“If you just love Louisiana, and want to know more about our history, John’s work is a must read.”
—Louisiana State Governor Bobby Jindal
“A primer in basic politics as played by a master politician. It has the colorful personalities of good fiction, lots of sex and even a little violence.”
—St. Louis Post-Dispatch
“Like Edwards himself, this book is entertainment.”
—New Orleans Times-Picayune
“A fascinating glimpse behind the scenes of a state in which politics is a favorite pastime.”
—Dallas Times Herald
Not since Huey Long has any politician so dominated Louisiana politics as Edwin Edwards. A man of rogue energy and vaulting ambition, this Cajun governor ran the state for eight straight years, and would go on to be governor twice more, with equal parts charm and savvy while leading a personal life as freewheeling and uninhibited as his politics.
The state’s political landscape was filled by a wild and improbable supporting cast including flashy, rich, oil barons; streetwise black ward bosses; the free-thinking Pentecostal preacher, who unlocks the moral mystery of Edwards; and the not-so-good ol’ boy country sheriff, whose manhood becomes a raging campaign issue. All have a part to play in the Louisiana election where strange alliances were formed and a heap of money made.