Blue Weeds: The Alchemy of a Cajun Childhood, Hardcover

Some say a child is fortunate to grow up in a community with eccentric characters and plenty of opportunities to explore nature. Fran ois Meaux hit the jackpot. Born in southern Louisiana in a small town surrounded by rice fields, groves of moss-draped oaks, and the Gulf of Mexico, Frank soon learned to embrace the earthy, mysterious aspects of the Acadian region. In a colorful memoir, Frank details what it was like to grow up Cajun as a cotton-topped, intensely curious boy on a journey to manhood within a unique culture. His stories highlight his young life as he witnessed delights and difficulties, encountered the joyous and terrifying unknown, wondered about the unseen, and sought explanations for the unexplained. As his path led him through one experience after the other, Frank reflects on how the Cajun land and its inhabitants, like life itself, became nourishing yet mysterious, fertile yet frightening. Included are lagniappes that provide perspective as Frank looks back on his childhood and shares lessons learned as well as questions that remain unanswered. Blue Weeds is a coming-of-age memoir that creatively weaves a boy's experiences in southern Louisiana with the natural wonders, cultural uniqueness, love, and violence that surrounded the region.