FLORIDA AUTHORS AND THEIR BOOKSFlorida authors and their books have been a passion of mine since I first moved to Florida. I have a pretty fair collection of Florida novels, Florida history books, and a lot of interesting trivia and history that I kind of lump into the category "Floridiana". Every time I walk on the beach I notice that most folks sitting in their beach chairs are reading a book. I don't get close enough to examine titles, but I would bet that quite a few are books about Florida by famous Florida authors. There is a special thrill in reading a book that is set in the same place where you are reading it. For example, Pat Frank used Mount Dora as the setting for his fictional town of Fort Repose in his classic apocalyptic novel "Alas Babylon". 
The old Florida of our pioneer ranchers and cowboys comes alive in Patrick Smith's fantastic novel Florida writers have been part of our landscape since the first Spanish historians scribbled about their adventures in the new world. Many of them take up permanent residency, like Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings. They become known as Florida authors. Marjorie moved to Cross Creek and wrote some of her finest stuff there, including "Cross Creek" and "The Yearling". These were Florida books, and The Yearling won the Pulitzer Prize. She is maybe the most famous Florida author. Some Florida writers who lived in the state are not included in my list because their work was not about Florida. Jack Kerouac, who lived in Orlando and St. Pete, and Tennessee Williams, who lived in Key West, are examples that come to mind. As far as I know, they didn't write any books about Florida or books with a Florida setting, so I don't include them in my list of Florida writers. Ernest Hemingway lived in Key West for quite some time, but only wrote one book with a Florida setting. "To Have And Have Not" is set in Key West, but rumors are that Papa wrote it in Bimini. I still include him among Florida authors.
That's Hemingway to the right wearing a very un-Florida like sweater. Robert Frost spent many winters in Coconut Grove, but I don't think "Stopping By Woods On A Snowy Evening" is included in any books about Florida. No list compiled by me or anybody else could possibly be complete. There are just too many Florida writers for a little website like mine to include them all. So I will start with just a few Florida authors that I am familiar with. A gifted writer can paint a picture of a place in words so that it becomes very clear to the reader. Among the most gifted of Florida authors was John D. MacDonald, shown at right working at his trusty old typewriter.
An amazing thing can happen when several good authors collaborate on a book. This is what happened in 1996 with "Naked Came The Manatee".This satirical Florida novel had 13 chapters and 13 authors. Each author had a South Florida connection. The authors, in order of the chapters, are: Dave Barry, Les Standiford, Paul Levine, Edna Buchanan, James W. Hall, Carolina Hospital, Evelyn Mayerson, Tananarive Due, Brian Antoni, Vicki Hendricks, John Dufresne, Elmore Leonard and Carl Hiaasen. Dave Barry wrote the first chapter, Les Standiford wrote the the next. You get the idea. The creation of the book was like improv theater: nobody knew what they were going to write until they saw the preceding chapter. Then their writer imaginations took wing. This is one of the funniest Florida books ever written. It is a book that captures the essence of South Florida culture and all its eccentricities. I have tried to limit my list to authors who have written books set partly or entirely in Florida. Each of the following authors has created clear story portraits that capture a bit of Florida in their life and times. Fiction
Non-Fiction
History
Books
Follow the links above to the pages on each author and his or her works along with a brief biography. This page will be a work in progress, and I invite your suggestions for consideration. Review Your Favorite Florida Author Or BookWe want to know what you think about books you've read that were written by Florida authors. Write your book review right here about the books you loved or the ones you hated. Also tell us about your favorite authors. What Other Book Reviewers Have SaidClick below to see contributions from other visitors to this page... All Tim Dorsey Novels It amazes me that there is no mention of Tim, especially since his themes revolve around the eccentric and quirky history of all things and places "Florida....
Her Last Seven Days in Key West
Introduction
A Land Remembered by Patrick Smith
Cat Sitter on a Hot Tin Roof by Blaize Clement Siesta Key is the setting for Blaize Clement’s Dixie Hemingway series. Dixie was “retired” from the police department after her cop husband and their ...
HISTORY OF FLORIDA IN FORTY MINUTES, by Michael Gannon
This was a delightful book that took me 38 minutes to read, so the title is not at all misleading. A FLASH OF GREEN, by John D. MacDonald This book is one of the first ecological novels. It follows the efforts of a group of environmental activists as they try to keep developers from dredging ...
Jadyn and Rojo the Red Alligator By Ruth M Garcia-Marmolejos
Jadyn is a story about a little girl who finds a white egg with red spots that hatches a red alligator. FORT U.S.A. - If I Were President - Volume 1 E. Lathan Hudson is a singer, songwriter, author, poet, inventor and philosopher. Originally from Sylacauga, Alabama, Hudson, his wife Katie, son Hud and ...
What Would Walt Do? by D. M. Miller
This is a little biography about the adventures and impressions of D. M. Miller during the construction of Walt Disney World in the 1960's and 1970's. Curiosity Killed the Cat Sitter by Blaize Clement Dixie Hemingway (no relation to you know who) is once again embroiled in a murder. This time the victim is found with his head taped to the floor and ... Ghosts on the Coast: A Visit to Savannah and the Low Country by Jane R. Wood As the author of this book, I have to say this was the most fun to research and write. What's not to like about Savannah, Charleston and Pawleys Island,... Trouble on the St. Johns River by Jane R. Wood "Trouble on the St. Johns River" is a fiction book with an environmental theme. Brothers Joey and Bobby Johnson are outraged when they discover their ... Adventures on Amelia Island: A Pirate, A Princess and Buried Treasure by Jane R. Wood This book is the second in a series which follows 13-year-old Joey, 9-year old Bobby, and 5-year-old Katy, their sassy little sister, to Amelia Island ... Voices in St. Augustine by Jane R. Wood Thirteen-year-old Joey Johnson has a problem. He hears voices. Only he can't find the people who belong to them. His curiosity leads him on a quest where ...
THURMOND - Permanently Sealed by: Lathan Hudson
THURMOND - "Permanently Sealed" is a collection of short stories and cartoons. Scenic Driving Florida by Jan Annino Godown Godown is a former director of The Florida Historical Society and Florida Folklore Society. This is a great book for learning about Florida and some of ... Silencer by James W. Hall I have always enjoyed reading authors who create a great character and build a series of books around him or her. Since John D. McDonald died taking his ...
All Books By Randy Wayne White
My name is Travis McGee. My creator was John D. MacDonald.
Uncle Tom's Cabin
Most of us have heard of Uncle Tom's Cabin and how it was a novel that infuriated Northerns and Southerners alike, but for different reasons. THE TRAVIS MCGEE NOVELS BY JOHN D. MACDONALD Sometimes panned as a pulp fiction writer, John D. MacDonald is one of the finest writers exploring the human condition. Mixing a number of topics including ... HEMINGWAY'S CATS: AN ILLUSTRATED HISTORY by Carlene Fredericks Brennen This is an interesting and easy book to spend a couple of hours paging through to learn the history of Hemingway himself from the perspective of his love ... SCAT by Carl Hiasson Carl Hiasson delivers another Florida tale full of colorful characters and insights into the dwindling state of what was once a paradise of flora and fauna.... VISITING SMALL TOWN FLORIDA by Bruce Hunt This is a nice travel guide that discusses several towns in Florida in great detail. It's obvious that the author has been every place he writes about,... BLACKWATER SOUND, by James W. Hall If you like Thorn, the hard bitten Florida conch that is featured in many of Hall's novels, you will love this book. One of the key figures in the book ... ONE TANK TRIPS, VOL. 3, by Bill Murphy We recently moved to Clearwater and didn't know much about Florida. This little book told us about 52 neat places to visit, all within one tank of gas ... Return From Florida Authors To Florida Backroads Travel Home |
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