“Read Your Way Around the World” is a series that explores the world through books.
New Orleans is a popular destination for tourists, not only for its local cuisine (think gumbo and jambalaya) but also for its Mardi Gras extravaganza. You're likely to bump into drunk college kids on spring break, but you might also bump into Grammy Award-winning artist Jon Batiste. By some accounts, New Orleans is one of the most festive cities in the USA, with a party or two happening almost every week.
But behind the festivities lies a rich and dark history. The city is a mix of Caribbean, French, Spanish and Native American cultures, and depending on which neighborhood you go to, it can be disorienting. Historically, enslaved people from other states were sometimes sent to New Orleans as punishment, but the city was also home to many Haitians seeking a new life after Haiti gained independence in 1804.
New Orleans literature is an essential complement to the city's experience: these books serve as a compass for understanding New Orleans' diverse influences and a celebration of the free spirit that made the city a haven for artists, writers, and travelers seeking new perspectives.
What should I read before I pack?
“Economy Hall: The Hidden History of the Free Black Brotherhood“, The City of the City by Fatima Sheikh paints a fascinating portrait of the city from slavery to the jazz age. Sheikh uses primary sources that her father rescued from a garbage man's pickup truck to create an enlightening and engaging non-fiction story.
“New Orleans Grio: Tom Dent ReaderDent and His Friends, a collection of Dent's writings edited by Karam Ya Salam, covers the life of an important literary figure. These works provide an insider's look at the city's legendary Mardi Gras Indians and the Mississippi Free Southern Theatre during the Black Arts Movement. In many ways, contemporary New Orleans writers are the descendants of Dent and his friends.
Pulitzer Prize-winning cult classic, John Kennedy Toole's “Alliance of Fools” It's a bit of a Don Quixote twist, capturing the quirky antics of natives living in a city that is below sea level and under constant threat of destruction from the forces of nature.
What books and authors should I bring?
“The Unfathomable City: New Orleans Atlas“, This collection of essays by Rebecca Solnit and Rebecca Snedeker touches on nearly every neighborhood in the city. Published in 2013, a few years after the devastation of Hurricane Katrina and the government's response, the photo book helps orient readers as they travel through the city's locations. One essay, for example, traces the connection between the city's vibrant marching band culture and its young members' journeys to become professional musicians.
I highly recommend you read Sarah M. Bloom's memoir. “Yellow House“, Winner of the 2019 National Book Award for Nonfiction, this book expertly weaves one family's history with the development of New Orleans East, portraying life outside the tourist district where many working-class locals live. It's about the dreams we have and how they may or may not come true.
If you don't have time for a day trip, what books can take you further afield instead?
Enjoy a double-header of Ernest J. Gaines classics. “Bloodline” and “Lessons before death” Both books focus on the rural black community in Pointe Coupee Parish, Louisiana, where he grew up, and his ability to compellingly portray communities that have been neglected by history is one of the reasons he has received numerous accolades, including fellowships from the MacArthur and Guggenheim Foundations.
Before Hurricane Katrina, another natural disaster transformed New Orleans: the Great Mississippi Flood of 1927. “Rising Tide” In fascinating prose, the book examines how the floods affected people living in rural Louisiana, where there were no levees. It's a story of government mismanagement and negligence that foreshadowed Hurricane Katrina decades later.
What book will take me beyond closed doors?
Jarvis DeBerry was an opinion columnist for The Times-Picayune and NOLA.com for 21 years. His collection of excellent essays includes: “The Feeling of Belief: A Collection of Columns”,“ It covers nearly every topic that was important to city life from 1998 to 2019. DeBerry's bold exploration of race, policing, education, politics, and the quirkiness of New Orleans makes this book a must-read.
“One Dead in the Attic: After Hurricane Katrina” Chris Rose's book, “The Haunting of Katrina,” is considered the definitive account of life in the city during Hurricane Katrina. With biting humor and sharp observations, Rose portrays the ultimate local perspective. For many residents who lost loved ones and property and felt abandoned by the government, this book was cathartic.
Mona Lisa Saloy also has a wonderful collection of poems called “Mona Lisa Saloy”. “Black Creole Chronicles” She exceptionally captures the linguistic inflections and rhythms of the locals, heavily influenced by both African-American and French cultures, preserving the voice of 20th-century New Orleans like no other.
Who is the author that everyone around town is talking about?
Charisma Price's debut collection of poems “I'm always serious“, New Orleans is vibrant with her keen insight and attention to detail that shows the city in a fresh way. And since moving to the city about 10 years ago, Jamie Attenberg has become a central figure and stalwart of the local literary scene; she's published not one but two books this year.1,000 Words: A Writer's Guide to Staying Creative, Focused, and Productive All Year Round And the future “A reason to see you again.” The first is a technical book centered around Attenberg's popular writing program, and the latter is a novel that follows a troubled mother and her two daughters over the course of four decades.
What literary sites and bookstores should we visit?
Located just a short walk from Jackson Square, the heart of New Orleans for centuries, Baldwin & Company has become a community hub in just three years. Traditional, locally owned bookstores, like the Community Book Center and Octavia Books, which recently underwent an extensive renovation, are great places to learn about the city's literary history, and parts of the New Orleans streetcar line still operate and are worth a ride, especially for fans of Tennessee Williams plays. “A Streetcar Named Desire” Although the Desire Line no longer exists, other lines offer a slower pace and great views of the city.
What else should you consider?
New Orleans is home to beautiful parks and public spaces. A stroll through Crescent Park offers great views of the downtown skyline and places to sit and read. Audubon Riverview Park, known to locals as “The Fly,” and Audubon Park are great places to spread out a blanket and read your favorite book.
No trip to New Orleans is complete without a beignet at Cafe du Monde. For a traditional New Orleans lunch, stop at Neio's, Parkway Bakery, or Commander's Palace, and for dessert, try O'Delis or Sucre. Stroll through the French Quarter, ride the St. Charles Streetcar, and visit the New Orleans Museum of Art. When you're ready for dinner, consider Dookie Chase, Morrow's, or Herbsaint, before enjoying a late-night snack and live music at the Maple Leaf Bar or the Blue Nile. And don't forget, it's good etiquette to tip the performers.
Maurice Carlos Ruffin's New Orleans Reading List
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“Economy Hall: The Hidden History of the Free Black Brotherhood” Fatima Sheikh
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“New Orleans Grio: Tom Dent Leader” Tom Dent Editor: Karam Ya Salam
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“Alliance of Fools” John Kennedy Toole
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“The Unfathomable City: New Orleans Atlas“, Rebecca Solnit and Rebecca Snedeker
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“Yellow House” Sarah M. Bloom
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“Bloodline” and “Learn before you die” Ernest J. Gaines
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“Rising Tides: The Great Mississippi Flood of 1927 and Its Impact on America” John M. Barry
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““The Feeling of Belief: A Collection of Columns” Jarvis DeBerry
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“One Dead in the Attic: After Hurricane Katrina” Chris Rose
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“Black Creole Chronicles” Monalisa Saloy
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“I'm always serious.” Charisma Price
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“1,000 Words: A Writer's Guide to Staying Creative, Focused, and Productive All Year Round” and “A reason to meet again” Jami Attenberg
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“A Streetcar Named Desire” Tennessee Williams
Maurice Carlos Ruffin, who grew up in New Orleans, is the author of The American Daughters and The Ones Who Don't Say They Love You.