Friday, February 27, 2015

'The Returned' return and multiply

"The Returned" American version.
            Here’s a story that is sure to have you confused by its conclusion.
            The French produced a television series titled “Les Revenants,” about a town haunted by a series of tragedies — a school bus accident, the disappearance of a finance and a rash of attacks on women. 
            Then one day the dead come back to life.
            “Les Revenants” means “The Returned” and it’s a riveting suspense series that won International Emmy Awards. Buzzfeed called it, “Some of the most beautifully eerie scenes ever on television.” For those of you who have access to the Sundance Channel, "Les Revenants" will begin airing Tuesday, March 3. For those of you with a Netflix subscription, you can watch the entire first season.
            In 2013, award-winning poet Jason Mott posed a similar scenario in his novel, “The Returned,” but this time it’s many people who have died throughout the world (although the book is focused on one small town), and the subsequent reaction by the government. We reviewed the book and you can read it here.
            In both stories, the “returned” appear as they had when they died.
            For readers, Seth Patrick has novelized the French series, published in 2014.
            Also in 2014, Mott’s story became an ABC TV series titled “Resurrection.”
            Confused yet?
            This year, A and E will offer an American version of “Les Revenants,” although producers insist the adaptation will be unique. The A&E version, titled "The Returned," premieres at 9 p.m. March 9.
            Again, for readers, Sourcebooks will release a U.S. edition of Patrick’s novel on April 7.
           Meanwhile, season 2 of "Les Revenants" is being filmed in France through the end of March. This is one viewer eagerly anticipating its release.

Louisiana Book News is written by Cheré Coen, 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.

Thursday, February 26, 2015

UL-Lafayette Wind Ensemble to premiere African drum performance “Congo Square”

            The University of Louisiana at Lafayette Wind Ensemble present the premiere of “Congo Square” at 7:30 p.m. Friday, Feb. 27, in Angelle Hall on the university campus. This performance is for African Drum Quartet and Wind Ensemble.
            San Antonion composer James Syler will be on campus two days before the event to interact with UL students, and author Freddi Williams Evans will give a pre-concert lecture at 6:45 p.m. Her book, “Congo Square: African Roots in New Orleans,” published by University of Louisiana at Lafayette Press, served as an important resource and inspiration for Syler’s new work. 
            The first band to perform is the Symphonic Winds conducted by Dr. Eric Melley, which features music by Holst and others. After intermission, the UL Wind Ensemble, conducted by Dr. William Hochkeppel, will do a program of five works. After an opening Fanfare, the premiere of “Congo Square” will take place. A few program highlights include: Ecstatic Fanfare by Steven Bryant, Overture for Winds by Felix Mendelssohn, Fantasia in G Major by J.S. Bach, and Dance for the New World by Dana Wilson.

            The UL Band is a member of the consortium commissioning project by Syler, who also wrote “Storyville,” two historic places in New Orleans jazz. The work will also be featured at the new “Music For All” Regional Festival in March, when the Wind Ensemble is the featured ensemble.

Louisiana Book News is written by Cheré Coen, the author of “Forest Hill, Louisiana: A Bloom Town History,” Haunted Lafayette, Louisiana” and “ExploringCajun 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.

Wednesday, February 25, 2015

Cokie Roberts named 2015 Humanist of the Year

             The Louisiana Endowment for the Humanities will honor Louisiana native Cokie Roberts as its 2015 Humanist of the Year at an April 23 awards dinner in Baton Rouge.
            The award is given annually by the state’s humanities council as part of its efforts to recognize the individuals and organizations making invaluable contributions to the culture of Louisiana.
            A native of New Orleans, Roberts is a political commentator for ABC News. She has served as senior news analyst for National Public Radio and from 1996-2002 she and Sam Donaldson co-anchored the weekly ABC interview program “This Week.” In her more than 40 years in broadcasting, she has won countless awards, including three Emmys, and has been inducted into the Broadcasting and Cable Hall of Fame and was cited by the American Women in Radio and Television as one of the 50 greatest women in the history of broadcasting.
            Roberts’ books have included the bestsellers “We Are Our Mothers’ Daughters,” “Founding Mothers” and “Ladies of Liberty.” Her book with husband, Steven, “From this Day Forward,” an account of their more than 40-year marriage and other marriages in American history, was a New York Times bestseller.
            In addition to Humanist of the Year and other 2015 LEH awards, the Humanities Book Awards goes to Rick Bragg, author of “Jerry Lee Lewis,” about Ferriday’s famous musician, and Clayton Delery-Edwards for “Upstairs Lounge Arson,” a horrific fire that occurred in a French Quarter gay bar in the 1970s.            
            The inaugural Light Up for Literacy Award, given in partnership with the Louisiana Center for the Book in the State Library of Louisiana and the Library of Congress, goes to Ann Dobie, a retired English professor who taught almost 40 years at University of Louisiana at Lafayette, directed the Acadiana Writing Project, and continues to serve as the literature section editor for KnowLA.org. Dobie has published more than 50 scholarly works and serves as the head judge for Louisiana Letters About Literature, a statewide student writing competition.
          For more information about the 2015 LEH Awards, visit www.leh.org.

Louisiana Book News is written by Cheré Coen, the author of “Forest Hill, Louisiana: A Bloom Town History,” Haunted Lafayette, Louisiana” and “ExploringCajun 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.

Monday, February 23, 2015

Louisiana book events this week - Feb. 23-28

Tuesday. Feb. 24 
          The Irvin Mayfield Quintet performs a Tribute to Ernest Gaines at 7:30 p.m. Tuesday at Angelle Hall on the UL-Lafayette campus. The free concert includes the UL-Lafayette Jazz Combo.
            The Lafayette Public Library System is teaming up with area public schools and other local partners to encourage Lafayette to read and discuss the same book in a program called Lafayette Reads Together. The program focuses on the New York Times bestseller “A Long Walk to Water” by Linda Sue Park, a survivor’s tale inspired by the real story of one of the Lost Boys of Sudan. Park will Skype at 6:30 p.m. Tuesday at South Regional Library in Lafayette. For a list of events, visit LafayettePublicLibrary.org.
            The Writers’ Guild of Acadiana will hold its monthly meeting at 7 p.m. Tuesday at Barnes & Nobles in Lafayette.

Wednesday, Feb. 25
           The Festival of Words Cultural Arts Collective hosts an evening of oral history and poetry at 7 p.m. Wednesday at the Grand Coteau House Ballroom in Grand Coteau. The event will feature poet Clemonce Heard from Baton Rouge and siblings Allen Charles, Earline Duplechaine and Rose Marie Perry who will share personal stories. Heard is a poet and typographer from New Orleans (now living in Baton Rouge) who’s cofounder of Brainy Acts Poetry Society (BAPS), an organization of spoken word poets conceived at Northwestern in Natchitoches. During the oral history portion of the program Allen Charles and his sisters will share stories of their father, Alcide Charles, a sharecropper, and their aunt, Marie Louise Charles, who worked as a live-in domestic for the Chatrian family and eventually inherited their house. Both Alcide and Mary Louise Charles spoke Creole French and moved to Grand Coteau during the great flood of 1927. The oral history presentation will be videotaped and placed in the Cajun and Creole Archives at the Center for Louisiana Studies in the “Grand Coteau Voices” collection. The public is invited to bring their own poems, songs or stories for the open mic. Guests are also invited to bring snacks or drinks to share. For more information, call Patrice Melnick at (337) 254-9695 or email festivalwords@gmail.com.
            Thea Tamborella returns to New Orleans after a 10-year absence to find it gripped in fear in Christine Wiltz’s “Glass House,” published by LSU Press in 2001 and this year’s finalist for the One Book, One New Orleans selection. The book’s main character finds the privileged white socialites of her private-school days packing guns to fancy dinner parties and spending their free time in paramilitary patrols. The black gardeners, maids and cooks who work days in the mansions of the elite Garden District return each evening to housing projects wracked by poverty, drugs and gang violence. The city’s haves and have-nots glare at each other across a yawning racial divide as fear turns to hate and an us-against-them mentality. Wiltz is also the author of “The Killing Circle,” “A Diamond Before You Die,” “The Emerald Lizard,” “The Last Madam: A Life in the New Orleans Underworld” and “Shoot the Money.” She will sign copies of “Glass House” at 6 p.m. Wednesday at Maple Street Bookstore in New Orleans.
            Keith Weldon Medley discusses his book, “Black Life in Old New Orleans,” at 7 p.m. Wednesday at the East Bank Regional Library, 4747 W. Napoleon Ave. in Metairie.

Thursday, Feb. 26
            Warren and Mary Perrin, editors of “Acadie Then and Now: A People’s History,” will speak about their new book at noon Thursday at the Rotary Club in the Petroleum Club. For more information, call (337) 233-5832, or email perrin@plddo.com.
            Andi Eaton signs “New Orleans Style” at 6:30 p.m. Thursday at the Louisiana State Capitol in Baton Rouge.
            M.O. Walsh signs and discusses his debut novel “My Sunshine Away” at 6 p.m. Thursday at Garden District Book Shop in New Orleans.
            Carolyn Kolb, a former Times-Picayune reporter and current columnist for New Orleans Magazine, has collected essays that have appeared as “Chronicles of Recent History” in “New Orleans Memories: One Writer’s City.” Kolb will read from and discuss her book at 6:30 p.m. Thursday at the Nix branch of the New Orleans Public Library.

Louisiana Book News is written by Cheré Coen, the author of “Forest Hill, Louisiana: A Bloom Town History,” Haunted Lafayette, Louisiana” and “ExploringCajun 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.

Friday, February 20, 2015

Louisiana children's books, spring releases

       There are several wonderful new children's books just out that are either Louisiana related or perfect for this time of year.  
        Johnette Downing has penned a delightful children’s book involving those pesky swamp gases that have inspired numerous legends. In “The Fifolet,” swamp lights attract fishermen Jean-Paul Pierre Downing into the swamps in the hope of finding treasure, but they are not what they seem. Downing will discuss, read from and sign “The Fifolet,” along with illustrator Jennifer Lindsley, from 11:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. Saturday, Feb. 21, at Maple Street Book Shops in New Orleans. The official book launch will include a book reading, art discussion, treasure hunt, coloring sheet, refreshments and a book signing by both the author and illustrator
        Carol Boston Weatherford has published the biography, “Leontyne Price: Voice of a Century,” that follows the groundbreaking soprano from her upbringing in Laurel, Miss., to the New York Metropolitan Opera House. The children’s book is illustrated by Raúl Colón and makes an inspiring tale for Black History Month.
        Another great title for Black History Month is "Seeds of Freedom: The Peaceful Integration of Huntsville, Alabama" by Hester Bass, illustrated by E.B. Lewis. Although much of the Civil Rights Movement was violent and turbulent, the integration of Huntsville went much smoother, thanks to the courage and persistent residents of the northern Alabama city. Bass and Lewis are the author/illustrator of "The Secret World of Walter Anderson," which won the Orbis Pictus Award for Outstanding Nonfiction for Children. Lewis took the Coretta Scott King Illustrator Award for "Talkin' About Bessie: The Story of Aviator Elizabeth Coleman" by Nikki Grimes.
         A fun Mardi Gras book for this time of year has been created by Lafayette artist Vergie Banks. “The Journey of the Little Red Tricycle, Zoe Meets Gumbo,” for ages 3 and up, centers around a young girl named Zoe who can speak three languages, English, French and Spanish. Zoe dresses in costumes and enjoys a country Mardi Gras with zydeco music, chasing chickens and a gumbo at day’s end, even though the chicken she brings home becomes a pet. Banks’s little red tricycle is part of her most popular body of artwork that portrays a little Creole girl with pigtails on her three-wheeler. 

Cheré Coen is the author of “Forest Hill, Louisiana: A Bloom Town History,” Haunted Lafayette, Louisiana” and “ExploringCajun 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.

Thursday, February 19, 2015

Cookbook Thursday: Jyl Benson's 'Fun, Funky and Fabulous' New Orleans

            New Orleans food writer Jyl Benson takes on the more colorful side of New Orleans cuisine in “Fun, Funky and Fabulous: New Orleans’ Casual Restaurant Recipes,” with photography by Sam Hanna and illustrations by Simon of New Orleans. It’s a fun trip through a city whose cuisine continues to evolve, spotlighting recipes from unique spots such as Vega Tapas Café, Juan’s Flying Burrito, The Three Muses and Miss Linda’s New Orleans Soul Food.  
            Benson will be signing copies of this eclectic cookbook from 1-3 p.m. Saturday, Feb. 21, at Oil and Vinegar Louisiana culinary shop, 6111 Pinnacle Pkwy. in Covington. The book features three recipes from Covington chefs Keith Frentz and Nealy Frentz of LOLA Restaurant and we'll be serving samples to snack. She will also sign copies at 4 p.m. Tuesday, Feb. 24, at Coquette, 2800 Magazine St. in New Orleans, with Chef Michael Stolzfus serving up samples from the book.
            The official book launch will be at 6 p.m. March 5 at Octavia Books in New Orleans with Chef Michael Nirenberg of Fulton Alley serving the andouille tots shown on the book’s cover.
            Here’s a recipe for chilled crab and cappellini salad by Chef Isaac Toups of Toups’Meatery.

Chilled Crab and Cappellini Salad
From “Fun, Funky and Fabulous: New Orleans’ Casual Restaurant Recipes”
Juice of 1 lemon
1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
1 teaspoon sugar
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
Salt and white pepper to taste
8 ounces dried cappellini pasta cooked until al dente, chilled
1 tablespoon chopped fresh parsley
1 tablespoon chopped fresh chives
1 ounce of your favorite caviar
8 ounces jumbo lump crabmeat, picked over for shells and cartilage
20 satsuma, tangerine or blood orange segments, membranes removed
4 large basil leaves, cut in a chiffonade

            Directions: Start with well-chilled ingredients. Whisk the lemon juice, mustard, and sugar in a bowl until the sugar has dissolved. Add the oil in thin rivulets, whisking constantly until emulsified. Season with salt and pepper. Add the cappellini, parsley, chives and caviar; toss gently to coat. Gently fold in the crabmeat, taking care not to break up the lumps. Divide the salad evenly among four chilled salad plates. Divide the citrus segments and basil evenly among the plates.


Wednesday, February 18, 2015

Book events this week

            Family Puppet Theater for ages 5 to 12 begins at 1:30 p.m. Thursday, Feb. 19, at the North Regional Library of Lafayette.
            Matt Kepnes signs “How to Travel the World on $50 a Day” at 6 p.m. Thursday, Feb. 19, at Garden District Book Shop in New Orleans.
            Warren and Mary Perrin, editors of “Acadie Then and Now: A People’s History,” will speak about their new book from 2 p.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday, Feb. 21, at the 250th Anniversary of the Arrival of Beausoleil and the Acadians at the, Old U. S. Mint in New Orleans. For more information, call 233-5832, or email perrin@plddo.com.
            Louisiana’s first comic con convention will be Saturday, Feb. 21, in the Bossier Civic Center in Bossier City. For more information, visit Louisianacomiccon.com.
            T. Geronimo Johnson will celebrate the release of his latest book, “Welcome to Braggsville,” at 6 p.m. Saturday, Feb. 21, at Octavia Books of New Orleans.
            Johnette Downing and Jennifer Lindsley will be reading from and signing their new book, “Fifolet,” from 11:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. at Maple Street Bookshop in New Orleans. The official book launch will include a book reading, art discussion, treasure hunt, coloring sheet, refreshments and a book signing by both the author and illustrator!
            Jyl Benson will be signing her cookbook, “Fun, Funky & Fabulous: New Orleans Casual Restaurant Recipes” from 1-3 p.m. Saturday, Feb. 21, at Oil & Vinegar Louisiana culinary shop, 6111 Pinnacle Pkwy, Covington. The book features three recipes from Covington chefs Keith Frentz and Nealy Frentz of LOLA Restaurant and we'll be serving samples to snack.
            The SWLA Family Book Festival will be from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday, Feb. 21, at Central School, 806 Kirby St. in Lake Charles. The free event includes over 35 book vendors coming from all over Louisiana and Texas, activities for everyone including a miniature horse for the children to pet and read to, a Kids' Korral with "steer" roping, a children's story and activity center, plus food! The CAL/CAM 4-H Horse Club is sponsoring a jambalaya lunch and Coke is offering free soft drinks.
              The Writers and Readers Symposium: A Celebration of Literature and Art will be Saturday, Feb. 21, in St. Francisville and feature writers Abigail Padgett, Moira Crone, Louisiana Poet Laureate Ava Hayman and photographer/writer Richard Sexton with Carolyn Thornton. Info: http://www.stfrancisville.us/.


Cheré Coen is the author of “Forest Hill, Louisiana: A Bloom Town History,” Haunted Lafayette, Louisiana” and “ExploringCajun 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.

Monday, February 16, 2015

New book discusses McCartney visit to New Orleans

             When you have a music expert in the house, you use them, which is why my husband Bruce Coen is reviewing “Wings Over New Orleans” this week, a new book by John Taylor that details Paul McCartney’s visit to New Orleans in 1975.
            Here goes:
            Forty years ago Paul McCartney, his wife Linda and his then band Wings recorded their fourth album, “Venus and Mars,” in New Orleans at Sea-Saint studios. As the story goes Paul was always interested in New Orleans music and decided that the Crescent City was a perfect location for recording. They arrived just before Mardi Gras in 1975 and, since they would be in town for three months or so, New Orleans’ indigenous holiday was a perfect reprieve. Paul and Linda donned clown costumes and makeup, even showing up on both Canal and St. Charles routes as if they had lived in New Orleans all their lives.
            As a Beatles fan since I saw them on “The Ed Sullivan Show” that fateful Sunday night so many years ago, so my interest in John Taylor’s account of this historic event involving a Beatle was highly charged. 
            From the introduction I was expecting an insider’s view of the recording sessions and of the time Paul and the band spent in New Orleans. Instead, Taylor’s book is basically an account of a fan standing in the parking lot each day during the sessions shooting pictures with his Kodak Instamatic (I’m not surprised since Linda was Linda Eastman-Kodak before becoming Linda McCartney).
            Taylor became known to Paul and Linda due to Paul’s accessibility to his fans. Paul spent time each day upon arrival and when leaving, signing autographs and generally talking to the fans that had assembled. There are other accounts in the book from Beatles fans Taylor already knew or got to know from their shared experience. These accounts tend to be repetitive after a few readings and don’t really shed any new light on the experience.
            Taylor does give information on Paul and Linda’s Mardi Gras experience as he was right below their apartment, both of which were above the old Kolb’s restaurant. Paul and Linda recognized Taylor from the Sea-Saint parking lot and tossed Mardi Gras beads back and forth.
            Another fan’s story relates the day Paul pulled over in his rented Oldsmobile Delta convertible on his way to the studio and gave him a lift. These stories definitely show a musician of Paul’s stature being a down-to-earth person.
            What could have been of more interest to me was a journal from recording engineer Alan O’Duffy or experiences with the McCartneys and Wings by locally hired photographer Sidney Smith, along with any of the New Orleans musical luminaries. “Wings Over New Orleans” will interest the big Beatle fan, of which there are many, but will not include any more information other than some old photos and stories.
            If you really want to get the whole picture, a 40-year anniversary edition of “Venus and Mars” has been released and includes the never before released song “My Carnival,” along with other great information.
—Bruce Coen

Sunday, February 8, 2015

Walsh's excellent debut novel examines supposed innocence of Baton Rouge suburb

            In a tranquil suburb of Baton Rouge a young girl experiences a horrible crime. There are four suspects, one of which is the narrator of “My Sunshine Away,” the impressive debut novel of M.O. Walsh.
            It’s the summer of 1989 and kids are riding bikes, exploring the woods behind their houses and falling in love. Outside of a couple of kids acting out, it appears to be an idyllic American neighborhood until 15-year-old Lindy Simpson is sexually assaulted coming home from track practice. The folks living on Piney Creek Road will never be the same.
            As the narrator explains his long infatuation with Lindy, which eventually makes him a suspect, he also details the characters most likely to have committed the crime ­— a threatening giant of a neighbor abusive to his family, his tortured delinquent son and the local bully no one wishes to cross. As the narrator recounts that summer and the two years following, he also experiences his parents’ divorce and the death of a sister, all events that disrupt what was once an innocent childhood.
            The mystery is solved by book’s end but the character’s introspection at its conclusion will stay with readers long after that last page is read. Walsh has penned a marvelous story.
            In addition to the plotline, the book is filled with exquisite passages such as the narrator’s heartfelt reflections that veer from childhood and teenage apathy to rabid infatuation. His explanations of South Louisiana climate, customs and our love affair with food are also right on, as well as descriptions of Baton Rouge residents after Katrina, another moment when innocence was swept away. “My Sunshine Away” is both rivating as a novel and enjoyable for its accuracy of Louisiana life, although it’s understandable since Walsh grew up in a Baton Rouge neighborhood much like his fictional one, and witnessed a crime against a young neighbor as well.
            “I thought back to my childhood days, about the joy in them, and since I was now old enough to think about parenting and about children, I could no longer suppress this other neighborhood story that I’d buried in my memory,” he wrote in the press materials that arrived with my review copy. His goal in writing the novel was “to try and highlight the importance of family and memory, and find ways to illustrate how these things, when viewed as gifts instead of burdens, can help a person value their life and those whose lives they are part of.”
            Walsh’s essays have appeared in numerous national magazines. He is a graduate of the MFA program at Ole Miss and is now director of the Creative Writing Workshop at UNO.
            Walsh will sign copies of “My Sunshine Away” at the book’s launch at 6 p.m. Tuesday at Chelsea’s Café, 2857 Perkins Road in Baton Rouge.

Mardi Gras books
            If you’re looking to get into the Carnival spirit, there are several new books out just in time.
            Lynn Shurr of New Iberia has published a romance titled “Courir de Mardi Gras” and following in the series is “Mardi Gras Madness,” due out Feb. 13, and “Queen of the Mardi Gras Ball” on March 15.  Those are only three novels in this prolific author’s career. Check out all her books at www.lynnshurr.com.
            New Orleans author Colleen Mooney presents the first in her “To Go Cup Chronicle” series, another romantic romp. “Rescued By a Kiss” is the first novel, where a New Orleans girl receives a mysterious kiss at a Mardi Gras parade which gets her in a whole lot of trouble. The book was the winner of two Southern Louisiana Romance Writers awards and proceeds from the book will benefit animal shelter rescue. The book is available at Amazon.com or local bookstores.
            One of Allemand Parish’s wealthiest men staggers and falls following a Mardi Gras parade, only to be found murdered with a gris gris bag tied to the knife in his chest in A.C. Mason’s “Mardi Gras Gris Gris.” The Baton Rouge author’s full name is Anne Clayre Mason and she’s written several romantic suspense and mysteries. Visit her web site at www.anneclayremason.com.

            A fun Mardi Gras book for this time of year has been created by Lafayette artist Vergie Banks. “The Journey of the Little Red Tricycle, Zoe Meets Gumbo,” for ages 3 and up, centers around a young girl named Zoe who can speak three languages, English, French and Spanish. Zoe dresses in costumes and enjoys a country Mardi Gras with zydeco music, chasing chickens and a gumbo at day’s end, even though the chicken she brings home becomes a pet. Banks’s little red tricycle is part of her most popular body of artwork that portrays a little Creole girl with pigtails on her three-wheeler.

New releases
            Neal Bertrand of Lafayette has published a book containing more than 600 photos his father took while serving in World War II, plus portions of his battalion’s daily journals, in “Dad’s War Photos: Adventures in the South Pacific.” According to Bertrand, the book contains 14 types of airplanes, Bob Hope signing autographs and photos from captured Japanese cameras, plus 21 maps that trace his father’s steps from country to country. “Dad’s War Photos” is on sale at Champagne’s Supermarket in the Oil Center or by sending $25 to Cypress Cove Publishing, P.O. Box 91195, Lafayette, LA 70509-1195.
            Bertrand will speak at 10 a.m. Saturday at the Imperial St. Landry Genealogical and Historical Society meeting at the Opelousas Library. He will display his father’s artifacts and speak about the book.
            Annmarie Sartor of Monroe has published “We met in September,” a romantic suspense that chronicles the rise and disappearance of an international sailing magnet and the wife who takes on a frantic search to find him. The book is available at online bookstores. For information, visit http://annmariesartor.com/.
            Three generations of the Sandoz family investigate the spooky happenings inside the 100-year-old family home of Opelousas in “The Presence Within,” written by Jeff and Jane Simmons Sandoz with illustrations by John Sandoz. The book is available at The Cuttery, J.B. Sandoz and the Sandoz Law Office in Opelousas and at Amazon.com.
            Rachel N. Stewart of Baton Rouge has published “Take It & Laugh,” about a young girl who becomes a single parent but finds her purpose through Jesus and receiving an education. The book is available at online bookstores.
            Ashley Blake of Nashville, a native of Louisiana, has published a suspense titled “Dark Bayou” in which main character Freddy Tango’s grandfather insists he was attacked by a long-dead outlaw. Someone is searching for the outlaw’s treasure and they believe Cecil Tango has it.           

Book events
            The Lafayette Public Library will screen the documentary “Lost Boys of Sudan” at 6 p.m. Tuesday with a discussion at 7:45 p.m. at South Regional Library as part of the program called Lafayette Reads Together. The inaugural program focuses on the New York Times bestseller “A Long Walk to Water” by Linda Sue Park, a survivor’s tale inspired by the real story of one of the Lost Boys of Sudan, who not only saved himself, but improved the quality of life for many. For a list of events, visit LafayettePublicLibrary.org.
            Warren and Mary Perrin, editors of “Acadie Then and Now: A People’s History,” will speak about their new book at 6 p.m. Thursday as part of the Center for Louisiana Studies’ “Bayou State Book Talks” at South Regional Library. For more information, call 233-5832, or email perrin@plddo.com.

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.

Monday, February 2, 2015

Tom Cooper builds fascinating cast of characters, Louisiana story in 'The Marauders'

            It’s a tough life for the residents of Jeanette, Louisiana, who make their living by shrimping in The Barataria. When the BP oil spill drifts into south Louisiana wetlands, the residents find breaking even a challenge.
            The oil spill sets the stage for Tom Cooper’s “The Marauders,” but what drives the novel are the colorful characters, working class people not only trying to keep their heads above water but dreaming of a chance to rise above.
There’s Gus Lindquist, a one-armed shrimper who pops pills from a Pez dispenser, desperately searching the cheniers for Jean Lafitte’s lost treasure while drug dealers Reginald and Vincent Toup harass him to stay clear of their massive marijuana crop. There’s two petty criminals who end up in Jeanette cleaning oil off wildlife who discover the Toups’ stash and young Wes, one of the few young people who wants to continue shrimping but who can’t forgive his father for this mother’s death in Katrina.
            In the middle of this unusual cast is Brady Grimes, a Barataria native who reluctantly returns home to play middleman between residents and the oil company.
            The various stories connect toward the book’s conclusion, wrapping up an entertaining ride that intersects with aplomb and tops up with heartfelt introspection by the one character who remains the future of this dying town. It’s an excellent story from start to finish, but don’t take my word for it. Stephen King calls “The Marauders” “one hell of a novel” and I couldn’t agree more.
            As brilliant as Cooper’s storytelling is his authenticity to detail, from Cajun expressions and mannerisms to distinctive south Louisiana flaura and fauna, commands accolades. Cooper lives and teaches in New Orleans but he hails from Florida so extra kudos for capturing a unique landscape and culture so well.
            Cooper will read from his book at 6 p.m. Tuesday, Feb. 3, at Garden District Book Shop in New Orleans. Bill Loehfelm, author of “Doing the Devil's Work,” will interview Cooper following the reading. Cooper will also join Loehfelm and Morgan Molthrop at Reading Between the Wines salon-type event at 7 p.m. Wednesday, Feb. 4. at the Pearl Wine Co. inside of the American Can Company of New Orleans.

Home remedies
            The Louisiana Center for the Book in the State Library of Louisiana will host Dr. Eddie L. Boyd, author of “African American Home Remedies: A Practical Guide with Usage and Application Data,” at noon Wednesday in the State Library’s Seminar Center. Boyd will discuss home remedies and herbs used by African Americans to help celebrate Black History Month. The program is free and open to the public and attendees are invited to bring brown bag lunches. Boyd graduated from Cameron Street High School in Canton, Miss., in 1956, then attended the University of California’s School of Pharmacy and earned a doctorate in pharmacy in 1970. Boyd accepted a position as an assistant professor at the University of Michigan’s College of Pharmacy and remained on that faculty for 30 years before retiring in 2003. For more information, visit www.state.lib.la.us

LSU Press
            LSU Press has published “Hurricane Katrina in Transatlantic Perspective,” a collection of examinations by American and European scholars edited by Romain Huret, a professor of American history at the School for Advanced Studies in Social Sciences in Paris, and Randy Sparks, a professor of history at Tulane and author of “The Two Princes of Calabar: An Eighteenth-Century Atlantic Odyssey” and “Where the Negroes Are Masters: An African Port in the Era of the Slave Trade.”
            “The Louisiana Field Guide: Understanding Life in the Pelican State” tackles the unique fabric of Louisiana with contributor essays on the environment, geography, history, politics, religion, culture, food and so much more. The book is edited by Ryan Orgera, who received his doctorate in geography from LSU and serves as the Dean John A. Knauss Marine Policy Fellow in the office of U.S. Sen. Bill Nelson, and Wayne Parent, Russell B. Long professor of political science at LSU and the author of “Inside the Carnival: Unmasking Louisiana Politics.”
            Times-Picayune political columnist and author Robert Mann explains why the public’s approval rating of Congress has reached an all-time low and offers remedies to the situation in “Working Congress: A Guide for Senators, Representatives, and Citizens.” Contributors include Mickey Edwards, Ross K. Baker, Frances E. Lee, Brian L. Fife, Susan Herbst, and Mark Kennedy. Mann is the author of “Daisy Petals and Mushroom Clouds: LBJ,” “Barry Goldwater and the Ad That Changed American Politics,” “When Freedom Would Triumph: The Civil Rights Struggle in Congress, 1954–1968” and many other books.
            The poultry processing industry in El Dorado, Ark., was an economic powerhouse in the latter half of the 20th century, the largest employer in the interconnected region of South Arkansas and North Louisiana. “We Just Keep Running the Line: Black Southern Women and the Poultry Processing Industry” by LaGuana Gray is the story of the rise of the industry in El Dorado and the labor force — composed primarily of black women — upon which it came to rely. Gray is a historian who specializes in the study of African American women’s lives and labors. She is assistant history professor at the University of Texas at San Antonio.
            Geographer Craig E. Colten addresses how the South can navigate the risks of having too much water and not enough in “Southern Waters: The Limits to Abundance.” Colten is the Carl O. Sauer professor of geography and anthropology at LSU and the author of “Perilous Place, Powerful Storms: Hurricane Protection in Coastal Louisiana” and co-author of “Historical Geographies for the 21st Century.”

Book events
            Anya Kamenetz will discuss and sign “The Test: Why Our Schools Are Obsessed with Standardized Testing — But You Don’t Have to Be” at 6 p.m. Tuesday at Octavia Books in New Orleans. Also at Octavia this week, author and illustrator Joy Bateman signs “The Art of Dining in New Orleans 2,” a restaurant guide with signature recipes, at 6 p.m. Thursday.
            Jami Attenberg will speak at 7 p.m. Tuesday at the Columns Hotel in New Orleans as part of a 1718 Society event. The 1718 Society is a literary organization comprised of Tulane, Loyola and UNO students who hold free monthly readings the first Tuesday of each month at The Columns Hotel. Maple Street Book shop will be on-site to sell Attenberg’s novels, “The Middlesteins,” “The Melting Season,” “The Kept Man” and the story collection “Instant Love.” Her most recent work, “Saint Mazie,” is forthcoming from Grand Central Publishing in June.
            Nina Solomon (“The Love Book”), Julie Smith (“New Orleans Noir”) and Barbara J. Taylor (“Sing in the Morning, Cry at Night”) will sign copes of their books from 6 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. Thursday at Garden District Book Shop in New Orleans.
            The Student Career Concepts and Enrichment Program Inc.\Just Write Cultural Arts Group will sponsor the African American Authors Round Table from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. Saturday at the Acadiana Mall’s Center Court Area. Visitors who stop by and visit with the southwest Louisiana authors will receive free items and the principal or librarian from the school with the most signatures will receive a gift. The Student Career Concepts and Enrichment Program is a mentoring and job shadowing program. For information, contact Sherry T. Broussard at 261-1940, scce@lusfiber.net or visit lacsprograms.org.
            Ann Dobie will discuss her latest book, “Remembering Lafayette: 1930–1955,” from 2 p.m. to 3 p.m. Sunday, Feb. 8, at the Alexandre Mouton House/Lafayette Museum in downtown Lafayette.


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.