“Betcha I can tell ya / Where ya / Got them shoooes. / Betchadollar, / Betchadollar, / Where ya / Got them shoooes. / Got your shoes on your ...
read full description
reviews
Jan 05, 2012
Patty
rated it: 
This was a fun, slight book that I decided I needed to read before my trip to New Orleans. I have enjoyed all the books I have read by Roy Blount, Jr. and this was no exception. Blount writes well, is funny and seemingly only writes about things that he has thought long and hard about. New Orleans has been part of his life for many years and he visits often.
The timing for this book could not have been worse. It was published in 2005 just before Katrina hit New Orleans. I kept wond More...
The timing for this book could not have been worse. It was published in 2005 just before Katrina hit New Orleans. I kept wond More...
Oct 09, 2011
Jeff
rated it: 
I've been on Roy Blount kick lately, rereading several of his books. I read this one when it came out in 2005, and I enjoyed it even more this time around. When it comes to New Orleans, I put myself in the same category as Blount - a frequent visitor over many years who loves the city and knows it pretty well. Feet on the Street might not satisfy natives of the Crescent City, but just about everythng rang true to me.
The book was written just before Katrina, and speculation about " More...
The book was written just before Katrina, and speculation about " More...
Jul 25, 2010
Phil
rated it: 
Beginning and ending, of course, with The River ("ending" being an operative word in this mid-2005 copyright, in that Roy muses about the imminent destruction of the city by Her Man), with everything from sweat to oysters (and more oyster) to strippers to jazz to characters in between, Roy Blount, Jr.'s brief but pungent travelogue is essential reading for any traveler headed for The Crescent City. And it's more than the author's patented but always surprising sly turns of phrase that
More...
Jul 22, 2011
Nicole
rated it:
At times I was very frustrated with Blount's style, though I was fascinated enough to stay with him. The section on orphans and oysters had me. Blount is a little more elaborate of a story-teller than I'm used to. About the second to last chapter, in which he describes a first (possibly only) encounter with a male friend's advances, I was convinced that Blount is an honest, unpretentious, and insightful writer whose work I will need to read more of to challenge my conventional reading choices
More...
Nov 27, 2010
Mary
rated it:
"Feet on the Street" is a eery read - because it was written before Hurricane Katrina - but references what is going to happen to New Orleans - after "The Big One". I am pretty much a New Orleans book connoisseur, and although it is a fun read, I can recommend better books about my favorite place in the whole world. That being said, Roy Blunt Jr is pretty funny and after getting groped by the TSA, this would make a good airplane read.
Mar 11, 2011
Simone
rated it:
A great little book about New Orleans. I know Roy Blount Junior mainly from listening to "Wait Wait, Don't Tell Me." So this was fun to read with a good sense of his voice in my head. If I were doing my New Orleans reading again, or recommending some to other people, this is the book I would start with. It's a slim easy read, that covers food, culture, history, architecture, music and people. A great over view.
Aug 22, 2011
Matt
rated it:
A generally strange book of reflections about New Orleans -- combination memoir and travel guide. Some chapters are great, and some very meandering. The last, longest chapter that includes reflections on friendship and sexuality from Blount's youth was quite intriguing.
Also, the book was written shortly before Katrina and throughout the book everyone keeps talking about their impending awareness of "the Big One." Knowing what was about to happen, it's eerie.
Also, the book was written shortly before Katrina and throughout the book everyone keeps talking about their impending awareness of "the Big One." Knowing what was about to happen, it's eerie.
Dec 31, 2009
Brian
rated it:
This was a part of All Things New Orleans week - finished Zeitoun, watched Princess and the Frog with the family(really good, but not great..but that's another review....) - then sat down and read this - quick read, certainly a "ramble", did make me want to go back to Bourbon Street.....
Apr 08, 2011
Oleg
rated it:
Listened to the audiobook of this charming memoir of Mr. Blount's jaunts in New Orleans. This having been my first experience with literature of the city, I found it captivating (especially people's names).
Jul 16, 2009
Jamie
rated it:
It was good, but I've read better books about NOLA. I would, howver, like to share some eerie, prophetic passages, as the book was published about 7 months before the levee failures.
"When the big hurricane hits-and it will, New Orleanians assure you, with what suffices locally for civic pride-the waters will finally rise over the shell and inundate the town, killing tens of thousands." p. 13
"Many New Orleanians, in what suffices locally for prudence, have More...
"When the big hurricane hits-and it will, New Orleanians assure you, with what suffices locally for civic pride-the waters will finally rise over the shell and inundate the town, killing tens of thousands." p. 13
"Many New Orleanians, in what suffices locally for prudence, have More...
Jul 01, 2009
Naomi
rated it:
Some exceptionally good insight into a trek through New Orleans. If these places remain in a post-Katrina New Orleans, then this book is a must-read for anyone journeying into this enigmatic melange of a city. Whether you plan to travel or not, this is a tasty text about the Big Easy.
Apr 02, 2008
Steve
rated it:
If you know a little about NOLA, this short, quirkly read has a lot to offer. While the author's style is a bit like listening to a grandfather tell what could be an incredibly hilarious and crazy tale...only he constantly interrupts himself to share not-so-interesting and/or not-so-coherent asides, there is plenty of New Orleans in there to keep you reading. And, at less than 150 pages, you are through it in no time. He knows his bars, he knows the streets, and he knows oysters. Yum.
More...
More...
Sep 20, 2009
Rob
rated it: 
Good when he talks about food in noo or-lee-ans ... sleazy when he gets to talking about sleaze ... not worth reading by pg. 100.
Mar 01, 2008
Margot
rated it:
A book about New Orleans without any mention of voodoo! What's up with that? Blount's style is distracted, a-quote-per-paragraph, with name-dropping and random personal anecdotes. I finished it because I kept hoping against hope that it would get better. Now I'm reading another book by Blount, still holding on to that hope, but I think I just don't like his writing. What a disappointment.
Oct 16, 2007
Rachel
rated it:
I bought and read this book while we were evacuated up in Franklin Tennessee from Hurricane Katrina. I was so sad and ready to go home to New Orleans but we were stuck in TN til our parish was open, up and running. I found this book at the Cool Springs Barns and Noble and read it in the hotel. It was such a great read for my heart.
Mar 02, 2011
Eileen
rated it:
Good, not great. It helps to know and love New Orleans. Such a great unpretentious city and people.
Nov 08, 2008
Landismom
rated it:
This is really good, although it was written post-Katrina, and it's a little disturbing to keep reading lines like, "When the big hurricane hits--and it will, New Orleanians assure you, with what suffices locally for civic pride--the waters will finally rise over the shell and inundate the town, killing tens of thousands."
Mar 23, 2008
Rachel
rated it:
Listening to Roy Blount on NPR's "Wait, Wait. Don't tell me" Made me want to read this. Not quite as humorous as Blount is in other writing, but still enlightening and entertaining.And Presient since he wrote it before Katrina and speculated on what would happen when New Orleans is hit (inevitably) with the "big one."
Apr 24, 2010
Elisa
rated it: 
I couldn't get past the first CD...it was just too random. none of the sections seemed to have anything to do with the section before. I just couldn't figure out what the point was.
Dec 10, 2007
Susan
rated it:
It's written in a lyrical fashion and hits some of the highpoints of New Orleans, discusses some cultural notions and some interesting places. It's not my favorite book on New Orleans, but I like his style.
May 21, 2010
CS
rated it:
This book was funny and evocative of New Orleans, but the style was too disjointed for me to feel like I was drawn into the narrative. Of course, that's how New Orleans feels sometimes, too. :)
Apr 18, 2008
David
rated it:
Hmmm. I've only been to NOLA once but had a great time. This book is choppy, odd, insufficient, not particularly enlightening or useful. I wouldn't recommend it.
Jan 24, 2012
Robin
rated it:
This is the third book I've read in the Crown Journeys series and I'm officially hooked. These little travel books are real gems.
Feb 11, 2012
Jan 30, 2012
Dec 13, 2011
