It was a long time before I was finally able to pick up Tom Piazza’s City of Refuge, despite all of the good things that I had heard about it. Being from New Orleans, and affected by Katrina, I didn’t think that I would enjoy the story. It turns out, that finishing the book, just in time for the four year anniversary of Katrina, I loved it!
Piazza follows the lives of two families from New Orleans who are not only experiencing the hardships of Hurricane Katrina, but also dealing with problems in their families. SJ, his sister Lucy and her son Wesley were from the Lower Ninth and like others, stayed hoping to ride out the storm. SJ was a carpenter and was used to hearing about bad hurricanes coming, so he was experienced in preparing for, what he thought would be the worst. Once the water rose he had to think quickly about what the next step would be in keeping himself and his family alive. Piazza follows the experience of this family, from their homes in the lower ninth, to the Superdome, and as they were scattered across the country.
The second family, Craig and Alice Donaldson, and their two children Annie and Malcolm who live uptown, are among many of the other families that decided to evacuate last minute. Craig is the editor for one of the magazines in New Orleans, Gumbo. His love for the city is in constant battle with Alice’s desire to move away because of her concern for her children’s safety and education. This issue becomes unavoidable for both of them once they realize the damage caused by the Hurricane. Piazza follows their journey from New Orleans, to Jackson and then up to a Chicago suburb, where they must confront each other and the decision of where they are going to live.
I thought that the characters and their love for their deeply cultured city were easy to relate to, but I don’t think that you have to be from New Orleans to really appreciate the novel and what these characters have experienced. City of Refuge, recently out in paperback, which includes an interview with the author, tells two very different accounts of Katrina victims and the same love that they have for their city and their homes. Piazza was successful in describing, in detail, the places and people which make New Orleans so unique and loved, which helps the reader understand and connect to the feelings of the characters. This novel is an intriguing page turner that can be enjoyed by anyone who was effected by the hurricane or anyone who is just looking for a great read.
See John’s review of City of Refuge.
See Nan’s review of City of Refuge.
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Chris Rose’s One Dead in Attic should be next on your list…whether you’ve read Piazza’s take on the hurricane, or not. Rose writes for the Times Picayune and was able to move back to New Orleans and write about life right after the Hurricane. Though the subject of his book is disaster, he has a talent of adding humor to his experiences without disrespecting the sensitivity of the topic. It’s a great collection of stories that include titles such as “Have Barbie, Will Travel” and “Not in my Pothole.” Though some of his writing touches on hard times, most of the stories will make you laugh out loud. This is a theme that Piazza mentions in City of Refuge: learning how to laugh and celebrate the life that we have, despite our misfortunes.
-Sarah Clinton
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