Louisiana College Books

I love Kate Chopin and the stories were great...the condition of the book was not bad either...

Like far too many, I was first introduced to Chopin in college. As an educator, I find Chopin's work to be timeless. Chopin speaks to contemporay society--and especially American society--in ways that few authors can and do. I use "The Awakening," as one of the cornerstones (yes; one may have more than one cornerstone) of my literature class--a class that relies on trade publications rather than anthologies and "typical" textbooks for reading material. One of the unexpected rewards I have experienced while teaching this novel is that male students, generally speaking, truly enjoy the work. Given its content and storyline, one might expect the opposite to be true. Nonetheless, the novel speaks to readers of all ages and genders. I believe that virtually ANYONE will identify with the characters Chopin brings to life in "The Awakening." Not only is it the story of a woman in search of her identity--arguably, a rather Maslowian tale of ! "self-actualization"--it is the story of the human condition.

Additionally, given the story of Chopin's life, the book takes on even greater significance (sorry, but you'll have to read the book to understand why I feel this to be so).

This book is a MUST read for all who seek to dispell the myth of "June Cleaver." (Ya, I know I am not suposed to say that but this is one VERY cool book--a book that EVERYONE should read.)

Besides, "The Awakening" itself is short enough and compelling enough that one will finish it in a matter of a few evenings. That the Penguin version also contains Chopin's EXCELLENT short stories, and a good deal of equally excellent biographical and critical writing regarding the author and her works makes grabbing a copy for one's personal library a must-do.

(Buy the book.) =)

The author, Kate Chopin, began to write when she was age thirty six. She had a ten year productive career the introduction by Nina Baym discloses. She died at age fifty three. Her work went out of print to be revived in the early 1960's. She wrote two novels and close to one hundred stories following the death of her husband and her mother.

Women, including Kate Chopin, writing after the Civil War turned to regionalism. By 1893 railroads had wrought a tremendous change. Regional writing, as the introduction points out, is tourism of the imagination. The stories are short and skilfully done. Even the use of dialect for the Cajun and Creole speakers is not off-putting. The stories have a wonderful stripped down to the essence quality. One is reminded of Chekhov.

In THE AWAKENING it is noted that the summer colony staying at the Lebrun cottages are almost entirely Creole. An exception is Edna Pontellier. She came from old Presbyterian Kentucky stock. Even as a child Edna tended to live in her own world. She feels a sense a of exaltation when she learns to swim. She has children, a husband, and becomes infatuated with a young friend, Robert Lebrun. Later Robert leaves to go to Mexico. Returning to New Orleans, Edna spends time with the people she has met at Grand Isles. Her husband is caught up in his household furnishings. When she decides to leave to live by herself in a smaller house, he prudently closes their large marital house to avoid gossip. Her absolute disregard for her duties as a wife shocks her husband. Her doctor can find no trace of the morbid condition ascribed to her. Robert Lebrun returns. He shows reserve. Leonce her husband and her children are part of Edna's life. She yields to the water of the gulf.

Kate Chopin was a writer of major achievement. One regrets, as outlined in the introduction, that there were no literary works produced by her in the last five years of her life. She was discouraged by the critical and moralistic response to her masterpiece, THE AWAKENING.

In "The Awakening", a woman rejects the drudgery of her life and decides to live selfishly, for once. Kate Chopin captivates her readers with a story of transformation and growth, and writes with clarity and ease. Perhaps most enjoyable about "The Awakening" and Kate Chopin's short stories is the vivid New Orleans setting. Chopin pays attention to the charms of Louisiana in this novel--Creole cooking and language, Southern black and French mannerisms of the time--not limiting herself by focusing on members of the elite. Definitely worth checking out!

Contrary to the two reviews you display, this was a "One-Shot" Magazine that covered Pete's first three years at LSU. There were two Authors, Editors, and Publishers, John Muchemeche and myself. While John wrote most of the articles which were great, and took most of the pictures, the real credit for the Magazines professional look should go to Kirk Kirkpatrick, who did the artwork, Lay-out, and design. My only regret was that we didn't follow up with Volume 2, at the end of his Senior Year, and distributed it Nationally.

The program/book of Pete's junior year at LSU is a gem to any collector's bag. It is full of memoriable moments of Pete and Press and the LSU gang during that that year. It offers superb pictures, statistics, and in-depth analysis of Pete's flamboyant years at the collegiate level. I am so glad that I discoved this collectible item. It is a must have for any fan of the Pistol,or the average Maravich fan. Enjoy and treasure the reading. Superb!

This is a hard to find program from Maravich's junior year at LSU. It was sold at the Pistol's home games in New Orleans. It's full of stats, interviews, and incredible photos (some color). I have seen used copies of this very publication offered for $125 in sports magazines. Two words: collector's item.

A extremely insightful book, Dearing's exploritive probe into the heart of the beast that is Tulane University is shocking, objective, suspenseful, and distinctly brilliant. Upon reading this young author's book I realized that I had found the literary equivalent of a Babe Ruth minor league baseball card. A college student herself, the author's insightfulness shows a style, mastery of diction, and rhythm that is and of itself a tribute to the fine institution about which she writes.
Tulane University: Diverse? Just? Overrated? Greedy?
Is this a place where the young mind is cultivated, and the seeds of knowlegde sown that mixed with experience become the dangerous power that is wisdom?
What percentage of Tulane graduates are millionares? The answer is surprising.
What if anything happened when television's Red Power Ranger visited the campus?
I highly recommend this book to anyone interested in the Institution that is Tulane University- young and old, Jewish and not, American or other, dead or alive, THIS ONES A WINNER!

I would have never gone to Tulane if I hadn't read this amazing piece of literature. Even if you're not thinking of going to Tulane or college at all, you should read this book for its insight into the human psyche and comedic banter.

ps: there's a secret message on page 35, if you switch the first and last words of every sentence in the 2nd paragraph down. It's hilarious!

this is the best college guide book ive ever seen. its incredible. its amazing. pick up a copy or five. i would read it before even looking at anything tulane has published about itsself. A++++

I got this book as a gift for my boyfriend. He is a serious LSU fan. He loves it. He reads parts of it to me outloud because he finds it so interesting he wants to share it with me. I don't think he has ever read a book for pleasure until now.

My dad is an LSU alumni and when I gave it to him Christmas morning he couldn't put it down. The book itself was in perfect condition when I received it.

Students today at LSU call the Pete Maravich Assembly Center the P-MAC. I can't stand to hear that. If they read this book, they might give the building the devotion it deserves. "Shooting the Pistol" is a clever name and the cover of this book and its design are also clever. I was expecting only pictures, but was amazed at the amount of copy that went along with the games corresponding to the photos. Pete is shown in all kinds of situations and the descriptions are amazing. This will make a great Father's Day gift.

This is an excellent recounting of Pete Maravich's playing days at LSU from the perspective of a court side photographer/journalist. Well written with wonderful pictures. A must have for basketball and sports history fans!

TAKE A LOOK AT THE OLD SOUTH FROM THE ANGLE OF THE COLLEGE MAN. AS A GRADUATE OF A COLLEGE IN THE DEEP SOUTH, I SAW SO MANY PARALLELS BETWEEN TODAY'S COLLEGE EXPERIENCE AND THE ONES I READ ABOUT IN HALLS OF HONOR. BY CONTRAST, THE VAST DIFFERENCES AND IDIOSYNCRACIES OF COLLEGE LIFE IN THE ANTEBELLUM ERA WERE FASCINATING. FOR ME, AS A STUDENT OF THE PRE-WAR DECADES, HALLS OF HONOR WAS A DELIGHT TO READ.

Carl Bridenbaugh examines three major cultures of the eighteenth-century colonial South. Bridenbaugh examines the individual characters of the Chesapeake, the South Carolina Lowcountry and the Southern Backcountry. A thorough and colorful portrait of life in each culture is offered.

There were multiple cultures in the South. Bridenbaugh examines three Southern societies, and the contrasts between them are illuminating. The book concentrates on developments after the formative seventeenth century, and before the tumult of the Revolution.

(NOTE: THIS BOOK IS WRITTEN COMPLETELY IN FRENCH) In the nineteenth century, there were blacks who had gained independence before and after the Civil War. Because of their French heritage, many blacks were allowed to remain free (although certain bitter laws governed their conduct in rather inscrutable ways). Free Creoles of Color were those who stood out against the crowd and fought for equality among their race. They were Martin Luther King before he took his first breath. They were Rosa Parks before she imagined freedom. These men and women paved the way for the Civil Rights movement, yet they are seldom (if ever) recognized.

A collection of beautiful (and surprisingly racy) texts from nineteenth century Louisiana, Paroles d'honneur shines. It is just a handful of short stories written by black Creoles, those who were (in those times) truly disadvantaged and who could scarcely find a way to publish their work. Most did so in subversive fashions, and these works are a token to the effort they put in to make their message heard.

Even today, their cry of racial equality stands out, especially in these stories. If you buy one work that summarizes Creole, African American, or Civil Rights movement prose, this should be it.

A great book, providing a very human view of the development of higher education. Andrew Rice is the perfect vehicle to explore Oxford, Tulane, and several experimental curricular attempts at collegiate education. Reynolds is a gifted writer. Her research is deep, her charactors compelling.

This is a very well written biography of the first Rice University president. It will be particulary interesting to those interested in the founding of the University and its early development.

An excellent work on the background of one of this country's outstanding universities. It would not have happened without Edgar Odell Lovett.

This lovely biography, written by the skilled hand of historian John B. Boles, is as much an early institutional history as life story of the first President of Rice University. Dr. Boles tells the story of how Lovett, driven by the desire to found and create a university of high standard in the rough-hewn Southwest, spent most of his academic life attempting to transplant Princeton to Houston. Most of the ideas Lovett put in place at the infant Rice Institute derive directly from his experiences at the ancient "College of New Jersey." Limited by lack of funds, depression, war, regional bias, a relatively strict charter and an exceptionally conservative board of trustees, Lovett was only partially able to reach his goals by the time of his permanent retirement in 1946. Despite the challenges, his vision remained rock solid.

Lovett built a strong foundation. Rice is still, to this day, driven and directed by Lovett's vision. The transformation of that vision into reality, after almost 100 years, makes Rice the Princeton of the South (and NOT the Harvard of the South, to reference the overused cliché). It should come as no surprise that the current Dean of the Graduate School at Princeton, Dr. William Russel, is a Rice alumnus.

I should note that this book is written very well, by a narrative historian of myriad recognitions and talents, not to mention a beautiful style. It's a local story, but it's also a story of how strong vision and leadership are so important to the health and growth of any new or struggling enterprise. Rice was lucky to have found such strong leadership back in 1912. We still need strong leaders today, especially during this time of re-examination of purpose within our colleges and universities.

This book comes highly recommended by former presidents of Rice, Columbia (George Erik Rupp), Penn, Tulane and the current president of the University of Richmond (historian Edward Ayers). It's worth your effort if you have even a passing interest in these subjects, and a must for anyone with specific interest in Rice University.