Gumbo Ya-Ya

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Long considered the finest collection of Louisiana folktales and customs, this anthology of short stories from Lyle Saxon, Edward Dreyer, and Robert Tallant, chronicles the tales and legends that emerged from the bayou country more than seventy years ago. This anniversary edition contains the complete transcript of the original 1945 printing. On every page are new delights: garlic hangs from the rafters, the Loup Garou holds a convention on Bayou Goula, spiders dwell in haunted houses, and images of St. Rosalia are carried from church to church. All aspects of the bayou state's society are detailed in this wonderful album of Louisiana tradition. Even ghosts haunt the pages including the headless horseman of Natchitoches, and the whimsical apparition who startled citizens of Monroe.

Gumbo Ya-Ya is a charming look at the legends and practices of Louisiana. Originally written as part of the WPA's Louisiana Writers' Program, it has endured as a classic of its genre.
Lyle Saxon (1891-1946) ranks among Louisiana's most outstanding writers. During the 1920s and 1930s he was the central figure in the region's literary community, and was widely known as a raconteur and bon vivant. Once known as "Mr. New Orleans" or the "dean of New Orleans writers," Saxon published scores of articles and short stories for the Times-Picayune, four books of creative nonfiction, and one novel. During his brief but productive literary career, Saxon also directed the Louisiana branch of the Federal Writers' Project, a New Deal program overseen by the Works Projects Administration (WPA). A longtime resident of the French Quarter, Saxon advocated the preservation of the neighborhood's historic homes and encouraged other writers and artists to live, work, and/or visit the community, helping to spark a renaissance in the area.

Edward Dreyer was the assistant state director of the Louisiana Writer's Project under the Louisiana State Library and the WPA program. As a young man in the 1940's, he worked to collect folk tales from around Louisiana.

Robert Tallant was one of Louisiana's best-known twentieth century authors. Born in New Orleans in 1909, he attended the city's local public schools. Before becoming a literary writer, Tallant worked as an advertising copywriter, a bank teller, and a clerk. It was his friendship with Lyle Saxon that led Tallant to his position as editor on the Louisiana WPA Writers' Project during the 1930s and 1940s. In that position, he co-authored Gumbo Ya-Ya: Folk Tales of Louisiana with Lyle Saxon and Edward Dreyer. By 1948, Tallant's career had launched, and over the next eleven years he produced eight novels, six full-length works of nonfiction, and numerous short stories and articles on subjects of local interest. During the last years of his life, he was a lecturer in English at Newcomb College as well as a reporter for the New Orleans Item. Tallant died in 1957.
Publisher ‏ : ‎ Pelican; first edition (November 2, 2015)

Language ‏ : ‎ English

Paperback ‏ : ‎ 585 pages / black and white

ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-1941879054

Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 1.95 pounds

Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 5.8 x 1.5 x 9 inches

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Gumbo Ya-Ya

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