Record Display for the EPA National Library Catalog

RECORD NUMBER: 5 OF 21

Main Title Bayou farewell : the rich life and tragic death of Louisiana's Cajun coast /
Author Tidwell, Mike,
Publisher Vintage Books,
Year Published 2004
OCLC Number 57303633
ISBN 0375725172; 9780375725173
Subjects Gulf Coast (La)--Description and travel ; Gulf Coast (La)--Environmental conditions ; Coast changes--Louisiana--Gulf Coast ; Bayous--Louisiana--Gulf Region ; Gulf Coast (La)--Social life and customs ; Cajuns--Louisiana--Gulf Coast--Social life and customs ; Gulf Region (La)--Description and travel ; Gulf Region (La)--Environmental conditions ; Gulf Region (La)--Social life and customs ; Cajuns--Social life and customs ; Ecology ; Manners and customs
Additional Subjects Tidwell, Mike--Travel--Louisiana--Gulf Region
Holdings
Library Call Number Additional Info Location Last
Modified
Checkout
Status
EMBM  F377.G9T54 2004 NRMRL/GWERD Library/Ada,OK 03/15/2006
Edition 1st Vintage Departures ed.
Collation xii, 348 pages : illustrations ; 21 cm.
Notes
Includes index.
Contents Notes
Mike Tidwell knew nothing of the disappearing bayou country when he first visited the Cajun coast of Louisiana, but the evidence was all around him: the skeletons of oak trees killed by the salinity of the groundwater, whole cemeteries sinking into swampland and out of sight, telephone poles in deep, standing water. Thanks to human hands, the storied Louisiana coast was eroding, subsiding, and joining the Gulf of Mexico - making it the fastest disappearing landmass on Earth. Yet no one seemed to know how to talk about the problem. Tidwell, a celebrated travel and environmental writer, decided to begin the much-needed conversation, and this vivid, elegiac book is the result. Tidwell introduces us to the surprisingly varied population of the area: the Cajun men and women who work the seasonal shrimp harvest, the Vietnamese fishermen, the Houma Indians driven to the farthest ends of the bayou by the first European settlers. He describes the food, the music, the culture, and the life of all those who live along the bayous. And under his keenly observant eye, the bayou itself becomes a compelling character - reminding us of how much we stand to lose if we fail to address the problems facing this most vibrant of places. - Publisher.