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Snippets of New Orleans
FROM THE
Snippets are fragments of things. They are people observed, foods consumed, ornaments a man on a streetcar, crawfish shells on the sidewalk, an ornate cornstalk-shaped fence.
I believe that to immerse oneself in a place means to try and hold all its elements, past and present, grandiose and mundane, in a single plane of vision. This is, of course, impossible. The result is fragments, vignettes. In Jackson Square, for a vision of the first French settlers coming up the Mississippi alongside the sight of a garishly painted street performer harassing passers-by. If we cannot hold all facets of a place in our mind at once, I think the next best thing is to honor our fragmented understanding, to see in Snippets.
I learned and re-learned a lot of things making this book. I learned that even in my home in Louisiana I feel I am an outsider peering into a window. I re-learned how beautiful and bizarre New Orleans is, how every street has a distinct personality. . . . I re-learned that I know very little about anything, and that the more I learn the more I realize how little I know. I learned that asking for entry into people s personal lives is complicated and requires a lot of mental and ethical somersaults.
This book is my most earnest and honest reflection of New triumphant and tragic, gaudy and gritty, elegant and ugly, rich and poor, a city that embodies all these and other polar opposites with a perverse kind of grace. My account is flawed and incomplete in the way all our experiences are flawed and there are always vistas left to see, flavors left to try, stories left to hear; there are assumptions made, words misunderstood, histories distorted.
May this book communicate the New Orleans I know, and may you weave your own New Orleans truth between the pages.
- Emma Fick
Snippets are fragments of things. They are people observed, foods consumed, ornaments a man on a streetcar, crawfish shells on the sidewalk, an ornate cornstalk-shaped fence.
I believe that to immerse oneself in a place means to try and hold all its elements, past and present, grandiose and mundane, in a single plane of vision. This is, of course, impossible. The result is fragments, vignettes. In Jackson Square, for a vision of the first French settlers coming up the Mississippi alongside the sight of a garishly painted street performer harassing passers-by. If we cannot hold all facets of a place in our mind at once, I think the next best thing is to honor our fragmented understanding, to see in Snippets.
I learned and re-learned a lot of things making this book. I learned that even in my home in Louisiana I feel I am an outsider peering into a window. I re-learned how beautiful and bizarre New Orleans is, how every street has a distinct personality. . . . I re-learned that I know very little about anything, and that the more I learn the more I realize how little I know. I learned that asking for entry into people s personal lives is complicated and requires a lot of mental and ethical somersaults.
This book is my most earnest and honest reflection of New triumphant and tragic, gaudy and gritty, elegant and ugly, rich and poor, a city that embodies all these and other polar opposites with a perverse kind of grace. My account is flawed and incomplete in the way all our experiences are flawed and there are always vistas left to see, flavors left to try, stories left to hear; there are assumptions made, words misunderstood, histories distorted.
May this book communicate the New Orleans I know, and may you weave your own New Orleans truth between the pages.
- Emma Fick
248 pages, Hardcover
Published April 1, 2017
5 people are currently reading
112 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 23 of 23 reviews
June 30, 2022
Why can't more books be like this? Picked up on a whim, on my most recent trip to New Orleans. What a wonderful artist Ms. Fick is. She does real justice to her city. Fans of Susan Branch will enjoy this book.
July 27, 2018
I love Flick's illustrations. She brings places to life. How lucky and I that in her first two books she chose to illustrate places that are so dear to my heart. Snippets of New Orleans is just as enchanting as Snippets of Serbia, except here (especially near the end of the book) Flick also brings the people of the city alive through short profiles of some New Orleanians.
April 3, 2018
A big thanks to Melanie Nileen Pethtel and Sue Macumber for giving me this book during my visit to NOLA in February. This book has given me more ideas for places I want to see the next time I am in New Orleans. If you are planning a trip to NOLA this is the book for you!
December 18, 2019
I was born in New Orleans and spent many summers there with my grandparents. This book brought back many memories and taught me some forgotten history lessons. The author is also the illustrator and the pictures are wonderful.
January 2, 2018
I picked this up on a trip to NOLA. Fell in love with the city and loved this book!
January 20, 2019
Love this! Oh, how I love NOLA.
July 5, 2025
I was recently in New Orleans, and I drunk purchased this book on Frenchman Street because I liked the cover. This is a quick read, as each page is an illustration with some drawn text blurb explaining some piece of New Orleans history or culture. One of my favorite things about the city while I was there was the architectural style. New Orleans has many majestic cathedrals, and the houses there have their own distinctive features. This book also serves well as a guide for future visits to New Orleans, as this mentions many bars, restaurants and attractions.
May 6, 2020
My all-time favorite coffee table book. New Orleans is a place that I never grow tired of visiting, and reading this book feels like being there without having to make the drive. Emma Fick, the author, went to high school with a friend of mine, and that fact makes me feel like I have some connection with the author, when I know that in all actuality she doesn't know me from Adam. Oh, well. Doesn't matter. Love the city, love the book.
March 19, 2019
I got this as a souvenir from a recent trip to New Orleans and it’s a perfect recap of everything you need to know! I loved the illustrations and it was so cool to have everything explained so I could remember everything I learned while I was there. Such a cute decorative coffee table book also if you like to display travel books.
January 19, 2020
As one who has visited NOLA a few times, I picked up this book by a New Orleanian artist. It’s a series of drawings of various places in NOLA and some items that are only found there. It’s part art book, part history, and part travel guide. And for one who loves the city as much as my wife and I do, it’s a perfect souvenir to take home.
March 25, 2019
This is an easy read about...the Big Easy. The author has created a book and a work of art - New Orleans and all of its quirks and gifts is explained in quick illustrated snippets. A very enjoyable and educational book about this unique city.
November 30, 2021
These little snippets were interesting. The little illustrations that were with each snippet were very good. I wish I had read this prior to visiting New Orleans. I hope that the places mention outlast the pandemic.
January 23, 2023
I liked her tales/art centered around her trip on the Trans-Siberian Railway so much, I decided to check out her other book.
This was just as fun! I'd definitely use it as a guide when I someday visit New Orleans!
This was just as fun! I'd definitely use it as a guide when I someday visit New Orleans!
August 30, 2019
This book is a treasure and the perfect souvenir from our trip to New Orleans. The art and history inside are wonderful.
May 11, 2020
One of my most adored books of New Orleans!
August 27, 2020
My favorite travel souvenirs are books, and this one is delightful. Love the illustrations and bite-sized backstory about NOLA and its culture.
December 17, 2021
A nostalgic trip to a city I used to live in and miss all the time. This fun, little book is colorful, informative, and entertaining.
June 1, 2022
my city is better than yours !!!!! <3
The cutest illustrations and descriptions of so many of my favorite places. Ahh it's so beautiful!!!
The cutest illustrations and descriptions of so many of my favorite places. Ahh it's so beautiful!!!
June 3, 2022
Fabulous sketches of my favorite place. Makes we want to hop on a plane and visit New Orleans right now.
January 18, 2023
I really love Emma Fick’s style of writing and illustrating places and people and culture.
June 8, 2023
Comprei esse livro em New Orleans e só me deu vontade de voltar. Os desenhos são lindos.
November 13, 2023
Excellent summary of New Orleans, current and past.
March 13, 2024
Terrible font.
Displaying 1 - 23 of 23 reviews