

            The DwnTown Poetry Krewe will offer an open mic and variety show at 2 p.m. Saturday at 101 Jefferson St., Suite 100, in downtown Lafayette. Poets, musicians, and people of other talents are invited.

            Bad Art Fête, which celebrates the ugly side of art, is ongoing through September at the Lafayette Library. Original art may be submitted (one entry per person) through Oct. 10. Voters will determine the best during voting at ArtWalk from 6 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. Oct. 11.

            Dennis Ward will read excerpts from his debut novel, “Mademoiselle Gigi” and Bonnie Friedman will screen her documentary “Operation Sussex” at 2 p.m. Sunday, Sept. 28, at NUNU Arts and Culture Collective in Arnaudville. For more information on Operation Sussex, visit alliance-productions.net.

Cheré Coen is the author of “Forest Hill, Louisiana: A Bloom Town History,” “Haunted Lafayette, Louisiana” and “Exploring Cajun Country: A Historic Guide to Acadiana” and co-author of “Magic’s in the Bag: Creating Spellbinding Gris Gris Bags and Sachets.” Write her at cherecoen@gmail.com.

Isaacson up for National Book Award

            The National Book Awards nonfiction longlist were announced and include Walter Isaacson of New Orleans, for his book “The Innovators,” and John Lahr, who wrote about New Orleans’ most famous playwright, “Tennessee Williams: Mad Pilgrimage of the Flesh.”

            The list includes:

            Roz Chast, Can't We Talk About Something More Pleasant? (Bloomsbury)

            John Demos, The Heathen School: A Story of Hope and Betrayal in the Age of the Early Republic (Knopf)

            Anand Gopal, No Good Men Among the Living: America, the Taliban, and the War through Afghan Eyes (Metropolitan Books)

            Nigel Hamilton, The Mantle of Command: FDR at War, 1941 - 1942 (Houghton Mifflin Harcourt)

            Walter Isaacson, The Innovators (Simon & Schuster)

            John Lahr, Tennessee Williams: Mad Pilgrimage of the Flesh (Norton)

            Evan Osnos, Age of Ambition: Chasing Fortune, Truth, and Faith in the New China (Farrar, Straus and Giroux)

            Ronald C. Rosbottom, When Paris Went Dark: The City of Light Under German Occupation, 1940-1944 (Little, Brown)

            Matthew Stewart, Nature's God: The Heretical Origins of the American Republic (Norton)

            Edward O. Wilson, The Meaning of Human Existence (Norton)

'Chained to the Land' a rich collection of slave narratives

             During the 1930s the Federal Writers’ Project interviewed more than 2,200 ex-slaves throughout 17 states, including Louisiana. The narratives were catalogued in the Library of Congress and published by George Rawick in the 1970s as “The American Slave: A Composite Biography.” Rawick’s massive tome was a bit intimidating so John F. Blair Publisher broke the narratives down by state in its “Real Voices, Real History” series.

            The latest in the series is “Chained to the Land: Voices from Cotton & Cane Plantations,” edited by Lynette Ater Tanner, co-owner of Frogmore Plantation outside Vidalia. Tanner’s research into plantation life and African-American culture has won her praise from travel organizations such as AAA and the National Park Service and she is the recipient of the Rural Tourism Award from the state of Louisiana.

            The book contains 42 of the best Louisiana narratives, many of which were not sent to Washington with the rest of the interviews but housed at Melrose Plantation in Natchitoches. These invaluable interviews have been seen by few.

            The Depression-era interviewers published the narratives using their own transcriptions for dialect and added personal notes such as descriptions of the former slaves and their surroundings and an occasional opinion. Regardless, the first-hand accounts of slavery contain stories of cruel abuse, the Civil War and the freeing of slaves, Louisiana farming techniques, housing and relationships, to name a few.

            “Chained to the Land” is a small but precious glimpse into an era rarely written about by its victims. It’s a must read for those wanting to learn the larger picture of a sad time in Southern history.

Celebrating Gaines

            October marks 50 years since the publishing of Ernest Gaines’ first book, “Catherine Carmier.” The Ernest J. Gaines Center on the University of Louisiana at Lafayette campus and the Lafayette Public Library will celebrate Gaines’ literary genius this fall with several events.  

            A film series will be held at 6:30 p.m. Wednesdays at the South Regional Library. Films to be shown include “An Obsession of Mine: The Legacy of Ernest J. Gaines” and “The Sky is Gray” on Sept. 17, “A Lesson Before Dying” on Sept. 24, “A Gathering of Old Men” on Oct. 1 and “The Autobiography of Miss Jane Pittman” on Oct. 8.

            A collection of Gaines books, manuscripts, film memorabilia and more will be on display at the South Regional Library from Oct. 9 to Nov. 9.

            A book discussion on “The Autobiography of Miss Jane Pittman” (celebrating its 40th anniversary this year) will be led by Matthew Teutsch, interim director of the Ernest J. Gaines Center, at 6:30 p.m. Wednesday, Oct. 22, at South Regional Library.

            The Ernest J. Gaines Center at UL Lafayette also has events planned throughout October. Visit ernestgaines.louisiana.edu or facebook.com/ErnestGainesCenter for more information.

            Gaines, himself, is also scheduled to speak at the Louisiana Book Festival on Nov. 1.

Award winner
           Baton Rouge fiction writer Olivia Clare Friedman has received a 2014 Rona Jaffe Foundation Writer’s Award, given annually to six women writers who demonstrate excellence and promise in the early stages of their careers. The awards are $30,000 each and will be presented to the six recipients Thursday in New York City. Clare received degrees from UC Berkeley and USC, an M.F.A. from the Iowa Writers’ Workshop and is a Black Mountain Institute Ph.D. Fellow in literature at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas. While her first book of poems, “The 26-Hour Day,” is forthcoming from New Issues in 2015, her award recognizes her work in fiction. Her stories have appeared in Granta Online, The Southern Review, The Kenyon Review Online and The Yale Review. Her first published story, “Pétur,” appeared in Ecotone and received a 2014 O. Henry Prize. Her novel, “The Norns,” takes place in a small, unnamed town in post-Katrina Louisiana. Clare plans to use her Writer’s Award to travel to Germany, where part of her novel takes place, and take time off next summer to devote herself to these projects.

Book fest

            The Washington Parish Library is hosting its inaugural book festival from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday at the Franklinton Branch Library, with activities for the whole family. New York Times-bestselling author Erica Spindler will be the featured speaker, discussing her more than 30 books, including her latest, “Justice for Sara.”  Other authors include J. M. Richardson, author of “The Twenty-Nine,” “The Apocalypse Mechanism” and “A Line in the Sand;” Leon Puissegur, author of “The Oil Man;” and David Vince, author of the memoir “When Life Throws You Curves, Keep Swinging.” In addition, there will be 30 authors signing books on “Author’s Row.” 

New releases

            Four Louisiana Book Festival featured authors have had three books released in the past week. All three books will be presented at this year’s book festival. They are Vicky Alvear Shecter, author of “Hades Speaks!: A Guide to the Underworld by the Greek God of the Dead (Secrets of the Ancient Gods);” Meriah Crawford, co-author and Michaux Dempster, editor of “Trust & Treachery” and Rolland Golden, author of “Rolland Golden: Life, Love, and Art in the French Quarter.”

            Novelist Steven Well Hicks as a new book out, “Destiny’s Anvil: A Tale of Politics, Payback & Pigs,” concerning revenge between a sociopathic politician and the campaign puppetmaster who unleashes him on the people of Louisiana.

            Baton Rouge lawyer Randy Roussel has published two books of his photography, “Meandering Through the Red Stick Region” and “Baton Rouge: Views Along the Meander.” His books are available at Cottonwood Books in Baton Rouge, the Louisiana State Museum and Octavia Books in New Orleans.

            Lee Roy Pitre Jr. has published “Window Into Yesteryears,” a book that took more than 30 years of research to document the family of Pitre. In addition to explaining the origins and history of the surname, the book is “a testimonial of one man’s journey into lifelong questions, hunger for knowledge, and thirst for absolute universal truth,” according to Pitre’s web site. For more information, visit http://windowsintoyesteryears.com.

            Nancy Duplechien of Ville Platte, author of “The Dark Trilogy” paranormal novels, has published the third book in the series, “Dark Legacy.” The first book “Dark Bayou” was set in Acadiana but the second book, “Dark Carnival,” is mostly set in New Orleans around Mardi Gras time. “Dark Legacy” is partially set in Paris. The ebooks are available from Amazon.com or paperbacks/hardcovers from Lulu.com.

Book events

            Jesmyn Ward, the National Book Award winner will discuss race, Mississippi, the untimely deaths of five young black men and her struggles to survive at 6 p.m. Tuesday at the Garden District Book Shop in New Orleans. Ward, who joined the Tulane faculty this past summer, is the author of 2013 memoir, “Men We Reaped.”

Cheré Coen is the author of “Haunted Lafayette, Louisiana” and “Exploring Cajun Country: A Historic Guide to Acadiana,” both from The History Press, and co-author of “Magic’s in the Bag: Creating Spellbinding Gris Gris Bags and Sachets.” Her next book is “Forest Hill, Louisiana: A Bloom Town History.” Write her at cherecoen@gmail.com.

Time to show off those spelling skills

            Can you spell Tchoupitoulas?           

            The Lafayette Public Library Foundation presents Spell-a-bration, a corporate spelling bee benefiting the Lafayette Public Library on Thursday, Nov. 13, 2014, at the Lafayette Science Museum. Corporate-sponsored teams of three can compete in this spelling bee for adults with a “To Bee or Not to Bee” theme in celebration of the 450th anniversary of Shakespeare's birth. 

            Tickets are $25 in advance and $35 at the door. Proceeds go toward funding for the Children's Entrance at the new Main Library downtown. Call (337) 593-4770, email spellabration@lplfoundation.com or visit www.lplfoundation.org/spellabration for more details and to purchase tickets.

Celebrating Ernest Gaines

            October marks 50 years since the publishing of Ernest Gaines’ first book, “Catherine Carmier.” The Ernest J. Gaines Center on the University of Louisiana at Lafayette campus and the Lafayette Public Library will celebrate Gaines’ literary genius this fall with several events.  

            A film series will be held at 6:30 p.m. Wednesdays at the South Regional Library. Films to be shown include “An Obsession of Mine: The Legacy of Ernest J. Gaines” and “The Sky is Gray” on Sept. 17, “A Lesson Before Dying” on Sept. 24, “A Gathering of Old Men” on Oct. 1 and “The Autobiography of Miss Jane Pittman” on Oct. 8.

            A collection of Gaines books, manuscripts, film memorabilia and more will be on display at the South Regional Library from Oct. 9 to Nov. 9.

            A book discussion on “The Autobiography of Miss Jane Pittman” (celebrating its 40th anniversary this year) will be led by Matthew Teutsch, interim director of the Ernest J. Gaines Center, at 6:30 p.m. Wednesday, Oct. 22, at South Regional Library.

            The Ernest J. Gaines Center at UL Lafayette also has events planned throughout October. Visit ernestgaines.louisiana.edu or facebook.com/ErnestGainesCenter for more information.
            Gaines is also scheduled to speak at the Louisiana Book Festival on Nov. 1.

Cheré Coen is the author of “Haunted Lafayette, Louisiana” and “Exploring Cajun Country: A Historic Guide to Acadiana,” both from The History Press, and co-author of “Magic’s in the Bag: Creating Spellbinding Gris Gris Bags and Sachets.” Her next book is “Forest Hill, Louisiana: A Bloom Town History.” Write her at cherecoen@gmail.com.

Two great book events this Saturday in Lafayette

            Edward Reed of Ville Platte became the masculine head of his large family at age 12, during the height of the Depression. He later went on to become a star high school athlete and an aerospace program quality assurance manager and space pioneer. He relates his life story and its trials in a memoir titled “I Remember When.”

            Reed will be one of several authors signing their books from 2 p.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday, Sept. 13, at the Barnes & Noble Local Author Expo.

            Authors include:

            Dianne Alexander, “Divine Justice: The Dianne Alexander Story;”                 
            David J. Barczyk, “Wellness Wake Up Call;” 

            Angela Cortello, “Angel: The True Story of an Underserved Chance;”
            Alan G. Gauthreaux, “Italian Louisiana: History, Heritage,and Tradition;” 

            Celeste Goodwin, “Boy Back From Heaven;” 

            Michael Martin, “Russell Long: A Life in Politics;” 

            Donna McGee Onebane, “House that Sugarcane Built;” 

            Constance Monies, “A House for Eliza;” 

            Edward Reed, “I Remember When;” 

            Rosemary Smith, “Lizard Tales;” 

            ...and yours truly (Cheré Coen), signing my books “Haunted Lafayette, Louisiana,” “Exploring Cajun Country: An Historic Guide to Acadiana” and “Magic’s in the Bag: Creating Spellbinding Gris Gris Bags and Sachets.” 

            Please come out and support local writers.

 WordCrawl

            The Festival of Words is hosting an unusual fundraiser this Saturday, a spoken word marathon that will be held throughout downtown Lafayette. WordCrawl will spotlight authors and spoken word performers every hour from noon to midnight in various venues such as the Acadiana Center for the Arts, Artsmosphere and the Blue Moon Saloon. Each hour will feature different poets, spoken word artists and musicians, all sponsored by doners to support Festivals of Words, a literary festival happening every fall in Grand Coteau.

            This year’s Festival of Words, Nov. 6-8, will feature poet, essayist and novelist Luis Alberto Urrea, Poet Laureate of Louisiana Ava Leavell Haymon, spoken word artist LaTasha Weatherspoon, songwriter Roddy Romero and poet-activitst Anderson Dovilas, among many others.
            For information on WordCrawl or the November Festival of Words, visit http://festivalofwords.org.

Lafayette Library fall book sale this week

            The Friends of the Lafayette Public Library fall book sale will be Wednesday through Saturday, Sept. 10-13, at the Heymann Convention Center Ballroom. The sale offers wonderful deals and the money supports the library system. If you are a member of the Friends of the Library you can attend the first night of the sale (for Friends only) on Wednesday, Sept. 10. It’s such a deal — $5 a year! And you can join the night of the sale. For more information, visit http://friendsofthelafayettelibrary.org/. Also, check out the Silent Auction at the South Regional Library, where you can bid on high quality books. Bidding ends Sept. 26.

Clash of Titans

            The Special Collection Services at UL’s Dupré Library continues a series of lectures in commemoration of the 150th anniversary of the American Civil War. Dr. Harry Laver, professor and graduate coordinator in the History Department at Southeastern will speak on “The Clash of Titans: Robert E. Lee vs. Ulysses S. Grant” at 4 p.m. Tuesday, Sept. 9, in the third floor hall outside the Ernest J. Gaines Center. Laver is a recent Fulbright Scholar whose fields of study include the American Civil War and military leadership. A question and answer session will follow the lecture. The free event is supported by Gilda Lehrman Institute of American History and is open to the public. For more information, contact Bruce Turner, assistant dean of Special Collection Services, at bturner@louisiana.edu; 482-5702.

Gaines deadline

            Oct. 1 is the deadline for entries to the eighth annual Ernest J. Gaines Award for Literary Excellence. Sponsored by the donors of the Baton Rouge Area Foundation, the award honors outstanding fiction from rising African-American writers and includes a $10,000 cash prize. The award is named in honor of Pointe Coupee Parish native Gaines, a nationally acclaimed fiction writer and creative writing instructor at the University of Louisiana at Lafayette. Information on submission criteria and entry forms for the award are available at www.ernestjgainesaward.org.

            The most recent winner is Attica Locke for her novel "The Cutting Season." Previous winners include Stephanie Powell Watts for "We Are Taking Only What We Need," Dinaw Mengestu, who was selected as a MacArthur Fellow in 2012, for "How to Read the Air" and Victor LaValle for "Big Machine."
            Gaines' critically acclaimed novel, "The Autobiography of Miss Jane Pittman," was adapted into a 1974 made-for-TV movie that won nine Emmy awards. "A Lesson Before Dying," published in 1993, won the National Book Critics Circle Award for fiction. This year marks the 50th anniversary of Gaines first novel, Catherine Carmier.

Book events

            The Center for Louisiana Studies’ Bayou State Book Talks presents Jason Theriot, author of “American Energy, Imperiled Coast: Oil and Gas Development inLouisiana’s Wetlands” at 6:30 p.m. Thursday at the South Regional Branch Library, 6101 Johnston St. The event is free and open to the public.

            Keith Weldon Medley, author of “We as Freeman: Plessy v. Ferguson” and the upcoming “Black Life in Old New Orleans,” will be giving a presentation at 6:30 p.m. Tuesday at the Hubbell Library in Algiers Point, New Orleans.

            Nicholas Meis, author of “New Orleans Hurricanes From the Start,” will be signing books and lecturing from 7 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. Wednesday at the Jefferson Parish East Regional Library, 4747 Napoleon Ave. in Metairie.

            Sherry Lee Alexander leads a panel discussion with co-authors Alfred Lawrence Lorenz and Vicki Mayer in connection with their new book, “The Times-Picayune in aChanging Media World” at 6 p.m. Thursday at Garden District Book Shop in New Orleans. The book is a study of the 2012-2013 transition of The Times-Picayune of New Orleans from a daily newspaper to a three-day-a-week publication with emphasis on its online edition.

Cheré Coen is the author of “Haunted Lafayette, Louisiana” and “Exploring Cajun Country: A Historic Guide to Acadiana,” both from The History Press, and co-author of “Magic’s in the Bag: Creating Spellbinding Gris Gris Bags and Sachets.” Her next book is “Forest Hill, Louisiana: A Bloom Town History.” Write her at cherecoen@gmail.com.