2009 Wrapup (About Time, Huh?)

Like just about all of you out there, I'm sure, I have been very preoccupied with the situation in Haiti, particularly given the shameful role the United States government and military has played over the years in that country. I was even motivated by the ignorant musings of New York Times columnist David Brooks to write a letter to the editor of the Times-Picayune. They are considering it for publication, but, to be fair, many of my points were made more effectively by Tracy Kidder, author of Mountains Beyond Mountains, in a column published just yesterday. So I'll give it a couple of more days, and probably publish my letter here, with some additional clarification.

But while I've got you all here (both of you here? Anyone? Hello?), I would like to present, in all its glory, the final, expanded 2009 Greater New Orleans Market Bestseller List, followed by some intriguing statistical analysis. Those of you who have been following this blog regularly know that Kurt Vonnegut had a commanding lead for much of the year, only to have Walker Percy catch him late in the year. Well, the irrepressible Indianapolite (Indianapolian?) finally did prevail. The final tally:

1. Kurt Vonnegut
2. Walker Percy
3. Ray Bradbury
4. Aldous Huxley
5. Albert Camus
6. Robert Heinlein
7. (tie) Hermann Hesse
7. (tie) George Orwell
7. (tie) Ayn Rand
10. (tie) James Lee Burke
10. (tie) James Joyce
10. (tie) Henry Miller
10. (tie) J.D. Salinger
10. (tie) Star Trek
15. Edgar Rice Burroughs
16. (tie) Joseph Campell
16. (tie) William Faulkner
16. (tie) Ken Kesey
19. (tie) George Carlin
19. (tie) Philip K. Dick
19. (tie) Henry David Thoreau
19. (tie) John Kennedy Toole
19. (tie) Tennessee Williams
24. (tie) Edward Abbey
24. (tie) Joan Didion
24. (tie) Bob Dylan
24. (tie) Ernest Gaines
24. (tie) Jack Kerouac
24. (tie) Sylvia Plath
24. (tie) Eric Schlosser
24. (tie) John Steinbeck
24. (tie) Alan Watts

It's important to remember that this is the best, most precise instrument we have in these uncertain times for determining the most popular writers among the greater New Orleans reading public. Now let's crunch some numbers:

Percentage of primarily fiction writers: 72%
Percentage of non-American natives: 22%
Percentage of British writers: 9%
Percentage of non-British Europeans: 9%
Percentage of non-Americans/Europeans: 3%
Percentage of Louisiana writers: 16%
Percentage of Southern writers: 19%
Percentage of women writers: 9%
Percentage of African-American writers: 3%

Just a little food for thought. And remember, if you want your voice heard in 2010, you've got to come out to the open-air markets that contribute so much to our city's vibrant, independent commerce: the Freret Market (first Saturday of each month), Broad Flea (second Saturday), and Elysian Fleas (third Saturday). Ayn Rand and Walter Moseley are the early leaders. Feel the excitement. Be the excitement.

For those of you who prefer online commerce, many new volumes have been added to the inventory of Deep South Samizdat Books (amazon.com/shops/deepsouthsamizdatbooks). You can find titles by Albert Camus, Charles Darwin, Octavio Paz, Bill Moyers and Ira Levin, as well as biography of hard-boiled pulp master Jim Thompson. Of course, you can always reach me at mpbookfreak@hotmail.com if you want to bypass the behemoth. Until next time.