Smiley and Friends

About the Book

South Louisiana (New Orleans, Baton Rouge, Lafayette, etc.) has been called an alternate universe, and it's hard to argue with that characterization. A rowdy port city, a capital city that gets rowdy during legislative sessions, and the gateway to Cajun country, where rowdiness is a way of life: these three cities and the unique land and water around them abound with stories. And for more than 40 years, Smiley Anders, columnist for The Advocate newspapers, has been putting his special spin on life "down there." His daily items columns bring laughter to his devoted readers, with Cajun jokes and assorted "groaners." They can also bring tears -- this collection of column items from 2001-2010 include stories dealing with 9/11 and Hurricane Katrina. Welcome to south Louisiana, the world of Smiley and his rowdy friends.

About the Author

Smiley Anders, after a 19-year career in business journalism, began writing a six-days-a-week items column for The Morning Advocate in 1979. The Baton Rouge-based newspaper, now The Advocate, covers in its three editions Baton Rouge, New Orleans and Acadiana. Smiley, who holds B.A. and M.A. degrees in journalism from LSU, is in the Hall of Fame of LSU's Manship School of Mass Communications. His columns won the Herb Caen Award (first place in the items category) in the National Society of Newspaper Columnists's annual contest on five occasions. His columns are a mix of light-hearted stories from his readers and his personal observations on everything from Louisiana politics to the joys of crawfish bisque. Smiley lives in Baton Rouge with his wife, "Lady Katherine," but considers all of south Louisiana his personal playground.