Cherie Quarters: The Place and the People That Inspired Ernest J. Gaines

Cherie Quarters is a book that combines personal interviews, biography, and social history to tell the story of a plantation quarter and its most famous resident, Ernest J. Gaines. It illuminates the birthplace of a preeminent Black author and the lives of the people who inspired his work. The author explores the lives and histories of the families who lived in a place where everybody was everybody's child, and describes aspects of their daily lives. The book also highlights the voices of those who called this special place home and shares the story of a lost way of life in South Louisiana.

Format: Hardback
Length: 304 pages
Publication date: 19 October 2022
Publisher: Louisiana State University Press

Cherie Quarters is a captivating book that weaves together personal interviews, biography, and social history to unravel the story of a plantation quarter and its most renowned resident, the esteemed Louisiana writer and Pulitzer Prize nominee Ernest J. Gaines. Through its clear and vivid prose, this original and vital work sheds light on the birthplace of a preeminent Black author and delves into the lives of the people who inspired his remarkable work.

Before his literary acclaim, Gaines was the son of sharecroppers in the small Black community of Cherie Quarters, located in Pointe Coupee Parish, Louisiana. Ruth Laney, in her extensive research spanning decades, has meticulously explored the lives and histories of the families, both kin and not, who called this place home. Built as slave cabins in the 1840s, the houses of Cherie Quarters were initially cold in winter, scorching hot in summer, plagued by mosquitoes, and overcrowded with people. Despite these challenging conditions, the residents transformed these houses into warm and loving homes. Laney vividly depicts the various aspects of their daily lives, encompassing work, food, entertainment, religion, and education. She then expands her focus to the white families who constructed River Lake Plantation, enslaaved its people, and subsequently controlled the lives of its Black sharecroppers.

Unfortunately, the twenty-first century witnessed the decline and eventual demise of Cherie Quarters. Like many landmarks of Black American life and history, the few remaining structures either fell into ruin or were razed. Laney recounts the valiant yet ultimately unsuccessful efforts of a small, dedicated group to preserve the remnants of this special community. These include two slave cabins, the church/schoolhouse, and a shed. Cherie Quarters is an engaging and richly detailed work that brings forth the voices of those who once called this place home and shares the poignant story of a lost way of life in South Louisiana.

Dimension: 229 x 152 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9780807178027