Gwen Roland to discuss her books March 14

As part of the Jeanerette Museum's Water/Ways Smithsonian exhibit project, Gwen Roland, author of "Atchafalaya Houseboat" and "Postmark Bayou Chene," will discuss her books at 6 p.m. Thursday, March 14, at the Sliman Theater in New Iberia.

Growing up in rural Louisiana, self-sufficiency was a given, so during the back-to-earth movement of the early 70s, Roland moved to the Atchafalaya Swamp where her ancestors had settled before the Civil War. She shared her adventures through magazine and newspaper articles. LSU Press reprinted those essays in the memoir Atchafalaya Houseboat. The book inspired the popular PBS documentary by the same name.

Roland brings an insight into living on a houseboat she and her friend built that few others can. She lived peacefully off of the land for nearly a decade in the swamp. She later moved away from her beloved swamp and held many jobs until becoming the communications specialist for the Southern Region Sustainable Agriculture Research and Education Program at the University of Georgia. She retired after 20 years of writing about Ag research in the country.

During her talk, Roland will be showing personal photos from her collection during the time of her living in the swamp.

This program is suitable for an adult audience and is free, however, seating is limited. This program is a part of Museum on Main Street, a collaboration between the Smithsonian Institution and the Louisiana Endowment for the Humanities made possible through funding from the Walton Family Foundation.

For more information, contact the Bayou Teche Museum at (337) 606-5977, visit JeaneretteMuseum.com or contact Gail Garcia at (337) 380-9057 or JeaneretteMuseum@yahoo.com.

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.