Around the Press in 80 Books: Wings of Paradise

In celebration of LSUP’s 80th anniversary the staff selected 80 of our most memorable titles. Adding to our “Around the Press in 80 Books” blog series, Managing Editor Lee Sioles writes about Wings of Paradise: Birds of the Louisiana Wetlands.

9780807134504LSU Press is proud to publish the work of many great photographers, recording Louisiana’s varied landscape and architecture, its flora and fauna, in gorgeously produced volumes. One of my favorites—and the coffee table book that sits on my actual coffee table—is Wings of Paradise: Birds of the Louisiana Wetlands, by Charlie Hohorst, Jr., with Marcelle Bienvenu.

This handsome book, which I had the privilege to edit, contains the work of the great outdoorsman and bird photographer Charlie Hohorst, who passed away in 2012. I’m a birder myself, which is probably why I love turning these pages again and again. Hohorst found exquisite beauty among Louisiana’s birds: the intense colors of a painter’s palette, breathtaking poses of a prima ballerina, spectacular gymnastic leaps, and small, tender domestic moments. A picture is worth a thousand words, so I won’t waste any more. Here are a few of Charlie’s birds:

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Great blue heron
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Great egret, preening
Reddish egret
Family of roseate spoonbills
White pelican
Black-necked stilts

hohorst2 Buy this book now for 20% off and get free shipping on all orders over $50, use code 0480FAV at checkout.