Shotwell delivers charming tale with 'Forget Me Not'

Em Shotwell charmed readers with her magical tale of the Caibre family of Brooklyn, Miss., when she published her debut novel, “Blackbird Summer.” Now the South Louisiana author returns with an equally delightful book, “Forget Me Not,” backing up to 1969 and telling the story of Evelyn Cadeau and Rex Somersby. The two characters are thrown together — much to Evelyn’s chagrin since she has feelings for another — because of their magical “gifts.” Evelyn has the gift of vigor, causing things to grow and flourish, including helping the sick return to health. Rex can remember everything. And because gifted people keep to themselves, their families are hoping the two magical 18-year-olds will marry. The move works but just as love begins to blossom, however, the Vietnam War intercedes. With Rex’s gift of remembrance, can he forget the horrors he’s seen overseas? Shotwell is donating royalties from “Forget Me Not” to the military charity, Operation Homefront. She is also launching the book at 6:30 p.m. Tuesday at Conundrum Books in St. Francisville.

New children’s books

Author and poet Zwame Alexander grew up loving poetry, believing that “a poem is a small but powerful thing.” He, along with poets Chris Colderley and Marjory Wentworth, celebrate the written word and give homage to famous poets with “Out of Wonder: Poems Celebrating Poets,” illustrated by Ekua Holmes. The poems are originals but written in the style of Maya Angelou, Gwedolyn Brooks, Emily Dickinson and Langston Hughes, among others. It’s a marvelous book sure to ignite “ever-evolving ideas that speak to us in different ways at different times in our lives,” the author writes.

“Trees” by Lemniscates is a simple tale about those wonderful plants that bring us shade and life, appropriate for ages 2-5. This lovely book showcases what trees offer the world and how important that are to humanity, complemented by soft yet expressive illustrations.

Creole mouse Chicory of New Orleans climbs into a picnic basket and falls asleep, waking up in Cajun Country miles away. She meets a mouse named Roux and they have great adventures in the charming tale, “Chicory and Roux: The Creole Mouse and the Cajun Mouse” by Todd-Michael St. Pierre, illustrated by Lee Brandt Randall. The two part to their respective homes in the end but remain lifelong friends in this retelling of the Aesop’s fable.

Vernon Smith of Metairie pens and illustrates an adorable story about the maintenance streetcar of New Orleans that’s been around for decades. “The Littlest Streetcar” shows Charlie at work, spreading sand on the tracks and helping get the larger streetcars back in service. When a grumpy streetcar belittles him, he loses heart, but soon finds that despite his size, he’s just as special as the rest. Like Charlie, this little book with its sweet illustrations offers a big heartfelt story.

Germaine Scalisi Lattier of Lafayette, who’s spent 36 years as an educational diagnostician in the public school system, has published a book about bullying titled “Stop Bully Stop!,” illustrated by Alexandria Scalisi, a student of the Savannah College of Art and Design.

Word Crawl

Word Crawl, the annual fundraising event for Festival of Words in which poets and spoken word artists converge on downtown Lafayette, will be from noon to midnight Saturday, Sept. 9. The poetry marathon will include more than 40 poets at six venues on Jefferson Street, including Acadiana Center for the Arts, Reve, Cite Des Arts, Lafayette Science Museum, Steam Press Coffee & Café and The Wurst Biergarten. To join the fundraiser as a poet, contact Marie Touchet at aziesbusiness@gmail.com, Alex Johnston at PoeticSoul337@gmail.co, (713) 933-4448 or Martha Garner at mgarner70506@gmail.com, (337) 804-2482. Download a packet and see a complete list of participating authors and venues at festivalofwords.org.

Book events for Aug. 6-13

Ladee Hubbard, author of “The Talented Ribkins,” an Indie Next choice for August, will be in conversation with Jami Attenberg, author of “All Grown-Up,” at 6 p.m. Tuesday at Octavia Books of New Orleans. Hubbard is the winner of the 2016 Rona Jaffe Foundation Writer’s Award and the William Faulkner-William Wisdom Creative Writing Competition for the Short Story. She lives in New Orleans.

Katherine Jeffrey will speak about “Two Civil Wars, The Curious Shared Journal of a Baton Rouge Schoolgirl and a Union Sailor on the USS Essex” at 5:30 p.m. Thursday at the Old Governor’s Mansion, 502 North Blvd. in Baton Rouge, part of the Foundation for Historical Louisiana’s Lecture Series. Jeffrey is the author of an LSU Press book of the same name. For more information, visit www.fhl.org or http://lsupress.org/books/detail/two-civil-wars.

The Southern Food & Beverage Museum presents Justin Fox Burks, chef and co-author of “The Chubby Vegetarian,” at 1 p.m. Saturday at the New Orleans museum. Burks will conduct a book signing, cooking demonstration and sampling of recipes featured in the award-winning cookbook he co-authored with his wife Amy Lawrence.

Cheré Coen is the author of “Forest Hill, Louisiana: A Bloom Town History,” “Haunted Lafayette, Louisiana” and “Exploring Cajun Country.” She writes Louisiana romances and mysteries under the pen name of Cherie Claire. Write her at cherecoen@gmail.com.

Cookbook Thursday: St. Pierre takes po-boys to whole new level

            When I moved to California and got a taste of that fabulous weather, the gorgeous Pacific at my door and being surrounded by wine, I swore I would never come home to Louisiana. One day the umbilical cord snapped and I blame it all on that famous New Orleans sandwich, the shrimp po-boy, dressed with extra pickles. In all seriousness, one morning I woke up and thought if I didn’t get one soon, something deep in my genetic code was going to come unglued. I’d walk home to Domilise’s in the Irish Channel if I had to.

            Thankfully I got a job in Lafayette and enjoy po-boys often, including slipping away to my home town on occasion (if you haven’t tried the roast beef with debris at Domilise’s, you’re missing out). Now, one of my favorite home boys and cookbook author, Todd-Michael St. Pierre, has published a homage to the sandwich, “The Southern Po-Boy Cookbook: Mouthwatering Sandwich Recipes from the Heart of New Orleans.”

            Naturally, he offers a history of the unique sandwich on French bread — derived as a cheap alternative to lunches for striking streetcar workers —  but the beauty of this cookbook is in the recipes. There’s everything from traditional oyster loafs and roast beef and gravy to the eclectic, such as a pain perdue, eggplant Parmesan and pecan-crusted trout meuniere po-boy. I’m getting so hungry just writing this.

            If you’re interested in seeing St. Pierre in person he’ll be signing books at 10:30 a.m. Saturday at the Garden District Book Shop in New Orleans, then from 2 p.m. to 4 p.m. at the Friends of the Cabildo’s 1850 House Museum Store, 523 St. Ann St. On Sunday, he’ll be sigining at 2 p.m. at Blue Cypress Books for the Oak Street Po-Boy Festival of New Orleans and from noon to 4 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 7, at Copper Rooster Antiques & Gifts, 222 Lee Lane in Covington.

            Here’s a recipe for “The Benny,” literally eggs Benedict served as a breakfast po-boy.

The Benny: Eggs Benedict Breakfast Po-Boy

From "The Southern Po-Boy Cookbook”

Hollandaise:

2 egg yolks

2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice

1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper

1 tablespoon red wine vinegar

1/2 cup (1 stick) butter, cut into small cubes

Poached eggs:

2 tablespoons white vinegar

3 or 4 eggs

Assembly:

1 (12-inch) loaf French bread, split and toasted

Canadian bacon or bacon strips

1 tablespoon chopped fresh chives

            Directions: In a nonstick skillet over medium-high heat, cook the bacon until crisp on both sides. Remove and drain on paper towels. To make the hollandaise sauce, whisk together the egg yolks, lemon juice, cayenne and red wine vinegar in a

small saucepan over low heat. Turn the heat to medium, slowly add the butter, and whisk until the butter and the eggs are thoroughly blended. If the sauce separates, add 2 teaspoons of water and continue to whisk until it thickens.

            To poach the eggs, bring a sauté pan (wide enough to accommodate all the eggs without crowding) of water (about 2 inches) to a simmer over medium heat until water temperature is 180 degrees, and add the white vinegar. The water should never boil. Crack an egg into a cup and carefully slide it into the liquid. Repeat quickly with the remaining eggs. Cook the eggs until the whites are firm and the yolks nearly done, about 3 minutes.

            Meanwhile, spread a little of the hollandaise sauce on the bottom half of the toasted bread, and top with the bacon. When the eggs are done, remove them with a slotted spoon to drain the liquid, and place them over the bacon. Top with more hollandaise sauce, and sprinkle on the chives. Serve the top half of the loaf with butter, cane syrup, or your favorite jam or jelly.

 Cheré Coen is a Lafayette freelance travel and food writer. She is the author of “Haunted Lafayette, Louisiana” and “Exploring Cajun Country: A Tour of Historic Acadiana,” both from The History Press.

A taste of HBO and more for the holidays

            The holidays start Thursday and it’s time to bring out the cookbooks for inspiration. Looking for something new? Here’s a list of some hot new cookbooks.

             Acadiana’s Marcelle Bienvenu is a cookbook veteran, with numerous titles to her credit, so it makes sense they would ask her to create one to complement the HBO series, “True Blood.” Based on the vampire novels by Charlaine Harris and taking place in a town called Bon Temps, Louisiana, “True Blood” deals with not only vampires, but werewolves, witches, shapeshifters and fairies.

            The cookbook plays on these characters, accented by photos from the series. In fact, the characters are the ones offering Southern and Louisiana recipes and writing each recipe’s introduction. There’s werewolf Alcide Herveaux’s “Stake and Eggs” and vampire hater Maxine Fortenberry’s “Drop-Dead Tuna-Cheese Casserole.”

            “True Blood: Eats, Drinks and Bites from Bon Temps” is a must for show fans and perfect for entertaining. Now if they can just improve on that last season…

            Spotlighting another popular HBO series, “Tremé,” Cajun and Creole foodie Todd-Michael St. Pierre has penned a fun cookbook and homage to the New Orleans neighborhood with “Taste of Treme: Creole, Cajun, and Soul Food from New Orleans’ Famous Neighborhood of Jazz.”

             The book is full of tantalizing recipes, photos and tidbits of New Orleans culture, music, history and more. Recipes range from traditional dishes such as Creole gumbo, beignets and poboys to Congo Square steak with lump crab béarnaise sauce and Purple Haze (Abita beer) pork tenderloin.

            On Nov. 24 St. Pierre will sign copies of his cookbook at noon at the Healing Center, 2372 St. Claude Ave., and at 6 p.m. at Maple Street Book Shop, in New Orleans. He will also sign from 1 p.m. to 3 p.m. Nov. 25 at Barnes & Noble in Harvey and at 5 p.m. Dec. 14 at Barnes & Noble in Lafayette.

            New Orleans foodie Kit Wohl has been compiling the city’s favorites in a cookbook series by Pelican Publishing. Her latest is “New Orleans Classic Cocktails: Spirited Recipes,” containing cocktail samples from the city’s restaurants, hotels and nightspots. Many of the recipes are traditional New Orleans cocktails, such as the sazarac and the Ramos gin fizz, while others stretch the imagination.

             A few others to consider are:

            “Roots” by Diane Morgan, a cookbook that honors root vegetables.

            “Canal House Cooking, Vol. No. 7: La Dolce Vita” by Melissa Hamilton and Christopher Hirsheimer, former magazine editors who cook together every weekday in their New Jersey Studio. “Vol. 7” celebrates Italian cooking and the authors’ travels through Italy.

            “The Cracker Book: Artisanal Crackers for Every Occasion” by Lee Cart is a great idea book for holiday entertaining.

            Tasia Malakasis combines Southern and Greek flavors at her small fromagerie in rural Alabama and she celebrates both in “Tasia’s Table: Cooking with the Artisan Cheesemaker at Belle Chèvre.”

            “The Game Cook: Inspired Recipes for Pheasant, Partridge, Duck, Deer, Rabbit and More” by Norman Tebbit, which includes instructions on game preparation, anecdotes and illustrations.           

Genealogy books

             Cathy (Lemoine) Sturgell, a native of New Orleans now living in Tennessee, has self-published “Long Journey Home: The Ancestry of the Bret, Coco, Drapeau, Goudeau, Gremillon and Tassin Families in France.” According to the author, the book contains undiscovered, unpublished information on these six families in France. 

            “I am directly descended from all of these families and many middle/Southern Louisiana residents with French-Creole ancestry are descended from one or more of these families,” Sturgell wrote me by email. “Included in the book is 175 years of the ancestry of Louisiana progenitor, Dominique Coco, in his native Italy (now France).”

             Sturgell performed years of research through the Catholic sacramental records in France, she said, and each chapter in the 174-page book begins with the Louisiana progenitor of one of these families and contains copies of the sacramental records used to establish lineage.

            For more information on the book, visit http://louisianalineage.com/longjourneyhome.htm.

            Carol Mills-Nichol has published “The Forgotten Jews of Avoyelles Parish, Louisiana,” analyzing the Jewish men and women who settled in central Louisiana as early as the 1830s. The book is 610 pages with 45 illustrations and index and published by Janaway Publication.s.

            The families documented also include those who went on to settle in Winn, Rapides, St. Landry, Evangeline, Lafayette and Grant parishes. Most were formerly from Alsace, Bavaria, and later, Poland, Russia, and Austria-Hungary, the author states, and included merchants, farmers, slave owners, Confederate soldiers, mayors, constables, aldermen and builders and owners of shortline railroads.

            Some of the earliest settlers were Maurice Fortlouis, Adolph and Charles Frank, Abe Felsenthal, Sam and Alex Haas, Simon, Leopold and David Siess, Isaac Lehmann and  Leopold and Lazard Goudchaux.

            For more information, visit www.janawaygenealogy.com.

           

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.

Barkley, Secret Service Dog

There’s a new cartoon character in the White House — and no, this is not a political dig. A new chapter book series has been published involving Barkley, a secret service dog patrolling the halls of the White House. This charming series aimed at children ages 8-12 began this summer with “The Case of the Purple Diamonds.” The book, and those that will follow, contain an interesting cast of characters and Barkley’s high-tech Gizmo Gear, plus 12-year-old Gabby who teams up with Barkley to solve cases. The books are the creation of H.K. Gilbert of Shreveport and screenwriter Misty Taggert (“Scooby Doo,” “Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles”). Together they make up Gilbert & Taggert Entertainment Properties, with illustrations by Tim Davis. Coming out this fall will be “Invasion of the Ice Age,” where Gabby’s science teacher accidentally sets off his Ice-0-Matic Blaster just before the president arrives, and this winter it’s “The Mystery of the Ghostly Guest,” involving dead White House pirates who continue to hang around. For information on the “Barkley, Secret Service Dog” series, visit www.Barkley-ChapterBooks.com.

New releases

Preston Lauterbach discusses the Chitlin’ Circuit, an underground circuit of Southern musical clubs frequented by African American musicians, in “The Chitlin’ Circuit: And the Road to Rock ’n’ Roll.” Preston looks at musicians James Brown, B.B. King, Little Richard and Clarence “Gatemouth” Brown, as well as Chicago Defender columnist Walter Barnes and gambler Denver Ferguson.

Louisiana romance icon Jennifer Blake has published a new series involving three sisters and a curse titled “The Three Graces Trilogy;” any man betrothed to the three Graces of Graydon without love will be doomed to die. The first two books in the series are “By His Majestry’s Grace” and “By Grace Possessed” with “Seduced by Grace” arriving later this month. Sourcebooks has also reprinted Blake’s “Midnight Waltz,” set in Southern Louisiana in the 1850s and concluding with the hurricane at Isle Derniere, or Last Island, in 1856.           
Tom Piazza of New Orleans collects writings on American roots music, New Orleans, desperate times and more in “Devil Sent the Rain: Music and Writing in Desperate America.” Piazza is the author of “City of Refuge” and “Why New Orleans Matters.”

Todd-Michael St. Pierre has created a fun-loving, big-boned feline who loves to dance and enjoy life in New Orleans, but who longs for a mate in “Fat Tuesday Mardi Gras: La Chatte Noire” by Piggy Press. This adorable book has Chatte Noire going out on dates to places such as Cat O’Brien’s and St Louis CAThedral but no one stirs her fancy until she hears the sounds of Max playing "killer sax." Illustrated by Diane Millsap, the book is published in English and in French.

The Images of America series of Arcadia Publishing has released “K&B Drugs Stores” by John S. Epstein, with a foreword by Sydney J. Besthoff III, grandson of the founder with Gustave Katz of the Katz and Besthoff drugstore chain. The book showcases wonderful old photos of the 50 New Orleans stores, plus the others located throughout six states during the business’s 92-year span. The book also contains photos of old advertisements, fountain menus, K&B products (with their trademark purple) and even K&B LSU football schedules. For anyone who fondly remembers eating K&B ice cream at their counters, the purple paper bags or the “double checked” prescriptions, they will love this trip down memory lane.

100 Thousand Poets

On Sept. 24, several Louisiana poets will be part of the 100 Thousand Poets for Change, the largest poetry event in history involving more than 500 events in 350-plus cities in 80 countries. In Louisiana, two events will occur in New Orleans and one in Lafayette. Numerous poetry–related events will happen at the Acadiana Center for the Arts in downtown Lafayette, with the $6 admission being donated to non-profit organizations. Poets from Shreveport, Lake Charles, Baton Rouge and throughout Acadiana are scheduled to participate, and the ULL poetry group will perform a series of open-space musical and literary skits.  During the intermission, Webcasts of other 100 Thousand Poets for Change events will run in the AcA's James Devin Moncus Theatre. The Lafayette event will be webcast and recorded and archived by UC Stanford’s LOCKSS program. For more information, visit www.bigbridge.org/100thousandpoetsforchange.