Frommer’s New Orleans 2008 (Frommer’s Complete) by Mary Herczog

“… 1 The Best of New Orleans New Orleans should come with a warning label. No, no, …”

I have now almost worn out my second copy of this book and have been thinking I need to invest in a third. This is THE best travel guide to New Orleans (actually, to any destination, come to think of it) I have ever read. I bought three or four different guides before my first trip to New Orleans; this is the one that made the others unnecessary. Many NOLA trips later, this book that still goes with me every time I return. In this Frommer’s edition, Mary Herczog’s voice is not so much that of a travel expert–although she is indeed that, and her advice is thorough and invaluable. But reading her pages is like having a friend in New Orleans–a native who knows all the good stuff, has all the real stories, knows the places YOU would want to visit. Her style is warm and conversational; her knowledge exhaustive, well-organized, and accessible. I’ve made so many margin notes “in answer” to her entries that my book has become as much a dialogue as a guidebook. Ten trips later, I am still learning from it.

The World That Made New Orleans: From Spanish Silver to Congo Square by Ned Sublette

“… THE CITY 0 n sabbath evening,” wrote a visitor to New Orleans in 1819, “the African slaves meet on the green, by …”

I checked this book out when I was planning a trip to New Orleans. Initially I thought it was not what I was looking for but Ned Sublette’s style was so laid back and appealing that I kept on turning the pages. When the time came for me to return the book, I wasn’t done so I purchased it. The history is fascinating and rich in detail as to why New Orleans is decidedly Caribbean in its history and culture. I never knew how much the Spanish had influenced the creation of New Orleans. I really enjoyed the intricate history of how the French, Haitians, Cubans and Americans also came into play. My only complaint is that there was so little mention of the Native American’s influence that I am unsure if that is because they had no real influence or if they were just overlooked.

I hope the publisher comes out with a digital edition of this book. I would love to have it on my Kindle. Like Charles C. Mann’s 1491: New Revelations of the Americas Before Columbus, it is the sort of book I would like to have handy to consult or re-read sections of.

New Orleans Noir (Akashic Noir) by Julie Smith

It is fitting the great Julie Smith was chosen as editor and post-Katrina story contributor for this terrific (terrifying?) anthology. She also should have been asked to add to “San Francisco Noir” because as in New Orleans, she spent many years there as an ace newspaper reporter and set one of her mystery serieses there. Her story “Loot” is this book is really good, about the long-time friendship between a civil rights lawyer and her maid who is stranded Uptown after the storm, and the vicious little plot dig at the end. Ditto to Outside Magazine writer Ace Atkins, who was boots-on-the ground on assignment here in the sweltering days after Katrina’s eye passed, in his gritty “Angola South” about the inhuman jail set up at the Greyhound bus station. Maureen Tan’s “Muddy Pond” indelibly depicts the plight of Vietnamese-Americans stuck in flooded N.O. East right after the storm. There is not a less than great story in this 18-story anthology (well maybe one of the pre-K’s). This is one of the better books of the half dozen I have read in creator Tim McLoughlin’s very fine (Akashic) Noir series — the other one is D.C. Noir edited and with a story by the great George Pelecanos. Neither should be missed!

Down in New Orleans: Reflections from a Drowned City by Billy Sothern

Yes, Hurricane Katrina has been an American tragedy, not only because of the storm itself, but also for its aftermath and the nation’s response.

Sothern does an amazing job at telling some of the stories of the hurricane that either never made it as front page headlines, or were buried behind those of the political fiascos that resulted. He tells of citizens who were wrongfully arrested, thrown into jail, only to be abandoned in cells as the waters rose. He writes of a Syrian-born citizen, a long-time resident of New Orleans who had a very successful painting business and of how he paddled through the streets of his neighborhood in the days after the storm, helping to save neighbors and bring food and water to others, only to be arrested as a “terrorist threat” and held without cause for a month.

Sothern also brings light to many of the racial tensions that followed in the days and weeks after the storm, and clarifies many misperceptions about stories being circulated about criminal activity during and after Katrina. I felt I learned more about what happened to this American city more from this book than in any newspaper account following the disaster.

Rhythm and Blues in New Orleans by John Broven

“… Hit Singles by New Orleans R & B Artists Note: This Graph reflects the number …”

This audiobook is the original and still definitive audiobook on New Orleans rhythm & blues, the music that was the true forerunner of what popularly became rock ‘n’ roll. As a boy in England, Broven was so thrilled by Little Richard’s performance of the song “Long Tall Sally” in the movie DON’T KNOCK THE ROCK that he ran from the matinee showing at his local theatre to buy it before the record store closed. It was only years later that he discovered that Little Richard’s hits, like those of his other favorite, Fats Domino (who dominated Louisiana music and rhythm & blues in the 1950s and is appropriately pictured on the cover) were recorded by New Orleans studio musicians who created the backbone of rockin’ rhythm & blues. Other musicians featured here include Roy Brown, who popularized the word “rock” in rhythm & blues long before Alan Freed in his 1947 classic “Good Rockin’ Tonight” (which like Little Richard and other New Orleans records were significantly covered by Elvis Presley); Aaron Neville, Dave Bartholomew, Lloyd Price, Allen Toussaint and legendary drummer Earl Palmer, the last four of whom have recently been inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame. Similarly to Charlie Gillett’s groundbreaking classic THE SOUND OF THE CITY, Broven thoroughly covers the record companies who came to New Orleans to mine the city’s musical gold, but he also takes an in-depth look into the musicians which made the city a musical force. RHYTHM & BLUES IN NEW ORLEANS features interviews with many of them, including Mac “Dr. John” Rebennack, whose lengthy reminisces during an English tour inspired the audiobook. It is a must for anyone interested in the history of rhythm & blues, rock ‘n’ roll, black culture or New Orleans culture.

Tags: New Orleans, Orleans