Bayou Bytes Blog

It's nearly the end of the summer! Immunizations are a hot topic, so let's review a recent blockbuster book about the history of medical research. At the time Henrietta Lacks died from cervical cancer at John Hopkins in 1951, doctors were routinely taking cell biopsies without obtaining informed patient consent. But once researchers discovered Lacks's cervical cancer cell line (called HeLa) was immortal, they used it to develop countless medical advances and vaccines (including polio vaccines). The line became commercialized, and lives were saved worldwide. Meanwhile, Henrietta Lacks's own family went without health insurance.   The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks by Rebecca Skloot doesn't just explore the impact of Henrietta Lacks and her unusual cervical cancer cells on scientific research-- it also tackles the importance of ethical research, racism and classism in American medicine, and informed consent. I would highly recommend this book to teens or adults inte...

 Framed spoons. There are framed photos of spoons all over the apartment set in the cult classic so-bad-it's-genius film The Room. The framed spoons are in the background of nearly every shot with a table, and that's because the art department wasn't allowed to replace the stock photos. Tommy Wiseau, the writer-director-producer-star of the film, wanted to hurry up and film the movie. The entire set was purchased directly from a thrift store's window display, and the art department had been concerned about the set looking as bare (as intended, in its former life.)  How does Tommy Wiseau have the money to almost single-handedly fund this film? Even by the end of the book, no one really knows; all author (and Room co-star!) Greg Sestero can do is take some educated guesses. Tommy Wiseau is a cipher; he's an unstable, unfailingly earnest and optimistic pistache of someone who bought the American Dream for 19.99 plus shipping and handling. His famous line from The Room-...

...he was collecting wrestlers. We were his newest trophies. If you didn't want to be displayed on his wall, he threatened to ruin you. Foxcatcher: The True Story of My Brother's Murder, John du Pont's Madness, and the Quest for Olympic Gold by Mark Schultz  with David Thomas Mark Schultz is a gifted wrestler, like his amiable brother Dave, but he struggles to find steady financial support-- even as he wins world titles and Olympic gold. Enter John E du Pont, an eccentric Pennsylvania benefactor with a raging inferiority complex. Foxcatcher is part sports-story, part true crime -- the book opens with a killing and closes with trial-- but ultimately, it's an angry, shake-your-fist-at-the-sky, push-your-papers-off-your-desk-and-scream autobiography. Mark Schultz's brother, Dave, is shot and killed by John E du Pont, the mad, rich philanthropic Pennsylvania heir to the du Pont family fortune. To date, he's the wealthiest man ever convicted of m...

Courtesy of goodreads.com In 1992, hikers found an emaciated body of a young man, huddled in a broken down bus.  In 1993, American author, Jon Krakauer, wrote about the man, Christopher McCandless, in a story for the magazine, Outside.   In 1997, Krakauer wrote a book, Into the Wild , detailing McCandless' life, adventure, and death.  In 2007, the highly anticipated movie version debuted.  A nonfiction account, Into the Wild , is now recommended reading both high schools and college; it has become the pinnacle of what it means to live life to the fullest. And now, 23 years after his death, the story of Chris McCandless in  Into the Wild  continues to enthrall, enrage, and captivate readers, inspiring fierce debates on freedom of spirit, the pressure of modern society, and the never-ending back and forth between responsibility to society and the timeless yearning for a greater meaning in life.  He was raised in an upper middle class (albeit dysfunct...

Find what you're looking for here at the Library! In addition to rows of books on history and biography, we also offer these online resources that you can use from the comfort of your own home. To visit these resources, log on to http://calcasieulibrary.org/resources                                                   (Access Newspaper Archive available inside library only.)