The Wild Girl Catahoula

Every Sunday, Mike and Yvette could be found sitting on the porch listening to Pop recount stories of growing up near the Catahoula swamp. Tall tales of creatures that could only live in nightmares…an old hag with long, boney fingers, a tree that comes to life, and a wild girl who keeps “toe-kens” from her human encounters. Tall tales, yes, and none of them true…right?!

Yet when the family outing to visit Tante Nana, deep in the backwoods of Catahoula goes awry, Yvette soon discovers that strange things happen where the black trees grow.

Ages 8-12

Yvette Landry grew up in Breaux Bridge, Louisiana, not far from the levees of the Atchafalaya Basin, North America’s largest swampland. State of Louisiana 2013 and 2019 Music Ambassador, former Director of Louisiana Folk Roots Summer Cajun & Creole Music Kids Camp, and recently inducted into the Louisiana Music Hall of Fame, Landry strives to bring cultures and traditions together, ensuring that they will be passed along. She is the award-winning author of The Ghost Tree, Madame Grand Doigt, and A Conversation with the Godfather of Swamp Pop.

Cullen Bernard has been creating art for as long as he can remember. Growing up, he was captivated by the wonder of animation. As he got older, his love for storytelling evolved through the pages of comic books that inspired him to develop a style of his own. Today, Cullen combines those early influences with a passion for storytelling to create vibrant, character-driven illustrations. Whether he's crafting whimsical universes from scratch or collaborating with authors to bring their stories to life, his goal remains the same: to create art that sparks wonder, inspires joy, and lingers in the hearts of readers.