Governors, Bankers & Mysteries with a Louisiana Touch

EDWIN EDWARDS,

An Authorized Biography

By LEO HONEYCUTT

Scientific American, $25.95

Honeycutt masterfully peels away the layers of Edwards’ life, from his poor, hardscrabble childhood to his phenomenal political career. His meteoric rise in political circles owed much to his unique background; “He could be Catholic to Catholics and Protestant to Protestants, but more importantly, he could be French to Cajuns.”

His brash manner and quotable quips entertained voters and irritated his opponents. Choice ones like, “Only way I can lose is if I’m caught in bed with a live man or a dead girl.” And, “it takes Dave Treen an hour and a half to watch ’60 Minutes.'”

He survived the challenges of federal attorney John Voltz who twice attempted to convict him. He survived Tongsun Park, Koreagate and Brilab, but all his quips couldn’t save him from the determination of federal prosecutors Eddie Jordan and Jim Letten, and the betrayal of friends like Eddie DeBartolo Jr., who testified against him.

While Honeycutt white washed nothing, he obviously became friends with and sympathetic to Edwards, referring to him throughout as “Edwin.”

Finally convicted, ironically exactly 28 years to the very day and time he first took the oath of governor, Edwards stoically accepted his fate, quoting the Chinese saying, “If you sit by the river long enough, the dead body of your enemy will come floating down the river.” He’s still waiting.

BIG BAD BANKS

By C.R. ‘RUSTY’ CLOUTIER

Cloutier Publishing, $24.95

If you lost money in the recent failures of the big banks, stock brokerages or bond traders, (and who didn’t?), you may be asking, “How could banks ‘so big they could not fail,’ fail anyway, bringing our economy down with them?

Lafayette banker Cloutier points the blame on two things: home loans and credit cards.

Banks were sending credit cards to cardholders who were over their limit inviting them to sign up for a new cards and transfer their debt, in effect creating their own Ponzi scheme. Then, in 2002, President George Bush exhorted the mortgage industry to find a way to make it easier for low-income families, particularly minorities, to own a home. In other words, lend, lend, lend.

After U.S. citizens bailed out the big, broken banks, did they get smaller? No, they got bigger – the biggest buying up smaller ones with the blessing of the Feds. If you care about your savings, you need to read this book.

UNDER THE DOME

By STEPHEN KING

Scribner, $35

On a typically beautiful day in picturesque Chester’s Mill, Maine, some inexplicable thing occurred: the town was suddenly encased in a transparent dome reaching in all directions to the city limits. It cut off power lines, water mains and telephone service, and prevented anyone leaving or entering.

Soon, food, water, health facilities and, mainly, law enforcement quickly disappeared, as did civility. Crimes became rampant; friends turned against each other as the horror of their situation became apparent.

What is this dome, where did it come from, why is it here and how to destroy it? You’ll have to work your way through this 1,000-plus page thriller by the master of suspense, yet King will have you turning pages at such a rapid clip you won’t mind the length.

All in all, it’s a fascinating, if frightening, journey to the end, but well worth the ride.

GUARDIAN OF LIES

By STEVE MARTINI

William Morrow, $26.99

The best plans of mice, men, and even beautiful women can go awry, as it does for the lovely Katia Solaz who, tiring of her relationship with wealthy Emerson Pike, plots to steal enough of his gold coins to fund her way back to Costa Rica.

All goes well except for the untimely arrival of an assassin who kills both Emerson and his maid and now is hunting Katia. So are the police who believe she’s the killer but luckily, she meets, and is eventually represented by famed attorney, Paul Madriani.

If you’ve read previous books by the author you would now expect to enjoy dramatic encounters in the courtroom but such is not the case. Instead, this local murder spirals out into a worldwide terrorist caper fully enjoyable even if it does, on occasion, require suspension of belief.