Tuesday, February 16, 2021

Top Ten Tuesday: New Orleans or bust!

 

Welcome to this week's edition of Top Ten Tuesday which is hosted by That Artsy Reader Girl. This week's theme is Purple, Green and Gold in honour of Mardi Gras which is today.



Whilst I am pretty sure I can do purple, green  and gold books pretty easily, but I thought I would twist it the topic a little bit. The last time I visited the US we visited New Orleans. Because we aren't going anywhere any time soon, I thought I would revisit some places that we have visited over the last few years on our US holidays, a couple with books associated!




The main reason for starting our 2018 trip in New Orleans was to catch up with some friends who I originally met through Sara Donati's author forum. Her book, Queen of Swords, was set against the background of the Battle of New Orleans. We were able to visit a few of the places she visited when researching for the book which was fun.



Other books I have read set in New Orleans include the Sherrilyn Kenyon series. I used to read these books a lot but I can't remember the last time I read a  paranormal romance.Back in the day, I didn't read a lot of contemporary romance but did read a bit of paranormal romance. Now it's the other way around.


During our visit to New Orleans we did visit one of the famous cemeteries where the books referenced included Interview with a Vampire, and A Confederacy of Dunces got a mention too during our time there. I haven't read either of these though.



In 2017 we visited New York. Of course there are tons of books set in New York, but I thought I would focus on two historical novels. One of these is from the follow up series to the Into the Wilderness series about the next generations. It was such a good read. 



The other series that I wanted to mention was Beverly Swerling's Old New York series which is set in the early days of colonisation.




Of course, there are many, many contemporary novels set in New York too. The latest one I read was The Prenup by Lauren Layne which was so much fun and then there is the futuristic New York as portrayed in the J D Robb In Death series.




The reason why we visited the US both in 2017 and 2019 is that my son was at college playing basketball in a place called Concordia in Kansas. Whilst I am sure that there aren't many books set in the town, there is a museum called the National Orphan Train Complex, which tells the story of the orphans who were taken from the East Coast to the midwest. The town is filled with statues telling stories of the children who rode the train. This book, The Orphan Train wasn't set in the town but the connection to the story that the museum is trying to preserve is obvious



Of course it's hard to talk about Kansas without thinking about The Wizard of Oz!



Other places that we visited on those two trips to see my son included Wichita, Tuscon, Nashville, Memphis, Tulsa, and Kansas City (twice) .



We also went on a Carribean cruise that docked in Honduras (where we officially got engaged), Belize and Mexico so in honour of that I am posting one of the James Michener  books I used to read back in the 80s and 90s.



28 comments:

  1. That is a long way to go for college but presumably he earned an athletic scholarship? I am a big college basketball fan but have not seen Concordia play.

    I have never got into Anne Rice (although recall seeing her house when I visited New Orleans) or A Confederacy of Dunces. If you ever have time, several of Frances Parkinson Keyes' books are set there and would give you a better sense of its history. Her home is now a museum that I recommend people visit if they can tear themselves away from the beignets!

    I own that Beverly Swerling but I don't think I have ever read it. I really liked the first Sara Donati, Into the Wilderness, but found The Gilded Age a little disappointing. I realize it is part of a series but it left me unsatisfied. I never expected to like the Naked in Death series but I do - although I'll never catch up!

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    1. I enjoyed The Gilded Hours but I did wonder about how it seemed to finish mid story.

      Yes, my son had a basketball scholarship.

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  2. Nice selection. I particularly like the Donati ones.

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  3. Love you take on this week's topic! So fun :) Here's my TTT post:

    https://collettaskitchensink.blogspot.com/2021/02/top-ten-purple-yellow-and-green-covers.html

    Colletta

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  4. Oops! I focused on Mardi Gras and New Orleans rather than on the green, gold, and yellow colors. Oh well, I hope it still works.

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    1. I focussed on New Orleans and other places I have visited instead of green gold and yellow colours!

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  5. Lovely memories! I must see if I can find the Orphan Train, thanks for the recommendations.

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  6. It sounds like you had a nice trip to New Orleans. I went there on a family vacation once as a kid!

    My post: https://lydiaschoch.com/top-ten-tuesday-books-about-mardi-gras/

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  7. I love OZ, I definitely need to reread that story at some point :D Happy reading :D Here's my TTT if you want to have a look https://readwithstefani.com/books-with-green-covers/

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  8. Such a fun twist on the topic, love that you connected these books to memories!

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  9. Nice take on this week's topic! I love Interview with the Vampire. Here is my Top Ten Tuesday. Thank you!

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  10. I've only read The Prenup from your list (and maybe Naked in Death if that's the first one because there's so many I do not remember) but I've always been curious about Sara Donati.

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  11. Love your twist on the topic this week! It's so cool! :)

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  12. Nice! I love caribbean! :)

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    1. I would like to be in the caribbean now!

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  13. You've been all over the place! How fun. My daughter is at U of A in Tucson, so we visit there frequently. It's only a two hour drive away, thank goodness. I don't know if I could handle her going to school in a different country!

    Happy TTT (on a Wednesday)!

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    1. My son living overseas definitely had it's difficult moments, but it also gave us the opportunity to go and visit him! I really like Tuscon as a place. We did an awesome foodie tour there.

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  14. Great twist on this week's topic! One of these days I really want to give Anne Rice's work a try.

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    1. Thanks Jess! I haven't read her yet either!

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