Louisiana Books

Ornig's book is the first full account of this amazing adventure since Theodore Roosevelt was alive to tell it himself. Thanks to the author's years of meticulous research, we get to see the ex-president up close as every ounce of courage and determination that can possibly be required of a human being is exacted by this perilous expedition. Why would a man, having already carved his name in history, literally risk his life in service to exploration? The book title is informative; it was the kind of thing he loved to do. Roosevelt's passion for for life was abundantly demonstrated on the River of Doubt as he and his party encountered one life-threatening obstacle after another. If it wasn't the hostile natives who tracked them, it was the piranhas. If it wasn't a lack of food and supplies, it was flesh-eating disease.... As if fighting just to survive the forces of nature weren't enough, there was also the recklessness of some, including his own son. And there were personal conflicts among the explorers--disagreements, arguments, theft--and a murder. This wilderness adventure had it all--and it wasn't reality TV. No camera crew, no global positioning system, no one to bail them out at any point. In this age of apathy and plasticized existence, this story is all the more striking.

Thus, out of this book emerges a fresh portrait of Theodore Roosevelt. We learn a great deal about him under conditions of maximum stress. We also get to know the group of explorers who accompanied him. And the generous 48 pages of maps and photographs are a real plus. Many thanks to the author for rediscovering this story and dusting it off for us with such literary finesse. For a non-fiction history work, it reads like a novel.

Ornig provides the first detailed account of one of the most exciting adventure stories of the 20th century -- Theodore Roosevelt's exploration of the River of Doubt in Brazil's Amazon. The story is more incredible when you think that Roosevelt was a 55-year old former President at the time of the expedition. As we approach the 100th anniversary of Roosevelt's presidency, and as we consider our relationship with the earth, it is worth taking another look at this great outdoorsman. Ornig weaves together the political and diplomatic origins of the expedition and how Roosevelt, his son Kermit, and the rest of the expedition got much more than they bargained for. There's murder, there's drowning (and a question of whether Kermit Roosevelt was accountable), there's frustration, and there's a former President on the brink of death. After you read it, you'll want to read Roosevelt's account, "Through the Brazilian Wilderness." You'll enjoy that one too

TR's 1913-1914 expedition down the River of Doubt (subsequently renamed Rio Teodoro in his honor, and later Rio Roosevelt) is an astonishing piece of history - one often refered to in passing by other TR biographers, but not often fully explored, as it here. Author Ornig tells an exciting tale well, from the multitudious details of planning and executing a massive exploring expedition in the early 20th century, to vivid portraits of the characters involved. This book would be a wonderful companion for any adventure traveller (or even armchair adventurers).

Best of all, Ornig is no run-of-the-mill TR hagiographer (and there are plenty of them out there), nor is he interested in taking unfair potshots at the great man (plenty of those folks out there, too). Ornig simply relates events as they occured, and doesn't care a whit whether they cast TR in a favorable or unfavorable light: TR was a poor shot (due to his poor eyesight) and became grumpy and embarassed when he missed easy targets. TR was delighted with the impact on his waistline when the expedition was forced to subsist on reduced rations -- and argued against the restoration of full rations even though others were suffering. Do these facts detract from the TR legend, or add to it? I have never been a fan of Marble Men, and found that I loved TR even more after glimpsing some of his human flaws in MY LAST CHANCE TO BE A BOY. No student of TR should be without this volume.

I have prepared many of the dishes in the new book. All were excelent. The recipes were easy to follow. The Authentic dishes take more time to prepare than the quickie recipes from other books but WOW! what a difference in flavor. This book is a must for anyone wanting to entertain guests with Cajun-Creole flavors.

All of the recipes that I have tried in this book, from the staples to the exotic, are wonderful. Some of them (such as the Red Beans & Rice or the Artichoke-Heart Casserole) have become favorites to be prepared whenever I want to impress or just enjoy good eating.

Recipes include background information about how dishes came about, when they should be served and with what. They range from simple, everyday dishes to elaborate, impressive feasts.

If you buy only one Cajun cookbook, buy this one. Its the one to have. I'm buying another one because I wore mine out.

I hosted a Mardi Gras party and lucked-out finding this absolutly wonderful book. The recipes are easy to follow and everything that I have made (at least a dozen or so)has turned out great. I am constantly being asked for these recipes so now I am buying several copies to give to those close family and friends who have mentioned that they would like to buy it. The best of the best: Shrimp in mustard sauce, Sun-dried tomato pesto, Jezebel sauce, Cajun-Country bread pudding w/rum sauce and Chantilly cream, and on and on.

The seafood dishes I've made are delicious with easy directions to follow, and wonderful flavors of New Orleans. The photographs are fabulous and let you see what the dish should look like - something I really appreciate. The little stories with each recipe about the restaurant and the chef make it fun reading even if you're not cooking. I bought one as a gift and enjoyed looking at it so much, I went back and bought one for myself.

My New Years resolution was to learn to cook the wonderful foods of New Orleans. I have purchased many cookbooks and tried many recipes. This is the greatest New Orleans cookbook ever. Kit gives the history of many restaurants and chefs before and after Katrina. You will find it fascinating. The recipes are wonderful. Pictures beautiful. This is a must if you enjoy New Orleans and New Orleans food.

Chefs from iconic restaurants - uptown, downtown, back of town - daily elevate fish and shellfish from basic boiled beauties to traditional (and untraditional) classics. Trout Meunière can make you sob. Soft-shell crabs seem like crispy clouds. Speckled trout, shrimp, pompano, and redfish come blackened, broiled, grilled, sautéed, steamed, sauced and sassy as all get out. These are their recipes refined to be made easily at home.

The recipes in this book demonstrate how the low, the high, and the in-between coexist in a dining world that ranges from blue jeans to black tie. With taste buds to match. The photographs make it easy to duplicate these dishes at home, they are fabulous and lick-the-page wonderful. A must for every kitchen.

I loved it. I lived in New Orleans when some of the "then" was still there, and seeing all the changes is great fun.

The low ranking below must result from something personal. Sullivan is a true authority as he's taught the Crescent City's twisting, multiracial history for years at the University of New Orleans. And when Orleans Parish wanted it's cab drivers to know their own landmarks, City Hall had him put them wise. Beyond this though, it's a fine read. I used to laugh at the architectural damage the developers had done through the decade. But New Orleans has always grasped the modern and this has been its real architectural struggle. This book helps put the changes in perspective.

I found this book to be one of the best gifts I have ever received.Being from New Orleans and looking back at our past and what we have evolved into was simply nothing short of fantastic .It was well composed and the photography was exceptionally well done.Compared to similar books done slightly earlier ,this is a WINNER!I bought these as gifts for Christmas after I received mine.Everyone who got it raved.This author has proven to me, more than once, he is dedicated to authenticity and has the respect for New Orleans that New Orleans deserves.My hats off to you Mr.Sullivan.Great job.Keep up the good work.

There is a wise maturity to the elegiac nature of these poems. The first poem, "Water Dish," for instance, is, on the surface, a straightforward meditation on epiphanies, these beautiful moments that wake us into the present. But look a little deeper, and you will see an elegy for the "now", this present moment, no matter how wonderful. This and many of the other poems here, deeply show that, truly, like a semi truck, the future and the past so often run our lives over. And worse, the very thing we hope can save us, our best words, wall out the real. Nevertheless, courageously, these poems continue to call into the darkness and "lostness" of our lives. The echoes that return make us quiet ourselves and listen. Listen deeply.

Wenthe reinforces the basis of poetry. His poems are some of the best that are being written today. He proves a love of words, and he's a master at creating music with his medium. A beautiful, sparkling book of poems.

Pellucid fragility creates the elegiac yet joyous tone of William Wenthe's second collection, *Not Till We Are Lost.* Rhythmically varied, captured with an eye as unblinking and startling as that of fish ("crewcut lawn," "the rhododendron as a chalice / of shadow"), Wenthe's lines play the literal against the transcendent in a way that invigorates and affirms both. Quiet scholarship ("Goldeneye," "W. H. Auden, Leaving Lubbock. . .") and artfulness (the lovely sonnet sequence "The Mysteries") carry and lift these lyrics on their voyage; tact permits and renders their intimacy. To read the short poem "Gar" is to feel the universe, of a sudden, quiver. The losses that we must suffer these poems create with a candor that will break your heart; yet you will wish for them to break it again and again.

This is an excellent gift for someone who wants the art but also a little bit of background. Nicely done.

Georgia O'Keeffe died in 1986 owning more than half the approximately two thousand works she had produced during the eighty years she was active as an artist. Four hundred of those works were oils, charcoals, pastels, pencils, and watercolors. Additionally there were more than seven hundred sketches in her personal collection. O'Keeffe's O'Keeffes: The Artist's Collection explores and showcases the significance of Georgia O'Keeffe's collection of her own work and comprises seventy-five seminal works reproduced in full color and dating from around 1910 down through the 1960s. Unique, impressive, O'Keeffe's O'Keeffes is an essential volume for students of American art history in general, and the life and work of Georgia O'Keeffe in particular.

This is a great overview of OKeeffe's work. I love her desert work and recommend this coffee table book which is full of her work.

In 1990 Jasmine, Louisiana, her family and friends gather to celebrate Cassie Wortham's eighteenth birthday. Her boy friend (at least in his mind), Lester Sullivan proposes, but Cassie rejects his offer. Lester refuses to accept her no. Her father's best friend thirty-two years old Austin McGuire also attends the event. Cassie and Austin walk together on the beach when she trips. Before either knows what happened, they make love. Austin feels guilty while Cassie feels her love for him has been betrayed.

Nine years later, Cassie returns to her hometown for the first time in five years accompanied by her son Tyler. Cassie has come out of hiding in women's shelters because her violent spouse Lester is in jail. Cassie married Lester to hide the fact she was pregnant with Austin's child. However, her return soon proves to not be safe for herself or her family. Lester has vowed to never let Cassie go. Her deeply religious parents believe Lester can be reformed, forcing Cassie to turn to Austin, the only man she ever loved, for the safety of her child.

Readers hold Mary Lynn Baxter in high esteem for her tense romantic suspense tales. ONE SUMMER EVENING is a torrid novel that combines a well-designed relationship drama within the elements of intrigue. The story line is exciting, but it is the characters that make this into must reading for sub-genre fans.

Harriet Klausner

I have to admit at first I was not real sure about this book it had not gotten very good reviews. But I guess I really need to learn to not trust reviews and go with my insticts about her books a little more because this one was great. She blends elements that I really love to read in books, and does it well. I am 25 years old so I am not wild about older men but Austin was one sexy man and Cassie was a terrific woman. After A Day In April I didn't think it could get any better. But as usual I was wrong. Buy it you won't be disappointed.

This was a fantastic book and it was really great. The love scenes were so hot I could barely contain myself. I've read two other books from this author and her previous work is definitely worth looking into. I was a little uneasy about reading the book because it had been a while since reading her books but I know she's a great author.

The Palace Cafe is one of my required stops whenever I'm in New Orleans. I discovered this cookbook at the airport on my way back to Chicago. The book is a high-quality publication. It has the real recipes, family history and famous menues. There are short sidebars with each recipe. The photography is georgeous, although I wish there was more of it. This book is truly the taste of New Orleans.

Dickie Brennan's Palace Cafe: The Flavor Of New Orleans showcases more than 170 recipes enhanced with a wealth of culinary tips as well as anecdotal stories from the "first family of Creole" and insights into the Palace Cafe, one of New Orleans finest and most popular restaurants. Featuring complete menus, the "user friendly" recipes range from Milk Punch; Pork Grillades with Andouille Goat Cheese; Crabmeat Cheesecake with Pecan Crust; and Shrimp Remoulade; to Oyster and Eggplant Soup; Ponchatoula Strawberry and Spinach Salad; Grilled Rib-Eye with Roasted New Potato Port Salut Hash; and White Chocolate Creme Brulee, Dickie Brennan's Palace Cafe is a superbly presented volume enhanced with occasional full color culinary photography and would grace any dedicated gourmet's cookbook collection.

If you want to enjoy real New Orleans cooking with a unique flair, this is the book for you. As a New Orleans native, I have many cookbooks with local recipes, but this one has not only wonderful recipes, but surprising insight into the Brennan family and a behind the scenes peek into a great restaurant. Each recipe is extraordinary combining unusual ingredients into fabulous dishes, such as the red bean dip with homemade potato chips and the delectable fish recipes. The instructions are concise and easy to follow. Buy this book if only for the famous white chocolate bread pudding. This is a true epicurean delight, and the Brennan family is a New Orleans treasure.

I really enjoyed this cookbook. The recipes were not difficult and were delicious. In addition to that the book itself is lovely. Between the pictures, family stories and tips on so many pages, I felt as though I were in New Orleans cooking with a friend! Dickie Brennan - I will be waiting in line for your next cookbook.

This a truely great work on the politcal behind the scenes aspects of how the Confederate command structure worked under Davis and the military and political opposition groups that festered within. Davis has incredulous feuds with Johnson and particularly Beauraguard to the point of destruction while maintaining an unbending loyalty to Braxton Bragg even when he loses the support of all the generals in the Army of the Tennesee. What developes is a political block of generals that maintain a loose alliance such as Johnson, Beauraguard, Longstreet and Senator Wigfall from Texas. Certianly astonishing about the effect personal dislikes and favoritism had on militarty assignments and strategy. It is interesting that Johnson had significant support from many fields except Davis. One of the great failings of the Confederacy is that they did not have a competent Secretary of the War that was strong enough to work with Davis until Breckenridge took the job too late.

One of the most fascinating aspects of the Civil War is the way in which strategy was determined not so much by military necessity as by the interplay of politics and personalities. While this is true of the Union, it seems to be more so of the South. In this slim volume, the authors take the reader through a study of the prevailing strategic thought (Napoleonic/Jominian) and then discuss how this thinking was applied by the major Southern Commanders. Their conclusions: Lee contributed little to the overall strategic thinking of the South; the commanders in the Western theater (Bragg, A.S. Johnston, Joseph Johnston, Beauregard, et al.) may have had a greater conception of the South's stategic requirements; and, Jefferson Davis was caught between the two. The result? Neither Virginia nor the Western theaters got the military treatment that was required for successful war.

Naturally, it is easy to oversimplify these conditions. Yet, the authors demonstrate that Lee, concentrating on the Virginia front, seemed unaware of the Western theater, resisted efforts to strengthen the West through transfers from the Army of Northern Virginia, and continually requested that the Western theater support his operations with either movements of their own or transfers of troops to Virginia. This criticism of Lee is always a touchy issue (see, Joseph Harsh, Confederate Tide Rising for a contrary position).To his credit, Davis resisted all of these requests and, on one occasion, overruled Lee to have Longstreet's corps sent to the West prior to the late 1863 battle of Chicamauga.

Davis, a Westerner himself (Mississippi) faced a formidible group in what the authors call the Western Concentration Bloc, a group united by family or geographical ties and a mutual hatred of Bragg. Among them, Connelly and Jones seem to think of P.G.T. Beauregard as the best of the strategic thinkers. Davis himself added to his own problems with the departmental system, a possibly unnecessary complication added to already complicated command problems.

The authors, having emphasized strategic thought in Chapter 1, do not demonstrate how those strategic theories were applied by the Southerners. Perhaps this is because these theories, in the purest sense, were never applied, except in the desire to concentrate forces, which may in fact have been a function more of theater jealousy rather than application of Jominian doctrine. The student of strategy, academic or armchair, might find a better discussion of this topic in Jones' Civil War Command and Strategy (1992). Even so, this is a well-written study with valuable insights, and certainly rates 5 stars.

One of the most fascinating aspects of the Civil War is the way in which strategy was determined not so much by military necessity as by the interplay of politics and personalities. While this is true of the Union, it seems to be more so of the South. In this slim volume, the authors take the reader through a study of the prevailing strategic thought (Napoleonic/Jominian) and then discuss how this thinking was applied by the major Southern Commanders. Their conclusions: Lee contributed little to the overall strategic thinking of the South; the commanders in the Western theater (Bragg, A.S. Johnston, Joseph Johnston, Beauregard, et al.) may have had a greater conception of the South's stategic requirements; and, Jefferson Davis was caught between the two. The result? Neither Virginia nor the Western theaters got the military treatment that was required for successful war.

Naturally, it is easy to oversimplify these conditions. Yet, the authors demonstrate that Lee, concentrating on the Virginia front, seemed unaware of the Western theater, resisted efforts to strengthen the West through transfers from the Army of Northern Virginia, and continually requested that the Western theater support his operations with either movements of their own or transfers of troops to Virginia. This criticism of Lee is always a touchy issue (see, Joseph Harsh, Confederate Tide Rising for a contrary position).To his credit, Davis resisted all of these requests and, on one occasion, overruled Lee to have Longstreet's corps sent to the West prior to the late 1863 battle of Chicamauga.

Davis, a Westerner himself (Mississippi) faced a formidible group in what the authors call the Western Concentration Bloc, a group united by family or geographical ties and a mutual hatred of Bragg. Among them, Connelly and Jones seem to think of P.G.T. Beauregard as the best of the strategic thinkers. Davis himself added to his own problems with the departmental system, a possibly unnecessary complication added to already complicated command problems.

The authors, having emphasized strategic thought in Chapter 1, do not demonstrate how those strategic theories were applied by the Southerners. Perhaps this is because these theories, in the purest sense, were never applied, except in the desire to concentrate forces, which may in fact have been a function more of theater jealousy rather than application of Jominian doctrine. The student of strategy, academic or armchair, might find a better discussion of this topic in Jones' Civil War Command and Strategy (1992). Even so, this is a well-written study with valuable insights, and certianly rates 5 stars.

Poor Man's Provence: - Having a fair amount of familiarity with the area and people, I'd say Mrs. Grimsley wrote as good of a memoir of this part of Louisiana as any. Whether one is familiar with the area of not, it would be worth reading it ahead of time to get the most of the visit to Cajun Country. From beginning to end I felt like I knew the central figures in this non-fictional memoir, Johnelle & Jennette, and they didn't disapoint. The place is crawling with people like them and it'll please and even surprise them all to know a transplant appreciates them for just being themselves. Whether the writer, Miss Rheta(as locals would call her), intended it or not, she and Don are now a part of Cajun's lives forever and we're all grateful for her memoir and presence.

All ethnic groups have their on distinct qualities and because of this most are completely misunderstood. Cajuns are no exception. I know when I was a kid I wanted be black. I truly didn't understand why then, but over the years thinking back I know it was because of the sense of pride that most of my black friends had. Ms. Johnson has tapped in to the Cajun pride. She conveys with humor and humility the love they have for their land and family, as well for others not of their ethnicity. Her love for them shines brightly. I love this book and highly recommend it to all.

Somewhat like the wonderful nonfiction works of Least Heat Moon's "Blue Highways" and Raban's "Passage to Juneau", only better, much better. Like those two travel novels, "Poor Man's Provence", entertains with unique true anecdotes and historical facts about the down home exotic people and places of the Acadiana ("Cajun") Country, Louisiana. Woven into the colorful quilt of her writing, Rheta Grimsley Johnson also gives us wicked irony, Twain like humor and a little subtle, sincere, simple human philosophy. Unlike "Blue Highways" and "Passage to Juneau", "Poor Man's Provence" is not a travelogue, but instead represents ten years of learning and loving the gentle folks of Cajun Louisiana. It's a great book to read if you think that you will ever want to see this part of the American South, and it's still plenty entertaining even if you just want to get to know the natives vicariously. If there is any justice in such things, this must read book should win lots of awards.