Where
the Blue Herons Dance
New Tales from the Gulf Coast
by Paul Estronza La Violette
Illustrated by Patricia Rigney
165 pp
$19.95 Hardback with Dust Jacket
© 2001 by Paul Estronza La Violette
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Reviewers:
The Sea Coast Echo
The Sun Herald
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La Violette's 'Herons' combines science, poetry, intimate knowledge of the area.
| The Sea Coast Echo |
Reviewed Thursday, September 20, 2001 |
Waveland oceanographer and author Paul La Violette has published
his third collection of vignettes about the Coast with
"Where the Blue Herons Dance."
One doesn't usually expect poetry from a scientist, but that's what you get with his expressive words describing the beaches, the birds, the fish and the natural beauty of this area.
La Violette takes time to observe what any of us only see - study the mysteries of summer thunderstorms , the mating dances of herons, the joys of a fine meal, the pure fun that dogs and cats find in daily life.
Some of the tales in his new book are rewritten and re-edited from columns in The Sea Coast Echo, but many of them are new.
La Violette's books are perfect for a read in a hammock, on a beach or while waiting for a doctors or a dental appointment.
Browse the table of contents and pick out an intriguing title: "Dust Bunnies," "Two Eggs Over Easy With Toast on the Side," "Death of a Grebe."
This reader particularly enjoyed "Call Me Mister," since I was enchanted, when I moved to the South, to learn that children here are taught to combine respect and friendliness by calling people "Mr. Paul" or "Miz Nan."
I also enjoyed "Inside a House on Easterbrook," about La Violette's visit with Celestine Labat whose family has been a mainstay in the history and development of Bay St. Louis and it's environs.
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Waveland writer pens more fine tales.
| Sun Herald |
Reviewed Sunday,
September 16, 2001 |
In "Where the Blue Herons Dance," Waveland writer Paul Estronza La Violette continues the vignettes that readers enjoyed in his two earlier non-scientific publications.
Some of the tales in his new book began as Sunday columns in The Sea Coast Echo but have been re-edited for the book, others are new.
La Violette writes about the things that make up the weft and warp of the life on the Coast: heat and humidity, rainstorms, walks on the sand beaches, flora and fauna, and, of course food.
As in "Views from a Front Porch" and "Waiting for the White Pelicans," "Where the Blue Herons Dance" is a smorgasbord of La Violette's keen observations, most about the simple pleasures that enrich our lives.
Here is an excerpt for instance:
"... the first heron to walk stiffly about, its wings expanded in a sort of akimbo spread, its head and long bill pointed to the sky. Each step it took was almost as if it were a study in slow motion, an agonizing lifting of the leg and the slow almost hesitating placement of it again in the mud.
The second bird stopped its phony pose of indifference and started a similar walk, puffing out its wings and sticking its own dagger like bill. In moments, the two birds had formed a duet, strutting with an elaborate, almost exquisite slowness, apart yet together, in a stylized territorial dance."
La Violette's books are perfect for browsing. Turn to the table of contents and pick a title that intrigues you: "Two Eggs Over Easy with Toast on the Side" (La Violette's musings as he sits on the porch before a Sunday breakfast), "Dust Bunnies" (efforts to brush Holly the cat), "Red Roses and Other Delights" (turning 71 and looking forward).
Bay St. Louis artist Patricia Rigney's wonderful illustrations are sprinkled liberally throughout the book. I doubt that I'd be the only reader who is tempted to cut off the full-color cover art to frame it.
La Violette has been an oceanographer for more than 40 years with the government and Mississippi State University. He has done marine research aboard aircraft and ships in almost all the world's oceans. He now has his own consulting company.
There's a secret to his books, too. "I have tried to write each story so that it may be easily read aloud to another person. I hope (readers) will try this," he said. "You'll find both you and the person you read it to will enjoy what I've written a little bit more."
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