Louisiana

Local author Andy Peter Antippas presents a walking history of the Vieux Carre, one alley, corner and street at a time.

Walking through the French Quarter can overwhelm the senses--and the imagination. The experience is much more meaningful with knowledge of the area's colorful history. For instance, the infamous 1890 "separate but equal" legal doctrine justifying racial segregation was upheld by the Louisiana Supreme Court at the Cabildo on Jackson Square. In the mid-twentieth century, a young Lee Harvey Oswald called Exchange Alley home. One of New Orleans' favorite drinks--the sazerac--would not exist if Antoine Peychaud had not served his legendary bitters with cognac from his famous apothecary at 437 Royal.

Opelousas, one of Louisiana's oldest European settlements, takes its name from the Opelousas tribe, who roamed the area for years before the first French explorers arrived.

After the Louisiana Purchase in 1803, the community was called Opelousas Church until it was officially incorporated as a town in 1821. Known for its hospitality, music, cuisine, and cultural diversity, Opelousas prospered during antebellum times, survived the Civil War, and suffered through the period of Reconstruction. In the late 1870s, the town again began to flourish with an increasing population and a great number of new businesses. The coming of the railroad in the 1880s led to more economic development, and Opelousas grew to be one of the most progressive towns in the state by the turn of the 20th century. In the 21st century, Opelousas is again seeing a revival of its past glory and continues to be the seat of Imperial St. Landry Parish, a title it has held for over 200 years.

Carola Lillie Hartley, a native of Opelousas, has worked for the city as tourism director and in 1993 became the first Opelousas Main Street director. A community activist and local historian for over 50 years, she has written numerous books and articles about Opelousas, including a weekly column titled Parlons Opelousas for the Daily World newspaper, part of the USA network.

Born in 1794, Marie Laveau reigned as the undisputed queen of the Voodoos for nearly a century.

From the American Railroad to Space - Discover the fascinating history of the Michoud Assembly Facility.

After an auspicious beginning as a royal land grant from French king Louis XV to a wealthy French citizen of New Orleans in 1763, the land Michoud Assembly Facility occupies remained in private ownership until 1940, when it was sold to the US government. Prior to World War II, the site was used to grow sugar, hunt muskrat, and build railroad and telephone lines. In 1941, the world's largest industrial site was built, covering 43 acres of unobstructed, low-humidity, air-cooled space under one roof to construct C-46 cargo planes. The Korean War required the assembly of Sherman and Patton tanks there, while the space race compelled the design and assembly of the colossal Saturn I, IB, and V rocket boosters for the Apollo program that reported directly to Dr. Wernher von Braun. The 1970s saw the fabrication of the enormous external tank for the Space Shuttle program. Today, Michoud Assembly Facility continues to support the US space program by building major components for the Orion Multi-Purpose Crew Vehicle (or MPCV).

Poppy Tooker's Drag Queen Brunch features gorgeous photography by renowned photographer Sam Hanna. Luscious photos capture all the dishes (both the ladies and the recipes) in some of New Orleans' most iconic restaurants and courtyards. The inspiring images are accompanied by light-hearted profiles of fifteen flirtatious queens and their favorite flavors--mouth-watering recipes for classic dishes, new favorites, and thirst quenchers--all designed to enhance the brunch experience.

Vinsantos Defonte, a prominent voice in the national LGBTQ community and founder of New Orleans Drag Workshop, provides the foreword. Wayne Phillips, curator of the Costumes and Textiles and the Carnival Collections of the Louisiana State Museum, details the history of drag and this very special community in New Orleans. Tooker, celebrated host of Louisiana Eats!, provides an epilogue illuminating her entrée and ongoing role in the Crescent City's drag queen world.

A percentage of the proceeds from the sale is dedicated to CrescentCare (NO/AIDS Task Force).

Voyage to Louisiana recounts Robin's adventures in Pensacola, New Orleans, and the Attakapas and Ouachita country. He vividly describes the distinctive lifestyle and customs of the Louisiana Acadians and the New Orleans Creoles and provides a rare, tantalizing glimpse into the history of colonial Louisiana..

Beyond the façade of stately Louisiana platations are stories of hope and subjugation, tragedy and suffering, shame and perseverance and war and conquest.

After sixteen workers chopped down most of the Houmas House's ancient oak trees, referred to as "the Gentlemen," eight of the surviving trees eerily twisted overnight in grief over the losses wrought by a great Mississippi River flood. An illegal duel to reclaim lost honor left the grounds of Natchez's Cherokee Plantation bloodstained, but the victim's spirit may still wander there today. A mutilated slave girl named Chloe still haunts the halls of the Myrtles Plantation in St. Francisville. Cheryl H. White and W. Ryan Smith reveal the dark history, folklore and lasting human cost of Louisiana plantation life.

New Orleans has a reputation as a home for creatures of the night. Popular books, movies and television shows have cemented the city's connection to vampires in public imagination.

Rumors swirled about the fate of the Casket Girls, a group of mysterious maidens traveling to the New World from France with peculiar casket-shaped boxes. A charismatic man who moved to the French Quarter in the early 1900s eerily resembled a European aristocrat of one hundred years prior bearing the same name. A pair of brothers terrorized the town with their desire to feed on living human blood during the Great Depression. Marita Woywod Crandle investigates the origins of these legends so intricately woven through New Orleans's rich history.

Essential reading on segregation now in paperback!

"Medley deftly puts in colorful context the U.S. Supreme Court's signal 1896 decision sanctioning so-called separate but equal facilities. . . . Rich in family and community history and local lore, Medley's work details the world of New Orleans' free people of color . . . this remarkable read is recommended."
-Library Journal

During the antebellum period, New Orleans was the largest German colony below the Mason-Dixon line. Later settlements moved upriver between New Orleans and Donaldsonville, near Lecompte, and in North Louisiana near Minden. Germans of Louisiana is the first unified published study of the influence the German people made on the state of Louisiana and its inhabitants. Beginning with the French and Spanish colonial periods and working through the post-Civil War period, this book covers the heritage those German settlers left behind.

INDEPENDENT PUBLISHER BOOK AWARDS GOLD MEDAL FOR BEST REGIONAL NONFICTION OF THE SOUTH

Defending Hurricane Katrina's most notorious couple.

In the media storm that followed Hurricane Katrina in 2005, nursing home owners Sal and Mabel Mangano were vilified for allegedly causing the deaths of 35 residents of St. Rita's Nursing Home in low-lying St. Bernard Parish. This book, written by the lawyer who defended them, reveals the gripping, true story behind the couple's heartrending decision not to evacuate and their persecution at the hands of the government sworn to protect them.

WINNER OF THE LOUISIANA LITERARY AWARD

Celebrating the traditions of Louisiana's food, chefs, and cooks!

Radio host Poppy Tooker takes readers on a culinary journey filled with the stories of some of Louisiana's most notable chefs and cooks. From the queen of Creole cuisine Leah Chase to Roman Candyman Ronnie Kottemann, Tooker includes profiles and recipes from beloved culinary icons. Photographer David G. Spielman provides an intimate portrait in black and white for each food personality introduced.

This 1885 volume is one of the two oldest cookbooks published in New Orleans. Many of the recipes, compiled by 18 ladies from the Women's Exchange, are still used in the open-hearth kitchen at the historic Hermann-Grima House in New Orleans' French Quarter. Although over 120 years old, the recipes are still valid and adaptable for modern cooks.

Originally published in 1884, this classic remains an excellent reference on the history of this complex and charismatic segment of the state's citizenry. "'What is a Creole?' Even in Louisiana, the question would be variously answered." Despite this admission, the author ably addresses the query with precision and aplomb. In this case, he is writing about the white descendants of the early French and Spanish immigrants born in the New World. Originally published in 1884, Creoles of Louisiana remains an excellent reference on the history of this complex and charismatic segment of the state's population. From the early days of "The First Creoles" through the trying times of "The Battle of New Orleans" and "The Great Epidemic" and on to "Brighter Skies," the chapters chronicle the Creoles' rich history in the Pelican State. No examination of the people would be complete without an exploration of their home. In "The Creoles' City," New Orleans emerges as a town carved out of the wilderness of the bayou . . . a town of tremendous potential and opportunity. The Creoles seized it, and, together, city and citizens flourished.

Better than a bucket list--a guide to growing your faith!

The demands of modern society often create distance between Catholics and their cultural heritage. Earl J. Higgins, a New Orleans native and lifelong Catholic, offers ways to embrace Catholic influences in everyday life. Suggestions range from such simple activities as putting a "Keep Christ in Christmas" bumper sticker on your car to more devout practices, including lighting an Advent wreath or making the Sign of the Cross in times of trial and joy. In addition, Higgins provides historical backgrounds on Catholic holidays such as Mardi Gras. Feeling like you're drifting from your faith? From the St. Joseph's Day Altars to Midnight Mass, let these 100 tips reconnect you!

The Cajun language, spoken by the decendants of exiled Acadians, has been passed on by word of mouth for more than two hundred years. Cajun French is still widely spoken throughout Louisiana, despite threat of extinction and the controversies associated with including the language in school curricula. Conversational Cajun French I, the first systematic approach to teaching the language, makes Cajun French accessible to those born outside Cajun families and works to preserve the Cajun language and culture.

An extremely practical introduction to Cajun French, this resource focuses on everyday words and common phrases that can be understood everywhere the language is spoken, regardless of the various dialects and subdialects. The Cajun words for the days and months, holidays, parts of the body, numbers, clothing, colors, foods, animals, fruits and vegetables, tools, and plants, as well as a section of useful expressions and a list of traditional Cajun names, are among the elements included.

The book—designed for use in conjunction with the companion compact discs or audio download—includes a pronunciation guide to enable even the beginning student to converse with Cajuns. Narrated by author Randall P. Whatley, the CDs and download clarify the nuanced pronunciation necessary to learn this beautiful and, until now, elusive language.

Sophisticated city mouse Chicory never imagined she would venture beyond her elegant Creole home in New Orleans—until she falls asleep in a picnic basket and wakes up in the Cajun swamps! There she meets Roux, a simple country mouse, and together they experience the bucolic bayou life. Chicory persuades Roux to see what the city has to offer, and they journey to New Orleans for a taste of Creole culture. Idyllic picnics and lavish white-linen luncheons offer both delights and frights in this Southern retelling of Aesop’s classic fable. Whimsical illustrations and two original songs make this a story you won’t forget!

Todd-Michael St. Pierre is the author of several New Orleans cookbooks and children’s books. He was a judge for The Reading Rainbow Young Writers and Illustrators Contest and is a dedicated gardener and cat lover.

Lee Brandt Randall has a degree in printmaking from Louisiana State University. She works in graphic design, film animation, and book illustration and is a member of the Society of Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators.

INDEPENDENT PUBLISHER BOOK AWARDS BEST REGIONAL NONFICTION OF THE SOUTH GOLD MEDAL

“When an elderly couple is charged with murder in the drowning deaths of thirty-five bed-ridden residents of St. Rita's Nursing Home, an emotional edge-of-your-seat thriller takes off like a shot! The players: a wily and profane defense lawyer, a ferocious prosecutor, vengeful families of the victims, and a ravenous media that brands the defendants ‘Monsters of Hurricane Katrina.’ My advice—block out enough time to read this wonderful book in one sitting.”
—John Berendt, Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil

“A passionate and personal book, artfully constructed.”
—Washington Post

“A war story of jurisprudence. . . . a book you wish wouldn't end.”
—Daily Beast

Commemorating the 200th anniversary of America's best buy. Originally syndicated in strip form in daily newspapers throughout the United States, this book is depicted in an understandable and easily read format and backed up by competent research.

Negotiate Louisiana's legal system with this easy guide!

From buying a home and writing a will to starting a business, this reference has invaluable information that can save Louisiana residents time, money, and worry. A do-it-yourself guide advises on how to collect a debt, recover a deposit, change your name, write a will, and file a suit. Frequently asked questions and a glossary of terms are also included.

You're not gonna taste this little beignet! In this confectionary folktale adaptation, a lonely baker gets his wish when he sprinkles magic sugar on a beignet and it comes to life. The little beignet boy runs away but is in danger of being eaten by the hungry people of New Orleans. He leads a wild chase through the French Quarter, visiting famous sights along the way. This delightful book, with wacky illustrations and a sassy refrain, will run straight into readers' hearts.

First published in 1885, this was the first Creole cookbook ever printed'a rare collection of recipes from leading New Orleans chefs of the day, as well as from Creole housewives.

Piglet brothers 'Ti Joe, 'Ti Claude, and 'Ti Fr're have reached the age when Mam're Cochon must send them out into the world to seek their fortunes. As they venture out on their own, they must each find, or build, their own homes. At the same time, they must be ever on the lookout for the hungry loup-garou.