Florida Center for the
Book Receives Big Read Grant
The National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) announced that Florida Center for the Book at Broward County Library is one of 117 organizations that will receive grants to support
Big Read programs between September and December 2007. The Big Read, launched nationally in 2006 by the NEA, in partnership
with the Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS) and Arts Midwest, encourages literary reading by asking communities
to come together to read and discuss a single book. Read more here.
First Annual Florida Book Awards Florida State University's
Program in American & Florida Studies has joined with several other organizations to establish the Florida Book Awards. In
March they honored books in general fiction, popular fiction, nonfiction, children’s literature, young
adult literature, poetry and Spanish Language. The 2006 award winners include Tony Souza’s Whiteman,
Carl Hiaasen’s Nature Girl, Michael Grunwald’s The Swamp, N.E. Bode's (aka Julianna
Baggot) The Somebodies and Peter Meinke’s The Contracted World. To see a complete list of the award winners and for more information about the competition, visit their website at:
http://www.fsu.edu/~ams/bookawards/index.html
Read a review of Michael Grunwald's The Swamp on our history page
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Hurt Go Happy by Florida Writer, Ginny
Rorby, receives numerous honors
Hurt Go Happy
by Ginny Rorby has been selected by the NY Public Library system as one of the winners of the 78th Annual Books for the Teen
Age 2007 awards. The book has also been chosen as the KLIATT Editor's Choice for 2006 Young Adult
Hardcover Fiction and as an International Reading Association's 2007 Teachers' Choice Selection. Ms. Rorby is an alumna
of the MFA program at Florida International University. James Barrett-Morison reviews Hurt Go Happy on our
Young Adult Page.
Florida State Song Contest
A
contest is ongoing to compose a new state song.
The current state song -- "The Old Folks At Home" also
known as "Swanee River" -- was adopted as Florida's official state song (replacing "Florida, My Florida")
in 1935. Governor Charlie Crist excluded the Stephen Foster song, which some consider to have racially offensive lyrics,
from his inauguration earlier this year.
"The Old Folks At Home" was written in 1851 and sold by Foster
to famed minstrelman E.P. Christy. The lyrics are in first person dialect, with the singer, who is roaming sadly "all
up and down de whole creation" yearning to return to "de old plantation." Foster is reported to have
chosen the "Swanee" because of its rhythm and sound. Foster never visited Florida. The Suwanee
River flows southwest from Georgia's Okefenokee Swamp to the Gulf of Mexico, separating the Panhandle from the rest of
the state.
The Florida Music Educators Association is looking for a replacement. Entries were accepted through
Oct. 1, 2007. Contest rules are available at www.justsingflorida.org by the Florida Music Educators' Association. In addition to technical considerations of length and vocal range,
the song must have "appropriate lyrics... that are inclusive."
Vote for the New Florida State Song
The three contenders for the new Florida state song have been announced, and the state is asking Florida to vote.
The choices are "Florida, My Home "--Music by Carl Ashley (Boynton Beach), Lyrics by Betsy Dixon (Boynton
Beach); "My Florida Home,"--Music and lyrics by Christopher Marshall (Orlando); "Florida (Where the Sawgrass
Meets the Sky)"--Music and Lyrics by Jan Hinton (Pompano Beach). So visit the Just Sing Florida website to listen to the songs and place your vote before January 10 at midnight.
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