The Gulf Coast A Literary Field Guide

by St. Antoine, Sara; Nicholson, Trudy; Mirocha, Paul

• ISBN13: 9781571316653
• ISBN10: 1571316655
• Edition: Reprint
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2006-06-26
• Publisher: Milkweed Editions

Summary

Written especially for families (with children ages 9 and up), this collection of stories, poems, and essays explores what makes the Gulf Coast region distinct, both culturally and environmentally. Four sections cover adventures (scalloping and hurricanes, for example); great places (swamps, bayous, lakes, and beaches); reapers and sowers (from cotton farmers to berry pickers); and wild lives (focusing on alligators, egrets, manatees, and other creatures). Featuring Choctaw legends and songs from the cotton fields, this book evokes the literature, history, geography, ecology, and society of one of America’s treasured regions.

Table of Contents

An Invitation	xi
Adventures
"A Creature in the Bay of St. Louis," a story by Barry Hannah
Bay St. Louis, Mississippi	5	(8)
"The Midnight Marsh," a poem by Kelly King Alexander
Alligator Bayou, Louisiana	13	(2)
"The Flood," an excerpt from Their Eyes Were Watching God by Zora Neale Hurston
Belle Glade, Florida	15	(15)
"Vacant Lot," a poem by Raymond E. Williams
Port Arthur, Texas	30	(2)
"Lost in the Swamp," an essay by John Muir
western Florida	32	(6)
"Scalloping," an essay by Andreanna Edwards
Port St. Joe, Florida	38	(4)
"Southern Winter," a poem by Christa Pandey
Tuscaloosa, Alabama	42	(1)
"Searching for Ed Palmer," a story by Rob Kerr
Houston and Galveston, Texas	43	(14)
Great Places
"Crazy," a poem by Angela Johnson
Shorter, Alabama	57	(2)
"The Singing River," a story by Sylvia B. Williams
Pascagoula, Mississippi	59	(4)
"Into the Bayous," a poem by Norbert Krapf
Atchafalaya Basin, Louisiana	63	(2)
"The Lure of the Swamp," an essay by John Cutrone
Corkscrew Swamp, Florida	65	(3)
"Still Weather," a poem by Carol Munn
Houston, Texas	68	(1)
"Where the Wild Animals Is Plentiful," journal entries by May Jordan
Washington County, Alabama	69	(8)
"Rockefeller Wildlife Preserve: Mid-August," a poem by Kevin Maher
Grand Chenier, Louisiana	77	(2)
"Buried Christmas Tree," a story by Mary Dodson Wade
Surfside, Texas	79	(8)
"Florida Haiku," poems by Mary Beth Lundgren
Cape Coral Florida	87	(1)
"Winter Texans in Aransas," an essay by Virginia E. Parker-Staat
Aransas National Wildlife Refuge, Texas	88	(9)
Reapers and Sowers
"My First Dog," a story by I.C. Eason
Neches River Bottom, Texas	97	(9)
"Port O'Connor 9/1/99," a poem by Jerry Wermund
Port O'Connor,: Texas	106	(2)
"Remembering Bull Run Road," an essay by Shellie Rushing Tomlinson
Melbourne Community, Louisiana	108	(10)
"Mollie Tree," a poem by Reese Danley-Kilgo
Geneva County, Alabama	118	(2)
"The Alligator and the Hunter," a Choctaw story by Joseph Bruchac
Mississippi	120	(4)
"Cleaning Redfish with Uncle," a poem by Tack B. Bedell
Houma, Louisiana	124	(2)
"Jewels of the Night," a poem by SuzAnne C. Cole
Houston, Texas	126	(1)
"The Soul of Southern Cooking," an essay by Kathy Starr
Hollandale, Mississippi	127	(9)
"My Mother Returns to Calaboz," a poem by Margo Tamez
El Calaboz, Texas	136	(3)
"Fig Picking," a story by Cassandra King
Bay Minette, Alabama	139	(16)
"Public School," a poem by Abe Louise Young
southeastern Louisiana	155	(4)
Wild Lives
"Crows in the Yard," a poem by Katrinka Moore
Friendswood, Texas	159	(2)
"Mosquito Blues," an essay by Dorothy Shawhan
Mississippi	161	(5)
"Why Alligator Hates Dog," a Cajun story by J.J. Reneaux
Louisiana	166	(4)
"The Season ofJellyfish," a poem by Stuart Dybek
Cudjoe Key, Florida	170	(1)
"Kenzie's Plunge into Paradise," a story by Bonnie J. Doerr
Big Pine Key, Florida	171	(11)
"The Softshell Turtle," a poem by Steve Wilson
San Marcos, Texas	182	(2)
"The Ivory-Billed Woodpecker," an essay by John James Audubon
Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama	184	(6)
"Eulogy for a Hermit Crab," a poem by Pattiann Rogers
Galveston, Texas	190	(2)
"Swimming with Mermaids," an essay by Charles Bergman
Crystal River, Florida	192	(5)
"Alligator Crossing," an excerpt from the novel by Marjory Stoneman Douglas
Everglades National Park, Florida	197	(4)
"Migration Midpoint: What We Can See from Here," a poem by David Williams
Port Lavaca, Texas	201	(2)
"The Dead Shark," an essay by Ziporah Hildebrandt
Anna Maria Island, Florida	203	(5)
"Manatee," a poem by Jill Barrie
Fort Myers, Florida	208	(1)
"Alabama Dreaming," an essay by Edward O. Wilson
Brewton, Alabama	209
Appendixes: Ecology of the Gulf Coast
What Is an Ecoregion?	223	(3)
Defining the Gulf Coast	226	(2)
Habitats	228	(7)
Animals and Plants	235	(3)
Stories by State	238	(3)
Parks and Preserves	241	(4)
Recommended Reading	245