True confession: I am a bibliophile. My subjects of choice are books about architecture, interior design, gardening and most any book about our wonderful city, New Orleans.
Many years ago, while exchanging presents on Christmas morning, I was given a book. Upon seeing this gift, my dear mother looked up and announced, “Louis already has a book!” Yes, even then, my library was rapidly expanding. And her concern was well placed.
So today, I’m sharing a list of books from my shelves that would likely please anyone who also enjoys my favorite topics. The choices are a combination of the new and the classic.
DESIGN TODAY”Live With the Things You Love”
By Mary Randolph Carter, 2025
In this wonderful guide for the collector, antique dealers, stylists and artists open their homes to show how they display their own incredible collections that range from the grand to the goofy. Occasionally, the goofy is the best part.
“Celebrating Home”
By James T. Farmer III, 2022
This well-illustrated guide to celebrating both holidays and the changing seasons includes tablescapes, floral arrangements, family traditions and good old Southern interior decorating. Party-theme ideas get pretty specific: There’s one for a luncheon to celebrate camellia season.
GROWING CONCERN
“Martha Stewart’s Gardening Handbook”
By Martha Stewart, 2025
Martha approaches the subject of gardening as only Martha can. Although not specially written for the Deep South, this is a lavishly illustrated and comprehensive guide that includes instructions on planning specialty gardens, such as a shade garden or a white-blooming garden.
As she says: “If you want to be happy for a year, get married. If you want to be happy for a decade, get a dog. If you want to be happy for the rest of your life, make a garden.”
ODES TO NEW ORLEANS
“Bohemian Soul”
By Valorie Hart, photos by Sara Essex Bradley, 2024
This love letter to New Orleans, subtitled “The Vanishing Interiors of New Orleans,” celebrates the many different ways that people furnish and live in their homes in America’s most interesting city.
Seventeen distinctive homes are featured, with an essay about each and the owners’ relationship to the city. Glorious photographs capture the spirit of the spaces,
No stylists moved things about, so you see each home as it truly exists. The focus was simply to present a home as a reflection of those who live there.
Full disclosure: My home is one of the 17 featured in this book.
“Painting the Town”
Preservation Resource Center, 2024
Essays with subjects ranging from the history of color and the development of paint to the historic use of color in the city pair with Chris Ganger’s photographs that capture the explosion of color scattered across the historic districts of New Orleans. It’s more than a coffee table book, but the photos alone make this a must-have for anyone who loves our city.
CLASSIC NEW ORLEANS
“Cityscapes of New Orleans”
By Richard Campanella, 2017
Yes, this is yet another book by the gifted and prolific author Campanella. This time, he explores the distinctive urbanism and eccentricities that shaped the city. The book is filled with bits and pieces of our shared history that may surprise even the most devoted native Orleanian.
As Walter Isaacson wrote, “Campanella understands that New Orleans is a city of distinct and flavorful neighborhoods, and in this book he captures their essence.”
“Inventing New Orleans: Writings of Lafcadio Hearn”
Edited by S. Frederick Starr, 2001
Between 1877 and 1888, Hearn lived in New Orleans, absorbing the folklore and culture of the city. He then sold the stories the city inspired to a variety of periodicals such as the New Orleans Daily Item and Times-Democrat, Harper’s Weekly and Scribner’s Magazine.
His fascinating tales caught the attention of the country, setting New Orleans apart as a place unlike any other. This mystique so intrigued the nation that visitors flocked to the city.
In effect, Hearn’s writings established the basis of today’s New Orleans tourism. Otherworldliness was enticing in the 19th century, and it remains so in the 21st.
“Creole World”
By Richard Sexton, 2014
Subtitled “Photographs of New Orleans and the Latin Caribbean Sphere,” Sexton’s book explores the connection between New Orleans and our cultural cousins in Haiti, Colombia, Argentina, Cuba, Bolivia and Ecuador by way of architecture, color and culture.
His outstanding photography serves to highlight the European, West African and Indigenous influences that come together in New Orleans.
This book is a visual representation of why New Orleans is so often compared to our neighbors to the south.
CLASSIC DESIGN
“Creating a New Old House”
By Russell Versaci, 2003
Seventeen new, old-style homes are featured here. Architect Versaci explains in detail how to create a new home with the charm and detail of an old house. Architectural periods are explored and illustrated with detailed photos, including an outstanding Louisiana Creole cottage that appears to have evolved over a period of time.
“The Finer Things”
By Christine LeMieux, 2014
Avoid trendy mistakes as you explore timeless furniture, textiles and details and gain insight with information gathered from dozens of wallpaper and paint specialists, textile fabricators, artisans and interior designers.
This is a comprehensive look at the many materials and design techniques that compose a distinctive home. The book is well illustrated with photos of both vintage and current interiors.
“An Affair With a House”
By Bunny Williams, 2005
Published 20 years ago, this has become a classic study of how to create a comfortable and beautiful country home.
Acclaimed New York interior designer Bunny Williams takes us step by step in turning her Connecticut home into her dream retreat. More than just classic decor, Williams tackles how to stock a pantry, organize a linen closet and most every other chore that goes into making a beautiful and functional home.
While the original book remains available, just published in October was a collector’s edition containing a new introduction and a chapter detailing how the house and its rooms have changed over the years.
“Legendary Decorators of the Twentieth Century”
1992, By Mark Hampton
Interior designer Mark Hampton explores the distinctive styles of 22 men and women who influenced the past, influenced each other and still influence interior design to this day.
The overview of design history helps us to understand just how design has evolved. The book is beautifully illustrated with wonderful watercolors by the author.
Louis J. Aubert is a professional member of the American Society of Interior Designers and an avid preservationist. Some of his most visible New Orleans projects include making interior color selections for Gallier Hall, Trinity Episcopal Church and the Louisiana Supreme Court Royal Street Courthouse, and both interior and exterior selections for St. Stephen’s Basilica. Contact him at mrcolour@aol.com.
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