Louisiana Books

Gleanings is an amazing package of poetry. It's fat-187 pages of "old poems and new poems," beginning with feisty poems of girlhood, the segueing into poems of marriage, ultrasound, pregnancy, empty-nesting, and ending with haunting poems about taking care of a mother with Alzheimers and grieving for a lost father. On the way, Shipley invokes Virginia Woolf, Carolyn Forche, Denise Levertov, Jim Morrison, John Keats, Percy Bysshe Shelly, Robert Penn Warren, William Blake, William Butler Yeats, Matthew Arnold, Shakespeare, A.E. Houseman, Sylvia Plath and Ted Hughes, Emily Dickinson, Eliot and Pound, James Merrill, and Betty Friedan. This is a rich book indeed, an almost-memoir, a navigation of one woman's complex life.

"God's Loud Hand" is Kelly Cherry's strongest poetry collection to date. In it she demonstrates a masterful balance between form and content. Her religious/spiritual themes lead the reader toward higher ground, especially "Reasons", "In the Garden By the Sea: Easter", "The Island of Contentment", and "God's Friends Will Wear Rain*bows". They are unique in an era when most poets are still writing about what they see in their mirrors. Cherry's monumental sequence, "Songs for a Soviet Composer," is an example of pure alchemy, in that she turns the anguish of love's longing into stanzas which glint like gold but touch us like flesh which has become Words. Kelly Cherry is a poet who has risen above the rabble.

This is the 3rd of Doug Winter's books that I have bought and it is the best by far. I have already commented on his work on Dahlonega gold and I stand behind my critical comments on the photos. Whether the original pictures were good is beside the point. We can only judge the work we have in front of us and that work had lousy quality pictures regardless of who was responsible. Intent is nothing in this regard; finished product is everything. His work on CC gold was much better, for although again no pictures were in color, nevertheless the quality of them was good. Here, however, all things come together to produce an excellent work. The population analysis, the discussion on strike, luster, etc. are everything we have come to expect from the foremost expert on gold coins. I consider this book invaluable whenever I consider buying New Orleans gold and consult it religiously before making a purchase. The photos are excellent, are all in color, and provide a succulent icing on an already delectable cake. I hope he publishes an update on Charlotte gold soon with the same results.

Dr. Sandoz provides insight to the philosophical foundations of the American Founding. He points to several main influences including John Locke, Medieval Christianity, and Classical Philosophy. Sandoz shows the importance of political obligation as instilled through a sense of common moral virtue. He ultimately commends the common sense of the founders and shows us why other systems have failed. A key point is the differentiation found between religion and the secular matters of government. In stark contrast to "political religions" the founders set their sights on the obtainable goal of toleration and liberty without claiming to be able to perfect the world (marxism, communism). Overall, Sandoz rejects the secular interpretation of the founding and gives strong evidence that the founders valued religion quite highly and thought it an important foundation for society. He does not fall into the trap of finding a "single strand" of thought to explain the founding, but instead points to several key influences. Sandoz is able to make his case in common sense terms and offers humor throughout, while still maintaining a deep level of insight. I highly recommend this book for anyone interested in American Founding and especially the philosophical influences that brought it about.

The novel is an interesting account of the historical events surrounding the Spanish acquisition of the French colony (including New Orleans) in 1769. Anyone from the city of New Orleans or surrounding area would recognize the historical names from Louisiana and Gulf Coast history, and also reflected in the names of parks, plazas and city streets in New Orleans. It speaks to the lands under control of the government from New Orleans, which would include much of what we know as the Louisiana Purchase (up the Mississppi River to St Louis and beyond, and the Red River). You can get a very good feel for how the unique culture of that area evolved with all the ethnic and racial components, and the drama of the take over by the Spanish, and the impact on the French and Swiss-German colonists, the slave population, and native tribes. There is also intrigue with the British and their American colonials at the time of the evolving American Revolution.

This is the most comprehensive work to date on the obscure study of Belizean Creole I have encountered. This is a MUST for all students of the creole languaguage and creole enthusiasts the world over. While the subject may be daunting to the unfamiliar, the author does a superb job of explaining the intricacies of Creole languages. This is appropriate for both the academic and lay reader particularly the section on the social use of language.

This is a great book which instructs basic manners in any easy to use style. In this day and age, this a book that MANY PEOPLE NEED for their kids. Children SHOULD have manners...and this books helps to teach them...

Joutel's Journal, as printed here, is an abridgement of the original by the Sieur de Mitchel. Mitchel's preface, together with other explanatory remarks, a map, and a copy of Louis XIV's instructions of 1712 for the government of Louisiana, are included in this edition. Marion A. Habig, "The Franciscan Pere Marquette," Franciscan Studies (June, 1934), No. 13, pp270-271 provides additional information about the Journal.

The Great Chefs series has long been a friend of mine. The more I read other cook books, the more I appreciate the fabulous recipes that just keep comming. Nearly every recipe fights for your memory's attention. For those who love to cook, this is the reason why you bother. The chefs who supplied the recipes have packed this book with some of the best recipes I have ever made from cover to cover. You will never find yourself bored with the recipes as variety was a main ingredient. At this price, there is no way you can go wrong. There is no better value that can be obtained--BAR NONE!

The cypress swamps of the southern United States were badly treated for years and decimated in many instances. However, their role in the ecology of the South became more appreciated as people became aware of the rare creatures and plants these forests and lakes held, and when they also became aware of their economic utility in such areas as purifying water, etc.

This book brings out these facets of cypress forests as well as clearly and excellently discussing the flora and fauna found in them. The discussion on these marvelous trees, themselves, is worth the book price. Excellent photos abet this effort very well.

The major swamps are covered on a chapter-by-chapter basis. The reader gains an appreciation of the unique nuances of each. I found the chapters on the Great Dismal Swamp and the discussion of the mysterious Carolina Bays most enjoyable.

Being a Michigander, the cypress swamp is not an item with which I became familiar until I was an adult, and even then, I had a great lack of understanding of how this eco-system works and why it is important to preserve it. This book greatly filled those voids in my knowledge.

Additionally, the book is a good vacation guide for anyone planning a trip to the South. These swamps, or at least one of them, are worth seeing. You will have a far better time, and understanding, of what you are seeing, if you read this book first. I recommend it very highly. It is one of the better regional ecology books in my library, and a real keeper. Certainly, anyone who teaches geography or biological sciences should own it.