Irving Broussard

An Acadian's Journey: a Memoir Irving Broussard

The writer's delight in his Acadian, or Cajun identity and awareness is displayed through much of this long account of his 80 years. He takes the reader from the early childhood beginnings where, he writes, the 20th Century was already chugging along quite energetically; only a few miles from the bucolic, benighted back bayou of Louisiana, where his family and social group were living close to the l9th century. They had a long way to go from the simplicity of the world of his childhood to the already very urban America of the time. But Cajun America, due largely to the upheaval of World War II, did become a part of the picture of pluralistic U. S Society, fortunately while retaining many of its more endearing peculiarities and cultural traits. Bruce Broussard takes his reader on a time journey over the last 80% of the 20th Century. The more significant events, some we may have forgotten; the catastrophic Mississippi River Flood of 1927, the Great Depression of the late 20s and the 30s. The Second World War, the Korean Conflict and their impact on his and his family's life. He skillfully allows us to see some of the color, adventure and life that marked his passage through these world milestones, his life and work as a psychologist, a scientist and a teacher.