Down in New Orleans

Reflections from a Drowned City

By: Billy Sothern

Narrated by: David Henry

"Billy Sothern's Down in New Orleans illustrates, in very human and heartbreaking ways, how the horrors that emerged during and following Hurricane Katrina existed long before the storm. These beautifully composed stories not only reveal the dignity—and amazing grit and grace—of the hurricane's survivors; they also illuminate larger truths about the urgent issues of our day. Sothern magnifies the urgency of creating a government that really serves the common good - and a society that protects its poor and vulnerable."
--Katrina vanden Heuvel, Editor and Publisher, The Nation

©2007 Billy Sothern (P)2007 University of California Press

Critic reviews

"He eloquently and angrily shows how devastatingly easy it can be for those in power to cast aside the rule of law our society relies on. In outrage he recalls how the prisoners in New Orleans' jail—most of whom had yet to be tried, let alone convicted—had to break open their cell doors to swim to safety. He follows the story of residents suddenly arrested as suspected terrorists and held for weeks with no family contact. Sothern's own story of escape and return adds a personal facet to a Katrina book that looks not to the destruction wrought by the storm, but to that caused by the suspension of rights by those in charge of a great American city now truly in ruins." (Booklist)

Reads like a novel

I heard about this author’s recent death at age 45, and then read about his book in the online obituaries about him. I was interested to read it, as the author sounded really interesting and I love New Orleans. I could not find a printed copy to purchase (written in 2007, it seems to be out of print), but fortunately found a recording of it on Audible. I purchased it and just finished listening to it. Billy was a ‘crusading defense’ attorney (per the NYT) and a progressive activist living in New Orleans and representing men on death row when Katrina hit. He was from New York but called New Orleans his home. The book is (in my opinion) excellent. It reads like a John Grisham novel - somewhat personal but mostly filled with a wonderful history of the city, it’s politics, and a truthful analysis of government’s role in the corruption and racism at play in New Orleans when Katrina hit. I loved the book; it was a quick read because I couldn’t put it down.

I'm so confused. And annoyed.

What did you find wrong about the narrator's performance?

Why would an author/ publisher/ narrator even bother recording an audiobook making ABSOLUTELY NO EFFORT to learn to properly pronouce the local street names, city names, or surnames? It's not like you can't GET to New Orleans, or make a phone call, or talk to the AUTHOR, who, supposedly, has actually lived there for years. This was PAINFUL to me. I tried to start a list, but it soon became obvious that it would be easier to list the things he pronounced correctly: Canal street....Harry Lee...St. Charles..umm yeah that's about it. SO DISTRACTING, I found myself having to backtrack constantly to force myself to listen to the content. He pronounced "Metairie" about 4 different (wrong) ways. "FAW-berg Ma-RIG-ny". "THibodeaux" (like thistle). "KAY-rondolet". And when he got to the part where he had to list the streets named after the muses, my eye started twitching. All I'm saying is, DUDE. Make an effort, for crying out loud.

One side of a complicated story

I liked this book because it made me examine some pre-concieved notions I had(have.) It took me several chapters to figure out the author's race and religion and my perceptions morphed during the exercise.

I used to live in New Orleans and my brother still does. He was there through Katrina and I was there less than 2 weeks after.

The book presents some of the most grievous episodes of post-Katrina NOLA--evacuees turned back on the Crescent City connection, the handling of state prisoners, the case of Abdulrahman Zeitoun and tries to extrapolate from them a theory of systematic oppression. I didn't quite buy it, but the author shines a light on some obvious problems in southern Louisiana.

As a lawyer who represents death penalty prisoners he has a clear bias against law enforcement and "the system." Every instance of authority paints the law enforcement officers in the worst possible light. I don't doubt that there are bad cops in New Orleans, but I worked with many noble selfless officers when I worked in the Emergnecy Rooms in Baton Rouge, Metairie and Bay St Louis, MS. Still there's no defense for women pushing strollers to be forced back to the Superdome at shotgun point.

The thing about Katrina is that everyone wants a reason why it was a New Orleans thing, or a Southern thing because that means it would never happen in your neighborhood. The uncomfortable truth is that disasters give people a reason to show their true face.

The narration is not bad but there are some glaring pronunciation errors "Mee-tayre" for Metairie and "Mah-rig-nee" for Marigny which are evidence of sloppy production. Thank god he didn't describe any events on Tchoupitoulas.

The book reads like a confession from the author who is trying to exorcise his survivor's guilt rather than an objective reflection on what happened. It is an interesting an compelling read, but it's only a few moments of one side of a very long story.

Book should be named, "Rants about governement"

This book should be named “Rants About the Government, specifically the Republican Party”.
I wrongly assumed this book was an individual‘s perspective of Hurricane Katrina on the city. It is not.

And it is a 71/2 hour diatribe against law-enforcement, the court system, the prison system, churches and anything in regards to individual responsibility.

Quoted from chapter 13, “Republican policies heartlessly deny the needs of citizens and betray the common good."
This sentence came during a time he was talking about the city. Yet he fails to mention that the city is, and has been for over 100 years, run by democrats. The last republican mayor was in 1872.
31 of the last 35 governors of Louisiana have been Democrats.
He blames the failure of the city on people who have not run it for decades.

And for someone who spends 95% of the time venting about government, he is championing for more and more of it.

If you’re looking for a book that talks a lot about political parties, minimum wage, white terrorists, privilege of white people, greed, racism, and anything that have to do with anti-police this is the book.

It has very little to do about Hurricane Katrina and 90% about social justice.
I could hardly make my way through, but in fairness I wanted to listen so I could give a review.