Customer Reviews

Atchafalaya Houseboat: My Years in the Louisiana Swamp

5 star:		(12)
4 star:		(6)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

It's hard to go wrong with this subject matter, and I would recommend this book wholeheartedly.

But that said, I was a little disappointed in the book, not for what was in it, but for how much more she could have told us. The author has had a rare experience -- who else do you know who has lived on a houseboat in a swamp, without electricity or most modern conveniences, for a decade? Yet I was left feeling that she only related the bare minimum about her years in the swamp. Part of the problem is that the first half of the book appears to contain only her previously-published articles about her life at that time from a small regional magazine, and they are short and lacking a lot of detail. I'm left thinking how much better this book could have been if she had gone back and fleshed those out, adding more information and context. She doesn't discuss how it felt to adjust to such a rustic life, her relationship with the man she shared this life with, or any problems that they encountered, other than their dislike of returning to civilization for supplies every so often. In other words, she doesn't inject much of herself into her descriptions -- her feelings, her hopes or fears.

The second part of the book talks about temporarily working as a cook on a river boat, meeting the man she would later leave Calvin for, and her life since she left the swamp. In many ways, this is the more descriptive part of the book, especially as she details honestly the boredom of riverboat life and the pain of falling in love with another man. I was left imagining what could have been if she had applied the same descriptive style and writing technique to the earlier part of her work.

Again, I am glad I bought this book, but if the author had spent the time beefing up her earlier articles in the first part of the book, when the subject material is far more unusual, I would have given this book a higher rating. There aren't many people who have lived a life like hers, and it's a shame that it isn't more thoroughly described during her swamp years.

I could hardly put this book down. It was so interesting to see how Gwen Roland & Calvin Voisin lived for so many years. I also enjoyed reading about all of Gwen's travels all over. She has done things that much of us never even dream of doing!

Special people in a special place wonderfully told by someone you wish you had coffee with in the mornings. One to keep close to your heart.

This well written little book made my heart ache for the land my family left many years ago. As a child, my grandfather took me into the Atchafalaya Basin many times to fish, and told me stories of our family's lumber camp from years prior. Ms. Roland's stories made those memories come flooding back. Her depictions of the people living in the Basin, and the sights, sounds, and smells of the Basin itself are true to my memories.

I highly recommend this book to anyone with a interest in the culture of the Louisiana swamp.

Beautiful, sweet and simple. The topic isn't one I have particular interest in, but the way she writes you can't help but fall in love with her, with Calvin, and with the whole life they create. I read it one night. Definitely recommended for anyone who has ever daydreamed about a quieter life than the one they lead.

I came across 'Atchafalaya Houseboat' when tasked with an extra credit book report for my Louisiana History course during my undergraduate studies at Louisiana Tech University. Although it began as an assignment, I absolutely fell in love with it! I immediately fell in love with Gwen and Calvin and the simple life; enjoying the many beauties of the Louisiana swamp they desired.

I was a bit disappointed with the fact that Gwen did not go into more detail about her life and express more of what she was actually feeling and her relationship with Calvin during those years on the swamp. I felt it was there but she chose to keep it to herself, almost as if not wanting to relive those feelings vs. exposing them to the reader. I would love to someday see another version where Gwen is willing to open up a bit more and expand on the life she and Calvin experienced while living on the Atchafalaya.

Since reading this book I have passed it on to many friends who have all fallen in love with it as well.

A lot of people fantasize about dropping out of society and going back to the basics and this is why I bought this book. I thought it was going to be interesting to read about somebody who did just that.But after i read the book i was kinda disappointed for what it did NOT contain, for example what happened to the dog? What did Calvin say about her leaving him for another man? What was it like to go without electricity for so long? sooo sooo much was left out.I could have read a book about any typical joe living and making it in the city and got the same amount of enjoyment out of it. Dont get me wrong not all of it was bland there was some very interesting parts to it, thats the reason i gave it three instead of two stars.

Gwen Roland's memoir "Atchafalaya Houseboat: My Years in a Louisiana Swamp" is magical. After the 1973 flood destroyed their first home Roland and her then-partner Calvin Voisin built a house made of cypress on a barge in the Atchafalaya River Basin in south-central Louisiana. The houseboat deep in the dark, black swamp waters of Bloody Bayou and Bayou Sorrel became their home for eight years.
Roland's quiet wisdom and eloquent descriptions of swamp life and everyday routines captured my imagination. Living off the land with no running water or electricity she learned how to drive a boat and how to set nets for catfish. She said, "I became acquainted with my body. Awakened from sanitary air-conditioning hibernation to the trickle of sweat down my arms, the green fragrance of crushed cypress pine needles, and the sensuous luxury of a bath with Ivory Soap in the bayou at sunset."
Roland became absorbed in mastering the not-so-simple skills of the simple life. She said, "I tried my hand at cutting wood, canning vegetables, preparing a smokehouse and making a quilt. Every day there was something new I wanted to learn." Although the days were filled with fishing, cooking, canning, growing food, making wine, tending chickens and trading there were many unexpected pleasures. She writes, "We stand on the porch to watch the last of the sunset. There's not another human being for miles in any direction. The water is perfect in its stillness. A lone owl hoots softly in a nearby tree, shy in front of people who share his woods tonight."
To meet expenses Roland worked as a cook on a river boat for 30 days on two occasions. She later left Voisin and married Preston Roland one of the riverboat engineers. In time Voisin married, had a daughter, and eventually divorced. He and another companion live at Bayou Sorrel.
Roland and her husband traveled and investigated all kinds of occupations as years went by. She said most of their moves came about from one of them thinking out loud, "I wonder what it would be like to..." They now live in the Pine Mountain foothills of Georgia.
The book is enhanced by nature photographer C.C. Lockwood's photographs which show the couple relaxing or doing chores on the houseboat. The pictures were also published in National Geographic. Producer Christina Melton and cameraman Rex Q. Fortenberry produced a 30-minute award winning documentary for Louisiana Public Radio based on Roland's memoir.
I mourned when I finished Roland's book.

I picked up this slim volume after seeing its author describe her life in Louisiana's Atchafalaya ("Ah-cha-fa-LAY-ah") River basin in a documentary of the same title produced by Louisiana Public Broadcasting. The book is as beautifully written as the film is made, though the latter is a look back from a quarter-century after, whereas the book is drawn primarily on diaries and articles the author wrote at the time she first took to living in the swamp in the 1970s. Louisiana natives who remember the alternative newspaper "Gris Gris" (pronounced "gree-gree") will be pleased to find its mention as home to some of the author's original articles.

I would note, as have other reviewers, my surprise at (1) the book's format, and (2) the author's mention (in passing) of her faith. Seeing the film on PBS before picking up the book, I was surprised at its small size and black-and-white photography. Given the luxuriant nature of the documentary and the significance of C. C. Lockwood's photography to the story told in both book and film, I expected more of a coffee-table type of book. (Color views of several of the photos in the book are viewable on LPB's website, however.)

As for the author's faith expression, it seems fitting that she mention this aspect of her life as she reflects back over her story. One need not partake in Christian Communion to gain a taste for communion with creation via so thoughtful a volume as this. You might even, like me, come to value its reflective tone and pocket size as amenable to carrying on day-trips, and splurge separately for a full-color volume of Lockwood's Atchafalaya photography for the coffee-table back home.

I found this book facinating and I enjoyed it. My only complaint is it was much to short considering the author had lived in the swamp Ten years. Perhaps she kept a few things for her next book on the same subject. I sure hope so! A good albeit short read.