Holiday Gift Suggestions: A sense of place

When attending the Louisiana Book Festival on Nov. 10, I met staff members of Pelican Publishing of New Orleans. We were enjoying drinks in the lobby of the Baton Rouge Capitol Center (the old Capitol House in Baton Rouge) and I shyly admitted scouring the Bryan Batt and Katy Danos' new book, "Pontchartrain Beach: A Family Affair," for familiar pictures. The book's chock full of photos and illustrations from the New Orleans amusement park's heyday and lord knows I spent much of my youth there, as did everyone else in my family.

"You're not alone," I was told with a laugh. Apparently, other Crescent City natives searched pictures for themselves as well.

If you hail from New Orleans like I do, you'll know how much this lakeside park meant to us, and the new book guides readers from its inception to its sad demise. Along the way are lots of pictures, — although I must admit that's the most fun aspect of this book — which means other city natives will revel in its pages. But it's more than pictures. It's a comprehensive history of the Batt family, who immigrated from Germany in the mid-1800s and started building businesses, including New Orleans' first ice manufacturing plant. First generation American Harry Batt started concessions at Spanish Fort after World War I, but then branched out to create the city's most famous amusement park.

Back to those photos. Apparently, Bryan Batt found an enormous collection of photos and other Pontchartrain Park memorabilia when cleaning out his mother's estate. He then assembled more from employees, celebrities and park-goers. The photos include beauty pageants, famous visitors, shots from the rides including Wild Maus, Zephyr and the Kooky Kastle, Bali-Ha'i at the Beach — even shots from the photo booth.

Naturally, Bryan Batt grew up with the business his grandfather started, but the author is a Broadway, film and TV actor best known for his award-winning role as Salvatore Romano in "Mad Men." Katy Danos is the editor of Adore magazine published by the New Orleans Advocate and co-author with Batt of "Big Easy Style." Together with Batt's spouse Tom Cianfichi, they are the creative forces behind Hazelnut, a fine gift and home furnishing hop on Magazine Street.

Next up is a trip through Mississippi with "Live From the Mississippi Delta" by Panny Flautt Mayfield and "The Mississippi Gulf Coast" by Timothy T. Isbell. 

Louisiana Book News is written by award-winning author Chere Dastugue Coen, who writes Louisiana romances and mysteries under the pen name of Cherie Claire. Her first book in each series is FREE to download as an ebook, including "Emilie," book one of The Cajun Series, "Ticket to Paradise," book one of The Cajun Embassy series and "A Ghost of a Chance," the first Viola Valentine mystery.