The late great Governor Rex LaSalle and his cohorts arrived safely in the US after a harrowing week stuck in a container with agitated bomb-sniffing dogs nearby.

For Rex — the fictional guvna of Looziana featured in Jason Berry's new novel, Last of the Red Hot Poppas — it was just another crazy week in an event-filled life (and death). We're hoping the trips from here to our distributor and to bookstores nationwide in the next couple of weeks are boring as sin for Rex and the gang. Then our beautiful little book can sit seductively on the shelves and call out to you to touch, flip through and ultimately read it.

And just for good measure, writer Lee Smith sent us this comment on the book today that we think sums up Jason's work very nicely:

"Both wildly entertaining and deadly serious, Last of the Red Hot Poppas is a fabulous read — nobody understands Louisiana politics (and its larger-than-life characters) better than Jason Berry. I couldn't put this one down."

So look for Poppas to appear in your bookstores in early September. Or if you just can't wait (as Rex would tell you, life is just too short to dally), order directly from us and get free shipping until the end of the month.