new iberia: james lee burke makes his home in montana these days, but that doesn’t stop visitors to his southern louisiana hometown from scouring the streets for the best-selling author or by dave robicheaux, protagonist of his popular mysteries.
The small town is the setting for nearly all of Burke’s robicheaux novels, numbering more than 20.
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burke’s character is a sheriff’s deputy in new iberia, with occasional visits to new orleans, lafayette and rural acadiana. Burke takes you past New Iberia landmarks like Shadows-on-the-Tech Plantation, as well as the Courthouse, Library, and numerous bars and restaurants.
Due to the popularity of Burke’s novels, the fictional Robicheaux have become a tourist attraction.
“not a week goes by without someone coming in or emailing because of the james lee burke series,” said fran thibodeaux, executive director of the iberia parish office of conventions and visitors. “That’s what we heard from their fans. they want to see the places you write about.”
tabasco is the no. 1 drawing to the region, followed by burke’s sites, thibodeaux said, which is why the parish established “james lee burke’s iberia” trail, a booklet listing the many places burke writes about in his novels.
And each spring a literary festival is held in Burke’s honor.
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the “literary festival books through technology: celebrating new iberia, the hometown of dave robicheaux and the great writers of the south” will take place from friday to sunday in downtown new iberia.
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And, while Burke won’t be there, a feature of the festival is a bus tour of the places where Robicheaux lived, worked and played. The “Dave’s Hangouts & Excursions Tour,” which will be offered on Fridays and Saturdays, will include sites along Main Street and downtown New Iberia and some in the immediate vicinity.
Visitors can expect to see Clementine Restaurant in downtown New Iberia, the Iberia Parish Courthouse where Robicheaux had an office in the novel “In the Electric Fog with Confederate Dead,” and Our Lady of Lourdes Grotto along to the town hall and the parish library of iberia.
The fun begins at Victor’s Cafe on Main Street, a Robicheaux favorite, where Howard Kingston, owner of City Books Along The Teche Bookstore, will greet tour participants. Kingston is one of the festival’s organizers and a long-time friend of Burke’s. His bookstore on High Street, which is also part of the tour, sells Burke’s novels, including signed first editions.
for those who want to see the robicheaux sites from the water, there is a t-boy swamp adventure tour on Sunday, sponsored by the teche project.
In addition to site tours, the festival will pay tribute to Louisianan author Ernest J. wins as the “great southern writer for 2018”. gaines will read and discuss his work, as well as answer questions from the audience at saturday’s big southern writers symposium at the city’s sliman theater. there will also be bourée lessons and a tournament on Saturday, a readers’ theater performance, film screenings and more.
“It’s a different kind of festival, and it’s a different kind of literary festival, but that’s what makes it unique,” thibodeaux said.
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born in texas but raised in new iberia, burke’s latest robicheaux is simply titled “robicheaux”. He has twice won an Edgar Award for Best Detective of the Year, and his first book, “The Lost Get-Back Boogie,” which was rejected 111 times over nine years before the mystery was published by LSU Press, was later nominated for a pulitzer prize. he has written more than 30 novels in total and two collections of short stories.
burke has also received a loaf of bread and guggenheim fellowships and a nea fellowship and three of his novels, “in the electric fog with confederate dead,” “prisoners of heaven,” and “two for texas,” have been made in movies.
For information on the booksalongthetecheliteraryfestival, visit booksalongthetecheliteraryfestival.com.
the books throughout the teche literary festival
when: from Friday to Sunday
where: new iberia
events: cooking demonstrations, authors’ book fair, reader’s theater and the dave’s haunts & Excursion excursions on Fridays and Saturdays.
highlights
- A “jazz it up” reception will open the festival on Friday night, and the Acadian Symphony Orchestra will close it with a concert on Sunday afternoon.
- The Gran Teatro Nueva Iberia will screen “The Autobiography of Miss Jane Pittman,” based on the novel by Ernest Gaines, and James Lee Burke’s “Into the Electric Fog,” starring Tommy Lee Jones, and “Prisoners of Heaven,” starring Alec Baldwin as Dave Robicheaux.
- the university of louisiana at lafayette academic symposium will feature several author panelists at the main library saturday, including one with mary ann wilson, the ul-lafayette james d. Wilson Gifted Professor of Southern Studies, who will discuss “Ode to a Lost World: James Lee Burke’s ‘Breaking Down the Tin Roof’.” wilson will be joined by local writer and photographer james edmunds and ul teacher sally donlon.
- acadian storyteller sherry t. broussard and tom coleman will weave stories on friday in the main library and a “young writers panel” will be on saturday in the sliman theatre.
- participants can learn bourée, a cajun card game, the Saturday morning, and then take part in a tournament on Saturday afternoon.
- A boogie on down party will take place on Saturday night in Bouligny Plaza.
For a list of events, visit booksalongthetecheliteraryfestival.com/events.
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