“Cajun Mariners is not fiction, but reads as smoothly and colorfully as a fully

conceived novel and with the same level of satisfaction.... (Woody Falgoux)

extracts a degree of candor that is both startling and refreshing.... Good fiction

requires that the reader inhabit the characters. It is a deft and intuitive writer

who can pull this off in nonfiction.... As a business primer, Cajun Mariners

should be required reading. Drawing on ingenuity and determination, these four

families created a worldwide industry. With nothing more than street smarts, or

shall we say swamp smarts, these gutsy men repeatedly cleared obstacles.”

—Scott Naugle, Biloxi SunHerald

“Filled with tales of Cajun ingenuity and wit, the book delights. ”

—New York Times Regional Newspapers

“Falgoux unsentimentally reveals the seamy underside of the oil patch, yet you

admire the resilience of the men who worked there. There is a rough romance in

this history—a romance of hard work, big paydays, failed gambles and men

against the sea.”

—Mark Lardas, The Galveston County Daily News

“Lavish detail…as much a Cajun history as a business story around four Cajun

men…a complete portrait.”

—Greg Langley, Baton Rouge Advocate

“Peppered with true-life anecdotes of oilfield life, by oilfielders themselves, Rise

of the Cajun Mariners is a one-of-a-kind glimpse into the lives touched by the

industry as well as the industry itself.”

—Midwest Book Review

“The book is about more than just pursuing the American dream...(it)

provid(es) an interesting account of the industry trail the (pioneers) blazed.”

—David Krapf, WorkBoat

“While Falgoux’s book doesn’t omit the darker side of dealing with big oil and

doing politics in Louisiana, it contains enough sly Cajun stories to entertain

anyone.”

—Reese Vaughn, The Victoria Advocate

“A terrific job of capturing the gritty beginnings of the oilfield boat business and

the extravagantly interesting characters who founded it.”

—Ken Wells, author of Crawfish Mountain and Meely Labauve