A view of the Delta and the dogs that live there.

An interesting book we've added to our collection recently is Delta Dogs - a series of photographs by Maude Schuyler Clay, which includes an introduction by Brad Watson and an essay by Beth Ann Fennelly.

But the stars are the combination of the dogs and their surroundings. All the photographs are in sepia tones, showing dogs of nearly every size and shape in fields, by the side of the road, playing in the water and various other doggie activities.  Each of the photographs has a small notation about where the image came from, some very general like 'Field Dogs, Mississippi Delta' and some very specific as 'Dog under the Burrus House, near Benoit'.

The photographer was born in Greenwood, Mississippi and her works are part of the collections of several museums including the Museum of Modern Art.

     Eat Drink Delta by Susan Puckett is a hungry traveler’s journey through the soul of the South.  According to Matt Lee and Ted Lee, authors of The Lee Bros. Simple Fresh Southern Cookbook,  “Finally!  A book devoted entirely to the foodways of Mississippi’s Delta—cradle of the civil rights movement, birthplace of the blues, and a confounding culinary region where stuffed grape leaves cozy up to barbecue, tamales to fried green tomatoes, and kibbeh to lemon ice box pie.  Puckett makes sense of it all—town, by town, kitchen by kitchen, dish by dish—in an engaging travelogue that takes the reader to family-run roadhouses, seasonal tea rooms, postmodern bistros, and out-of-the-way juke joints.  In her sojourns, Puckett charmed the best recipes out of the region’s cooks, making this not only the best insider’s guide to the area but a superb Delta cookbook as well.”

     With colorful photos and interesting writing, this is a great book for an armchair traveler.  And since some of the places mentioned are relatively close, I’d have paper and pen handy to make a list so I can get out of that armchair and give them a try.  There is a chapter on Vicksburg covering the city’s favorites along with some recipes.  Alas, the recipe for the glazed carrots they make at Walnut Hills is not included.   Is your favorite listed?  Check it out and see.

A Great Mississippi Author

I don’t know about you, but I love a good mystery. Yesterday at Lorelei Books, Carolyn Haines, author of the “Bones” series set in the Mississippi Delta, signed copies of her latest book, Wishbones. Carolyn was born and raised in Mississippi and now lives in Alabama. Her books featuring Sarah Booth Delaney are a delight. If you have not discovered this series, you might want to check it out. Here is a list of the titles in the series: Them Bones, Buried Bones, Splintered Bones, Crossed Bones, Hallowed Bones, Bones to Pick, Ham Bones, and Wishbones. Carolyn also writes stand-alone novels. Come by the library and check out some of her books. Use this link to our on-line catalog to check the availability of these titles http://catalog.warren.lib.ms.us