UL Press title about Louisiana decoy carvers lands literary award

Published

A title published by the University of Louisiana at Lafayette Press was honored in the recent Foreword INDIES Book of the Year Awards competition.

“A Legacy Preserved: Contemporary Louisiana Decoy Carvers,” by Harvey J. Lewis, earned a silver medal in the Crafts and Hobbies category. The book documents the artistry and skill of Louisiana’s wildfowl decoy carvers.

Medalists were announced Saturday during the American Library Association annual conference in Chicago.

Librarians and booksellers selected medal winners in a range of categories for books that were published in 2016.

Five other titles published by the University press were finalists for 19th annual book award competition.

  • “Ghost of Good Times: South Louisiana Dance Halls Past and Present,” by Herman Fuselier and Philip Gould, in the Photography category, examines vanishing venues and the modern dance hall scene.
  • “The Land South of the Clouds,” by Genaro Kỳ Lý Smith, in the General category, is a novel that explores the childhood of a half-black, half-Vietnamese, 10-year-old in Los Angeles in years after the Vietnam War.
  • “Madame Grand Doigt,” by Yvette Landry, with illustrations by Cullen Bernard, in the Children’s category, is a spine-chilling tale that is steeped in Cajun tradition.
  • “Martha Wright Ambrose (1914-2000): The Rediscovery of a Southern Regional Artist,” by Roulhac Toledano and Scott Veazey, in the Art category, details the artist’s life and work, and the discovery of a trove of forgotten paintings.

The award competition is sponsored by Foreword Reviews. It is the only review magazine solely dedicated to reviewing titles by small, independent and university presses.

Learn more about the awards at: https://awards.forewordreviews.com/finalists/2016/

UL Press is part of the University's Center for Louisiana Studies. Learn more about the press at www.ulpress.org