The story of Hurricane Katrina and its aftermath has been told in just about every way — through essays dispatched from depths of depression, comic book characters, nonfiction that feels like fiction, fiction that feels like nonfiction, and photographs of junked refrigerators with often-humorous messages written on them. And though they may conjure some painful memories, local writers' post-Katrina books generally got it right.
We asked local booksellers* to tell us which books they think most adequately captured the truth of post-Katrina New Orleans in the last five years.
FOUR VOTES:
• 1 Dead in Attic by Chris Rose (essays)
• Why New Orleans Matters by Tom Piazza (nonfiction)
THREE VOTES:
• City of Refuge by Tom Piazza (fiction)
• Nine Lives by Dan Baum (nonfiction)
• Zeitoun by David Eggers (nonfiction)
TWO VOTES:
• Breach of Faith by Jed Horne (nonfiction)
• A Season of Night by Ian McNulty (nonfiction)
ALSO RECOMMENDED:
• A.D.: New Orleans After the Deluge by Josh Neufeld (graphic novel)
• After the Flood by Ivor van Heerden (photo book)
• The Coffee Shop Chronicles of New Orleans by David Lummis (fiction)
• The Dogs Who Found Me by Ken Foster (nonfiction)
• The Good Pirates of the Forgotten Bayous by Ken Wells (nonfiction)
• Katrinaville Chronicles: Images and Observations from a New Orleans Photographer by David G. Spielman
• Murder in the Garden District by Greg Herren (fiction)
• One Block by Dave Anderson (photo book)
• Putting it Back Together by Rhonda Lawson (fiction)
• Spoiled by Tom Varisco (photo book)
• Storm by Pamela Leigh Starr (fiction)
• Voices Rising: Stories from the Katrina Narrative Project: Vols. I & II edited by Rebeca Antoine (compilation)
*Participating booksellers:
The Afro-American Book Stop (7056 Read Blvd., 243-2436)
Faubourg Marigny Art & Books (600 Frenchmen St., 947-3700; www.fabonfrenchmen.com)
Faulkner House Books (624 Pirates Alley, 524-2940; www.faulknerhouse.net)
Garden District Book Shop (The Rink, 2727 Prytania St., 895-2266; www.gardendistrictbookshop.com)
Maple Street Book Shop (7529 Maple St., 861-2105; www.maplestreetbookshop.com)
McKeown's Books and Difficult Music (4737 Tchoupitoulas St., 895-1954; www.mckeownsbooks.com)
Octavia Books (513 Octavia St., 899-7323; www.octaviabooks.com)
Comments (1)
Showing 1-1 of 1
