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The House on First Street: My New Orleans Story by: Julia Reed List Price: $23.95 City Travel Guides Price: $16.29 You Save: $7.66 (32%)Prices subject to change. |
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Binding: Hardcover Dewey Decimal Number: 917.63350463 EAN: 9780061136641 ISBN: 0061136646 Label: Ecco Manufacturer: Ecco Number Of Items: 1 Number Of Pages: 208 Publication Date: July 01, 2008 Publisher: Ecco Release Date: June 24, 2008 Studio: Ecco Sales Rank: 17230 Related Items:
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Editorial Review: Product Description: Julia Reed went to New Orleans in 1991 to cover the reelection of former (and currently incarcerated) governor Edwin Edwards. Seduced by the city's sauntering pace, its rich flavors and exotic atmosphere, she was never entirely able to leave again. After almost fifteen years of living like a vagabond on her reporter's schedule, she got married and bought a house in the historic Garden District. Four weeks after she moved in, Hurricane Katrina struck. With her house as the center of her own personal storm as well as the ever-evolving stage set for her new life as an upstanding citizen, Reed traces the fates of all who enter to wine, dine (at her table for twenty-four), tear down walls, install fixtures, throw fits and generally leave their mark on the house on First Street. There's Antoine, Reed's beloved homeless handyman with an unfortunate habit of landing in jail; JoAnn Clevenger, the Auntie Mame—like restaurateur who got her start mixing drinks for Dizzy Gillespie and selling flowers from a cart; Eddie, the supremely laid-back contractor with Hollywood ambitions; and, with the arrival of Katrina, the boys from the Oklahoma National Guard, fleets of door-kicking animal rescuers and the self-appointed (and occasionally naked) neighborhood watchman. Finally, there's the literally clueless detective who investigates the robbery in which the first draft of this book was stolen. Through it all, Reed discovers there really is no place like home. Rich with sumptuous details and with the author's trademark humor well in the fore, The House on First Street is the chronicle of a remarkable and often hilarious homecoming, as well as a thoroughly original tribute to our country's most original city. Customer Reviews
Average Rating:
 Rating:  - Green & BlueI admit it, this book made me green with envy. Like the author and many others, I've always been drawn to New Orleans and have dreamed of living there for years. At the same time this book will make you blue at the damage done by hurricane Katrina to this lovely, complicated city and sadly, blue over the future of our beloved New Orleans. The author definiely entertains with her story of how she ended up in New Orleans. I loved reading about so many familiar places and characters and also could relate to her home remodeling nightmare. What is humorous in hindsight, can be awful to experience, and remodeling in New Orleans is doubly difficult. Kudos to her loyalty to the city, her spirit and her hope for a better future. I hope we read more from ... Read More: Rating:  - Southern Storms,et alThe book and story in themselves are completely entertaining and informative. The reader realizes a much better understanding of some of the events and aftermath of Katrina. Also the life and times of Ms. Reed are there for all to enjoy. I read the review in the Ny Times, purchased it from Amazon.com, and couldn't put it down. Rating: - A New Orleans story most would not relate to.I have visited New Orleans a number of times, both before and after Katrina, which certainly helped me to appreciate and understand a little of Julia Reed's references and locations within the city. Without this, I believe a reader would be pretty lost. Even with my knowledge, I found myself getting confused a few times, not about the locations, but because of her tendency to jump from one subject to some rather detailed thought or personal memory that had a vague connection in her mind. This, along with her constant, detailed recollections of dining and boozing, eventually became rather tedious and annoying to me by the end of the book. Those were the bad points, which did not entirely ruin my experience in reading her book. They just made ... Read More: Rating: - great bookBeing a native of N.O. and having moved away 20+ years ago it was great to re-connect Rating:  - I expected so much moreI enjoy memoirs. I enjoy history as well as current events. I thought I would love this book. I wanted to love this book. But, it fell short in so many ways. The beginning was promising-- before the storm. I enjoyed reading about Ms. Reed's trials and tribulations with her ne'er-do-well contractor. Having had my share of ne'er-do-well contractors parade through my own home, I found her descriptions of the experience and fury apt and hilarious. The tone and scope of the narrative changed as Ms. Reed described the preparations for and aftermath of Katrina. I read, appalled by what I was reading. Appalled by the decimation and disregard for a people and a way of life. I guess what I am getting at is ... Read More: |
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