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Bayoubro.com/the ken wells books page |
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Ken’s classic debut novel ten years in print! |
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“I highly recommend this (burrrrp) book.” —Dave Barry |
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New! Diary of a storyteller…Read Ken’s account of his evolution as a writer in the current issue of Mayborn magazine. |
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Publicity Brenda King, Yale University Press 203-432-0917 Brenda.King@Yale.edu Hear Ken and the Pirates on the radio: NPR’s All Things Considered Podcasts: The Book Report See Ken’s Good Pirates photos on Facebook… |
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More praise for “The Good Pirates”... “Adventure storytelling of the first order.” —Steve Weinberg, The Atlanta Journal Constitution A scene with a “breathtaking cliffhanger” and “stories of the survivors that are unforgettable.” —Carolyn Kellogg, The Los Angeles Times “Exciting, ghastly, emotionally moving...Not only relevant but a terrific read.” —William J. Cobb, the Dallas Morning News “A harrowing, gripping narrative that embodies the best of nonfiction writing...Everyone should read it.” —Greg Langley, The Baton Rouge Morning Advocate “Wells takes us into the heart of the storm and lets us know what it’s like first-hand to struggle to stay alive. ...Wonderful….unforgettable” —The Monroe (La.) News Star “Literary journalism at its best.” —Don Ranly, University of Missouri School of Journalism “An adventure yarn suffused with admiration for the brave people at its core...Wells has done a great service in sharing their stories of endurance and recovery in this highly readable book.” —John Sledge, The Mobile (Ala.) Press Register “A vivid re-creation of Hurricane Katrina’s impact on an unusual fishing community outside New Orleans.” —Kirkus Reviews “A signal contribution to the expanding bibliography of the Hurricane Katrina disaster.” —Booklist This book “dramatizes the danger and dislocation as well as any I have read.” —Harvey Jackson, The Anniston (Ala.) Star |
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Slashing winds, buzz-saw rain, hit-and-run tornadoes—and the real scary stuff is yet to come…
With a long and colorful family history of defying storms, the seafaring Robin cousins of St. Bernard Parish, La., make a fateful decision to ride out Hurricane Katrina on their hand-built fishing boats in a sheltered Civil War-era harbor called Violet Canal. But when Katrina springs some cruel surprises, Violet is overrun by killer surges--and the Robins must summon all their courage and seamanship to save themselves and scores of others suddenly cast into their care. Louisiana native Wells provides a close up look at the harrowing landfall of the storm and the calamitous 72 hours afterwards in a forgotten New Orleans backwater populated by the descendants of pirates, Cajuns and Spanish pioneers. Wells then follows his characters for more than two years as they try to reclaim their lives and livelihoods in the battered but beloved low-country that has nourished their singular American culture for centuries--a place and culture whose survival is far from guaranteed. |
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About The Good Pirates of the Forgotten Bayous Winner in September 2009 of the Harry Chapin Award |
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About the author…. Literary representation... |
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Last updated June 2010. |
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Other books by Ken Wells... |
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New! Coming September 28, 2010 from Ken Wells and Knopf-Random House...An uncommon adventure story of the unbreakable bond between a dog and his boy set in the bayous of South Louisiana... |
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Cover art by George Rodrigue |
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Wells was awarded an honorary doctorate of letters from his alma mater, Nicholls State University, on December 12. Read an excerpt from his commencement speech.
Ken was inducted as a Louisiana Legend at a Louisiana Public Broadcasting banquet at the Old Capitol Building in Baton Rouge, La., on Thursday, April 30, 2009. Click here to see a video of the awards ceremonies, whose honorees also included football legend Terry Bradshaw. |
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Photo by Misty McElroy, Nicholls State University |
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Ken has been in the Gulf helping out on the coverage of the BP spill. Read his reportage here in Bloomberg Businessweek |
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Culture spill! To understand Cajun culture and learn what’s at stake in the BP oil spill, read Crawfish Mountain and The Good Pirates, Ken’s two prescient books about the Louisiana bayous and the people who inhabit them... |
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Crawfish Mountain, a novel—“Ken Wells is the Cajun Carl Hiaasen!”—Tom Wolfe |
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The Good Pirates—narrative nonfiction—“Adventure storytelling of the first order.” |
