Last week I started a book club with some friends, so I've been in a book worm mood lately. In the spirit of reading, I wanted to share with you guys three books I think all Nola Newbies should read, either because I've read them or heard good things.
Quaint Essential New Orleans by Kevin J. Bozant
Like I said last week, I write mini book reviews for New Orleans Magazine, so a lot of interesting New Orleans-y books come across my desk. One of my favorites has been Quaint Essential New Orleans: A Crescent City Lexicon by Kevin J. Bozant. It reads like a dictionary of New Orleans terms, landmarks and more. Bozant has also written African American New Orleans: A Guide to 100 Civil Rights, Culture and Jazz Sites and Crescent City Soldiers: Military Monuments of New Orleans, which I also recommend.
Five Days At Memorial By Sheri Fink
I'm in the middle of this book right now and it is fantastic. If you haven't heard about Five Days at Memorial already, the book by Sheri Fink is an account of what happened at New Orleans' Memorial Medical Center during Hurricane Katrina. As someone who lives in New Orleans now but didn't go through Katrina, the book is incredibly eye-opening, sad and thought-provoking. Like I said, I'm in the middle of this book, so I haven't made it to the end, but I already understand why this book has been getting great reviews and lots of buzz. In our world of blogging and Buzzfeed "listicles," it's refreshing to read something that is incredibly well-researched; Fink spent six years researching it, conducting more than 500 interviews.
Gumbo Tales: Finding My Place at the New Orleans Table By Sara Roahen
I have not yet read Gumbo Tales: Finding My Place at the New Orleans Table by Sara Roahen, but I've heard from multiple people it is THE book to read when you move to New Orleans. I'll read it soon and let you guys know how it is.
Happy reading!
