Louisiana Books

This cookbook captures the essence of Cajun and Creole cooking.

After reading "A Mournful Memory, Written in Blood", you can tell that the author really put a lot of time into researching her project. I thouroughly enjoyed the information I got from this book. All I have to say is great educational reading!

I originally submitted this review in 1997 (before Amazon created the About You Page) and am resubmitting it under my public account as directed by Amazon's Customer Service. The original review will be deleted via Amazon.

THE LOVE CHARM is another irresistible read about hard working, down to earth characters from the always wonderful pen of Pamela Morsi. Set in the Louisiana bayou Ms. Morsi brilliantly brings all of the scents, smells and customs of the small tight-knit community of Acadia to life.

As a child Aida Gaudet concocts a love charm she insists will make the man of her dreams fall deeply and forever in love with her. Aida, being a bit featherbrained, hands the charm over to her best friend Armand Sonnier then forgets about it when her father calls her for dinner.

Years later Aida, now the town beauty, has all of the local men and her childhood friend Armand vying for her affection. Armand has kept his feelings to himself knowing he can never win her hand because he is "plain" and also the shortest man in Acadia and has resigned himself to a life without her. Awww. . . how can you not instantly love this guy? Also standing in the way is the small fact that Aida is engaged to his best friend Laron. She has agreed to marry Laron, the most handsome man in Acadia, because it is what is expected of her. Aida has given up dreaming about true love knowing men only care about her looks and will never love her as a person.

When Armand, in a moment of jealousy, thoughtlessly spills the beans about Laron's secret mistress he inadvertently upsets several lives but especially his own. With a little push from a meddling soothsayer Armand sets out on a path to set things right and finds himself spending most of his waking hours with Aida in an attempt to thwart fate.

It is wonderful watching these seemingly opposite characters overcome their enormous insecurities before they are able to truly open their hearts to each other.

THE LOVE CHARM delivers everything I look forward to in a Morsi book and then some. With a little helpful magic, a bit of humor, lots of tugs at the heartstrings and major sexual tension Ms. Morsi masterfully ties up not one but three intriguing love stories and manages to make us care deeply about all six characters. Very Highly Recommended.

I never write reviews but this one I will write. This book is written about a forgotten part of our history and a part that one of my ancestors took part in. Being a southerner from northern Alabama, I had no idea until recently that i had a unionist ancestor. I have read the book twice to soak it up. It is full of easy to read and insightful analysis as well as facts and stories from the people who were there. Margaret Storey has taken the interviews from the Southern Claims Commission and woven them through the book with the well researched facts about the Unionist and the Civil War. I am writing a book on my family history and her book is now underlined from one end to the other for reference material. Even if you don't have an ancestor who was a Unionist this will still capture your attention and give you new insights into the war and the people. It certainly made me see that it was not a war of North against South but of Union against Confederacy. Thank you Ms. Storey for this book!

The catalogue for a comprehensive exhibition at the Jeu de Paume in Paris held in 2003, this book is a very good, well-documented, well-illustrated study of this ubiquitous Belgian artist who has inspired so many contemporary artists and publicists. There is quite a lot of material available on Magritte and I would say this one is one of the safest bets. Daniel Abadie is a leading French modern art historian and curator and his signature is a token of quality.

"Selected from the book by the same title, these framing-quality images evoke the multi-layered architectural history of the five-mile stretch of New Orleans that encompasses a century of architectural styles, including intricate Queen Ann houses, stately Italianate and Richardsonian mansions, and more. This is where the old and new live cheek-by-jowl, where decay is an art form, and where preservation is a way of life."--Amazon UK

Wonderful insight on poetic process and persona, lucid observations on some of the most important poets from many varied centuries and schools.

A collection of stories that warms the heart. This would be a wonderful book for a parent or friend. The storytelling is amazing!

The aptly named Robert Tallant was a collaborator of Lyle Saxon, and in many ways his heir in mid 20th century New Orleans historical circles. Although Saxon is better known, Tallant was more prolific and also was a photographer of some note. His photographs may be seen at the website of the New Orleans public library, www.nutrias.org. This is one of many important Louisiana books Tallant wrote. It is a clear and unvarnished history of Carnival up to the late 1940s. Some things about Carnival have, thankfully, not changed since then, so the book is at once a scroll from the past and relevant today. This book is an essential starting point for understanding how Carnival is intertwined with New Orleans society.

This book was wonderful! I am adopted from the Protestant Home for Babies in the Garden District and this book makes reference to the home. It was historically interesting to read about the Garden District! But not boring like a history book!