Ancelet, Barry Jean, Jay Edwards, and Glen Pitre. Cajun Country (Jackson: University Press of Mississippi, 1991). 256 pages.

Cajun Country is a summary of the south Louisiana Cajun culture and how it evolved (p ix). Written by Barry Jean Ancelet, Jay D. Edwards, and Glen Pitre, with additional information provided by Carl Brasseaux, Fred B. Kniffen, Maida Bergeron, Janet Shoemaker, and Mathe Allian, it is a manifestation of the works of multiple experts on Cajun culture (p iii). Dr. Barry Jean Ancelet is a Professor of Folklore and Francophone Studies in the Department of Modern Languages at the University of Louisiana at Lafayette. Dr. Jay D. Edwards is a Professor of Anthropology and is the directory of the Fred B. Kniffen Cultural Resources Lab at Louisiana State University. Glen Pitre, graduate from Harvard in Visual and Environmental Studies, is a jack of all trades but is best known as a Cajun filmmaker. All authors are Cajuns native to Louisiana, which offers an insiders prospective but also potential egocentrism in the book.

Cajun Country is a book meant to explain Cajun culture, terms, and its origins. Beginning with the history of the Cajun people, the book traces the origins of the Cajun people from France to Louisiana. Explaining all aspects of cajun culture - origins, society, folklife, religious rituals, festivals, medicine, architecture, music, games, and oral traditions - the book elaborates on each specific portion of culture in south Louisiana. The writers of the book set up the thesis that Cajun culture is unique and an alternative culture to mainstream America because of its distinct background and willingness to absorb any and all cultures which infiltrate it. While maintaining its uniqueness, it is still able to blend with contemporary American culture. The book uses exerpts from primary sources, such as Antoine Simon Le Page du Pratz and the anonymous Breaux manuscript, which explain various aspects of Cajun culture.

Peasants leaving France arrived in the New France colony in North America in 1632. By 1755, these colonist had be exiled by the English from their colony and were looking to resettle elsewhere. Between 1765 and 1785, they resettled in Louisiana by an invitation from the Spanish. They first settled along the Mississippi River and later settled along the Bayou Teche and Vermillion River. Eventually they would come to settle most of south Louisiana, from New Orleans to the Sabine River, and even into Texas. The distinct close community of the Acadian society in Canada insured their survival on the frontier. Immagrants were introduced to the Acadian population, but they absorded them into their community and adopted some of their principles as well. This is why people with German or Spanish last names call themselves Cajun, even though they are not of Acadian origin. The Acadians settled along the bayous in strip communities, building their homes on the elevated natural levees. They farmed long narrow strips of land. The river was the primary source of transportation. During the winter months, they had camps, which were hunting and fishing lodges out in the swamp or along the coast. The Cajun people were an agricultural society until the turn of the century. They lived off the land, growing everything they needed. They made their own clothes and tools. They gathered regularly for boucharies, bals de maison, and salles de danse. The comminity relied on one another an a coup de main was common, a ritual which neighbors helped each other build or pick up crops in exchange for similar favors. Boat building became unique to Louisiana, making flat bottom boats to travel the shallow swamp waters. Women traditional preserve the culture of the Acadians while it seems the men are more likely to transmit the language. Courtship was monitored closely by the parents and young single women were not left unattended at dances. Cajuns are Catholic by religion but have many nature based practices which have survived the centuries, such as blessing their crops and their ships, using herbs for medicine, and of course celebrating Mardi Gras. While Cajuns usually love a good fight, they believe in fairness and do not tollerate annoyances like territorial invasion. They often had rivalries with neighboring communities. Originally they build log cabins in Canada, but they had to build mud houses when they first arrived in Louisiana. They soon built small two room cottages with rap-around porches, which would later be replaced by the "Acadian style" home which has a long front porch, a steep roof, and a small second story room. Cajun food and music has their origins in France, but over the centuries they have adopted new instruments and spices from many different cultures, completely changing the cuisine and music over time. Games such as word games, card games, rings, hide and seek, and mud fights were popular. Cajuns like gambling, especially horse races and playing cards. Oral stories of animals and other folk stories have been passed down from generation to generation.

By introducing a culture by first explaining the history of its people, the book sets a background for the rest of the culture to be understood. Moving on from history to social instiutions touches on specific aspects of the culture and how these people actually lived, how they worshiped, how they were organized, and their understanding of right and wrong, meanwhile explaining how contemporary Cajuns still embrace the basic ideals set up by the Acadians. Then, in the material culture section, we are able to place the Cajun culture in its physical context, how their houses were constructed and what they ate. Part four of the book elaborates on performance: music, games, and oral traditions. French passages are written with English translations of oral stories passed down from generation to generation. Music is explained and how Cajuns came to adopt outside influences as their own, for example the German acordian, while developing their own styles and instruments, such as the washboard. This organization allows for a gradual introduction to contemporary Cajun culture by explaining its past and then its present in each individual section. The word choice is easy to read, even though the Cajun French terms are a little difficult. Having a pronounciation key next to each French term would be helpful for those who do not read French. The length of each section is suficiant to explaining its topic; however, some sections of the book could have elaborated more on the subject. Subjects such as the Acadian exile from Canada and contemporary Cajun harvest festivals seem to be neglected, favoring the older traditions like Mardi Gras. The pictures, maps, and drafts of Cajun settlement, people, and houses are great; however, the placement of the graphics could be improved. For example, perhaps placing the graph on the actual page it is being explained on, rather than on the page after.

The book is a great resource into Cajun cuture before the 1950s. The depth of the book touches on nearly every aspect of Cajun culture. It answers questions of the origin of the Acadians, the time periods and the evolution of the Cajun culture, folklore, and how the Catholic religion is combined with older religious practices. By being told from the point of view of Cajuns, the book explains Cajun culture from an insider's point of view, rather than an outsider studying the culture. There are hits at egocentrism in the book by refering to how the Cajun culture is able to absorb other cultures, always remaining dominate, may leave the reader believing that the writer thinks the Cajun culture is better, that is why it dominates its influences. The book shows that the Cajun people are not just about partying, chanky-chank music, and cooking good food. By explaining the Cajun culture and its co-existence with American culture, the thesis that Cajun culture is unique to this region of the world is fulfilled. This is a great book with great insight to the Cajun people. Visitors and Cajun people alike should read this book for it offers a background to the culture of south Louisiana and sets the stage for the contemporary culture of the region.