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The House on First Street: My New Orleans Story

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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.

The most important things. -
Ms. Reed tells an interesting and very personal story about life before, during, and after Katrina, and I loved it. She's an entertaining storyteller, and has a lot of inside info on the New Orleans political and social scene -- plus, she's an obsessive foodie with good taste and an even hand. She lives large, but can also say to herself, "Get over it; it's just a rug."). I enjoyed reading about her parents and can appreciate her mother's (rhetorical) question, as the floodwaters were rising, about whether or not 11 a.m. was too early to start pouring wine.
This memoir is at times hilarious, and at times heart-breaking, which makes for a great read. Ultimately, it is about the most important things in life: family, friends, and food, and their presence (real or in spirit) through good times and bad.

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memories generated -
As a former resident of New Orleans I was intrigued by this book. While living there, my husband and I renovated a house damaged by a previous hurricane, so I could identify with many of the problems Julia Reed faced. I think we would have had to abandon ship after as many setbacks as she had. However, she seems to have had a much bigger bankroll than we had. She is witty, smart, and certainly tenacious. Her references to local restaurants and people were particularly enjoyable because most of them were so familiar to me. I'm not sure how much they would mean to one who had never lived there.

Five Stars Minus Two -
This is an entertaining book that includes a lot about one of my favorite cities. In some ways, it's even interesting to see Hurricane Katrina from a different perspective since most of what we've seen is from the point of view of the unfortunate citizens of New Orleans. However, there are lines you just don't cross when writing about a disaster that caused so much suffering. While Ms Reed gives us an informative peek of the city before and after the hurricane, much of that is overshadowed by her outrageous degree of pomposity. I believe the average reader would have understood that she is one of the privileged few without her self-serving passages about herself, her mother & father, her husband and so forth. We get it, Julia; you are a liberal and you think you do a lot for those not in your class. We appreciate that; but true philanthropists rarely brag about their efforts.

From Manhattan to New Orleans -
I have enjoyed Julia Reed's writing in Vogue magazine for years--yes, some people do buy it for the articles-- and was curious to see if this book was up to snuff. Indeed, it is. Reed paints wonderful, poignant pictures of the life she built for herself in New Orleans, and makes the best case I've seen for why we need to rebuild after Katrina. This book is to New Orleans what Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil is to Savannah squared, because New Orleans needs all the help she can get right now!

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Extremely funny - delicious read - offbeat and wonderful. -
I thought this book was quite funny and very entertaining. I have read the other reviews and obviously their are many different views and walks of the city but Ms. Reed pokes fun at herself as much as she does others so I think people are taking her remarks far too seriously. I loved the back ground on the people and history of the city.