The literary tradition of New Orleans spans centuries and touches every genre; its living heritage winds through storied neighborhoods and is celebrated at numerous festivals across the city. For booklovers, a visit to the Big Easy isn't complete without whiling away the hours in an antiquarian bookstore in the French Quarter or stepping out on a literary walking tour. Perhaps only among the oak-lined avenues, Creole town houses, and famed hotels of New Orleans can the lust of A Streetcar Named Desire, the zaniness of A Confederacy of Dunces, the chill of Interview with the Vampire, and the heartbreak of Walker Percy's Moviegoer begin to resonate.
Susan Larson's revised and updated edition of The Booklover's Guide to New Orleans not only explores the legacy of Tennessee Williams and William Faulkner, but also visits the haunts of celebrated writers of today, including Anne Rice and James Lee Burke. This definitive guide provides a key to the books, authors, festivals, stores, and famed addresses that make the Crescent City a literary destination.
New Orleans is an increasingly popular travel destination: since 1998, ten new travel guides to the city have been published (e.g., Randolph Delehanty's Ultimate Guide to New Orleans, Chronicle, LJ 3/15/98). These two titles provide two unusual perspectives on this city and a wealth of information not normally found in travel guides. New Orleans Then and Now tells the history of New Orleans through 175 photographs, taken between 1847 and 1998 and arranged as sets of comparative "then" and "now" displays. Like these photographs, which are of excellent quality, the narrative accompanying them supplies careful detail, important for understanding the changes that have taken place over time. An excellent, clever featureAa small map in the lower right-hand side of odd-numbered pagesAindicates where each site is located in the city. Although not for the first-time tourist, this title will be handy for those interested in urban geography, development, history, architecture, and New Orleans. The Booklover's Guide to New Orleans is a literary guide containing a history, an annotated list of "Literary New Orleanians," a reading list, a literary calendar, a list of local bookstores and resources, and excerpts of writings about the city by various authors. Larson, the book editor of the New Orleans Times-Picayune since 1988, has compiled an exhaustive literary guide. Her love for both books and for New Orleans comes through in her writing. Recommended for large public and academic libraries.AJohn J. McCormick, New Hampshire State Lib., Concord
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