153. Peter Melman, Part 1

153. Our interview with Pete Melman, Part 1. His novel Landsman has been called, "a stirring, evocative, and unforgettable epic novel of the Civil War in the tradition of Cold Mountain and Widow of the South. In the summer of 1853, in Lafayette City, Louisiana, eleven-year-old Elias Abrams loses his mother to yellow fever. Grief-stricken and alone, he becomes embroiled in the street life of New Orleans. After Elias is falsely accused of a crime and in order to escape arrest a decade later, he enlists as a private in the Third Louisiana Regiment, where three thousand other Jews will ultimately fight for the Confederacy.

1. This week in Louisiana history. April 23, 1831. Ponchartrain Railroad opened, first west of Alleghenies.
2. This week in New Orleans history. April 23, 1939, the Zephyr first whisked New Orleanians into the sky along its winding path around the Pontchartrain Beach.  Harry Jr. remembered, when he was a twelve year-old, "It was fantastic to get on top of the Zephyr and see nothing but cow pasture as far as you could see in Gentilly".
   
3. This week in Louisiana.
   Slidell Spring Antique Street Fair
   April 23rd, 2016 - April 24th, 2016
   Slidell Antique Street Fair
   Erlanger, First & Second Sts., Slidell, LA 70458
   985-641-6316
   Website
   Slidell Antique Street Fair
   Family fun at Slidell's Antique Street Fairs, April 23 & 24 and October 29 & 30, 2016. Erlanger, First & Second Sts. Olde Towne Slidell. Antiques, collectibles, furniture, jewelry, crystal, food & drink, live music.

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