The Shreveport area chapter of the largest "meeting and discussing" book club in the world

Red River Pulpwood Queens

Newsletter
By Carey Weeks August 31, 2010

August Book Selection: Zeitoun by Dave Eggers

Upcoming Events:
• 9-10/11-2010 Centenary
24th Annual Muses Book
Bazaar, Gold Dome on corner
of Woodlawn Ave. and Kings
Hwy, Shreveport. Free. 4-
9pm Fri, 9-4pm Sat.
• 9-11-2010 Book signing of
Historic Haunts of Shreveport by
Dr. Gary Joiner at the Broad-
moor Library, 1:00pm-3:00pm
• 9-28-2010 Book signing of
Ninth Ward by Jewell Parker
Rhodes. Barnes & Noble,
Baton Rouge.
• 10-2010 Book Signing of
Dracula In Love by Karen Es-
sex. Beauty and the Book,
Jefferson, TX. Time and date
TBA
• 10-16/17-2010 Texas Book
Festival, State Capital Building,
Austin, TX.
• 10-30-2010 Acadiana Book
Festival, Cite’ de Arts, down-
town Lafayette. Free. 8:00am-
5:00pm
Remembering Hurricane Katrina + 5
“The history of New
Orleans can't properly be
told without a healthy
dash of mythology, the
tallness of the city's
overall tale being a key
ingredient to its legen-
dary mystique. In the
five years since the big
storm it's been hard not
to notice that the
mythology part of it has
become mostly about
recovery -- which is fine,
because that also makes
it about faith, and faith
has healing properties.
Faith is what brought us
home. Faith is what fixed
the roof. Faith is how
we'll get past the current
tragedy in the Gulf, and
it's how we'll get through
whatever yet-to-be-
known calamities are
sure to follow.
But recovery? The word
feels good in my ear, the
sound of it nearly re-
deeming -- but it doesn't
entirely ring true. What
happened to us in the
summer of 2005 isn't
something you recover
from. It's something that
you stand up to if you're
able, and it's something
you may conspire to defy are, informed who we'll
be, and altered our per-
if you choose -- but you
never really recover ception of where we came
from. Pre-Katrina life has
from it. In the beginning
we dreamed of being become a thing of nostal-
whole again and so gia, like Elvis Presley and
sock hops, not quite real
marched blindly in the
anymore but ever-
direction of that dream,
never really knowing precious in our hearts.
how the story would re- Many years from now our
solve, or even if it could grandchildren will ask us
resolve. We're still on in wide-eyed wonder
that road and still can't about it all -- and we'll
say for sure where it will tell. And then we'll go on
take us, but we have to about our recovery even
believe it'll be someplace as the wetness of our
better. eyes contradicts the
words on our lips.”
The Katrina experience - excerpt from author Louis
was a rude thing that Maistros’ article Finally
dared to define each of unpacking boxes, feeling
us without our permis- at home, The Times
sion. It changed who we Picayune, August 19, 2010

Author Jewell Parker Rhodes Donates Book To RRPQ

Sept. Book Selection
Popular author Jewell Rhodes is best known for young readers book club
Parker Rhodes has sent her historical novels Al’s Book Club For Kids.
the Red River Pulpwood Voodoo Dreams, Magic
Queens an advanced City, and Douglas’ Jewell will be signing
reader's copy of her new Women. copies of Ninth Ward
young readers book Ninth on September 28,
Ward. Contact me to Ninth Ward has recently 2010 at the CitiPlace
“check out” this quick been selected by Today Court Barnes & Noble
read. Show’s Al Roker for his in Baton Rouge.
 B Y C A R E Y WE E K S R E D R I V E R P U LP WO O D Q U E E N S N E WS LE T T E R PAGE 2

Book News
A Confederacy of To Kill A Mockingbird Turns Anne Frank Tree Falls
Dunces is 30 years 50 The novel, which won the
old. 1961 Pulitzer Prize for fiction and A chestnut tree beloved by Holocaust
became an Academy Award-winning victim Anne Frank as she wrote her
Thirty years ago, a film starring Gregory Peck, has diary in hiding in the Netherlands
disheveled malcontent never been out of print. In fact, one fell down Monday, the Anne Frank
named Ignatius Reilly million copies are sold each year in House museum told CNN. The tree,
emerged from the depths 40 languages. The Library of Con- which was more than 150 years old, had
of Constantinople Street gress even has said that been diseased since 2005 and had a sup-
in Uptown New Orleans "Mockingbird" is second only to the port structure to help keep it upright.
to become a worldwide Bible as books most often cited as
literary sensation. But it fell early Monday afternoon,
making a difference.
Anne Frank House representative
Reilly is the protagonist Now at the age of 84, Lee still lives Maatje Mostart said. "It's a pity. It's an
of “A Confederacy of in Monroeville, Alabama, the town important tree," she said. "Anne Frank
Dunces: the novel that where she grew up in and the loca- looked down on it from her hiding
won a posthumous Pulit- tion upon which "To Kill a Mocking- place. It was the only piece of nature
zer Prize for its author, bird's" Maycomb was based. As de- she could see." "Something went wrong
John Kennedy Toole, and scribed in the first chapter, "it was a with the support," she added. "Happily
inspired panel discus- tired old town when I first knew it. it fell the right way. It didn't fall on the
sions, articles in learned In rainy weather, the streets turned secret annex or on a person, so that was
journals, blogs, and to red slop. Grass grew on the side- a relief for us." - cnn news
dramatic readings. walks. The courthouse sagged in the
–nola.com square." -abc news

Book Festival News!

The Texas Book Festival in Aus- Meacham (Roses), Claire Robin- The newly
tin has officially announced it’s son (Food Network), Robin formed Acadiana
star-studded line-up for this Oliviera (My Name Is Mary Book Festival in
year’s festival! Sutter), David Grann (The Lost Lafayette, LA
City of Z), Tom Grimes (Mentor: will be taking the
Some of the fantastic authors A Memoir) and more. Visit Louisiana Book
attending festival on October www.texasbookfestival.org for Festival’s place
16-17, 2010 are Laura Bush, Al- more information . this year on
ton Brown (Food Network Person- October 30. More
ality), Justin Cronin (The Pas- information
sage), Abraham Verghese to come!
(Cutting For Stone), Leila

August Literary Birthdays

• Dorothy Parker – Aug. 22, 1893 • Alfred Lord Tennyson – Aug. 6, Roots was published
(American poet & satirist) 1809 (Poet Laureate of the U.K.) in 37 languages and
Haley won a Special
• Ray Bradbury – Aug. 1920 • Alex Haley – Aug. 11, 1921 Award for the work
(fantasy, science fiction writer) (African-American writer) in 1977 from the
Pulitzer Board. The
• Herman Melville – Aug. 1, 1819 • Mary Shelley – Aug. 30, 1797
t.v. series reached
(American novelist, essayist) (novelist, short story writer)
130 million viewers.