With a history stretching back 91 years, Pelican Publishing in Gretna, La., has repeatedly adapted to meeting the changing demands of the market. Officially established in 1926, Pelican published William Faulkner’s first title, Sherwood Anderson and Other Creoles, which will be reissued with a new foreword in 2018. The company has been owned by the Calhoun family since 1970 and is currently led by Katherine Calhoun Nettleton, who serves as publisher and president.

Pelican publishes 50–60 new titles each year, with a staff—including warehouse personnel—numbering just 19, and its focus is on regional titles for various parts of the country, according to promotions director Antoinette de Alteris. To give a sense of the company’s publishing range, de Alteris noted that “we celebrate regional cooking from around the world.” Pelican publishes one of the top-selling Puerto Rican cookbooks and one of the top Polish cookbooks.

In addition, Pelican publishes books in French and Spanish, “because those are the languages of Louisiana—and now for much of the United States,” de Alteris said. “Our history books cover topics both popular and unpopular with an unbiased eye. We give voice to authors who have been marginalized.”

Next year’s list will “continue to be heavy on children’s books, including new picture books such as a tale about a squid by Henry Herz and a picture book biography of artist Ruth Asawa,” de Alteris said. The adult list will feature art books, a business title from a former Disney exec, and a couple of books on music.

Pelican has had some breakout backlist successes, too. One of its best-known and most popular titles, with approximately one million copies sold, is Cajun Night Before Christmas. (It inspired an entire series of books, including this year’s An Artist’s Night Before Christmas and the forthcoming Northwest Twelve Days of Christmas.) The original received an unexpected boost last year, shortly after Pelican released its first interactive e-book of the title.

“We did no marketing,” de Alteris said. “But one week after it came out, Channing Tatum was on Kelly Ripa and said it was his favorite Christmas book, brought it up on his phone, and started reading it in a Cajun accent for two straight minutes, and sales skyrocketed. The book had been out 44 years. It had sold consistently, but with that a new generation found it.”

Pelican had a similar late success with its 1999 title Microwave Cooking for One by Marie Smith. Often described as the “saddest book ever written,” it was referenced in 2013 on TV’s The Mindy Project, and in 2015 Jimmy Fallon included it in his “do not read” list. Sales jumped after both shout-outs.

“What made our company strong to begin with,” said de Alteris, “was taking oral tradition, folktales, and stories of regionalism.” One such title is Dance Halls of Spanish Louisiana by Sara Harris, which came out on November 1. It’s a look at southeast Louisiana’s Isleño community. The Isleños, of Canarian Spanish origin, are a very insular community who have created their own culture of dances, but for a variety of reasons the Isleño culture is dying. Harris went into the communities to capture the traditions before they disappeared.

The research for that book illustrates one advantage Pelican has in being a local publisher: “I met Harris through the Joan of Arc krewe,” said Harris, noting a classic parade social club. “We were getting ready for our parade, walking through a restaurant and this lady was sitting there writing. I told her that I worked for a publishing house, gave her my card, and asked if she wanted to join the parade. Soon after, when the manuscript was done she sent it in—and now we’re publishing it.”

De Alteris cited a number of reasons why an indie like Pelican has survived: “It has been a privately owned and family-run business, driven by strong individuals with a clear vision. With that foundation we have created a strong backlist, a varied and diverse frontlist, a focus on regional titles no matter the region. We have really pushed that as a touchpoint all along the way; our goal is to give a voice to communities who might not have a national reach, along with a commitment to our own unique vision. We build our business on personal relationships and a love of books.”