When I first met Stuart McIver and his sweet wife Joan (a fine writer in her own right) back in the 90s, he was already elderly and something of a Florida institution, the quiet inheritor of the traditions of Rawlings and Douglas.  Carolinian by birth but Floridian in his soul, he took life’s scenic road, as his wife recently said to Sun-Sentinel Travel Editor Tom Swick.  His 12 books about Florida are essential to any who love and would know our state.
    Much enamored of all McIver’s work, I particularly enjoyed his 3-volume Florida Chronicles (Dreamers, Schemers & Scalawags; Murder In the Tropics; Touched By the Sun).  I would bump into him from time-time at book fairs and readings and writer’s conferences and he always remembered me and happily shared tales of olde Florida, and encouraged me in my own writings.  My personalized signed copies of the Chronicles stand proudly on my home-office shelf.
    McIver was best known for his Hemingway’s Key West and Death in The Everglades: The Murder of Guy Bradley, America’s First Martyr to Environmentalism.
    A gentleman, a charmer, a scribe, known as "South Florida’s tribal storyteller," Stuart McIver knew and loved Florida with a rare passion. He was what they mean when they call a man authentic.  He will be missed. His slightly outdated—but charming and authentic like him—website can be found at http://www.stuartmciver.com/
        —John Bond

John Bond's story "T-Bird" appears in Best American Mysteries 2007, edited by Carl Hiassen, and will be published as a chapbook in October by ConJelCo Publishing. His reconsideration of John D. MacDonald's Condominium appears on our Classic Florida Reads page.

    The Florida Primary is Jan 29--ten days from now.   Results on the Republican side will be a big deal, while the national Democratic Party is not counting the primary because the date was moved ahead of their desired schedule.   Today, we debut our Florida Politics page, with an interview by Tom DeMarchi of Richard Grayson, fiction-writer-turned-write-in-candidate.  And I had the pleasure of reviewing Yellow Dog Democrats to Red State Republicans, in the process learning a lot about how Florida's political scene got the way it is.  People from elsewhere constantly ask me about our politics, where we can brag that we lead the nation in both drama and absurdity. 

            —Lynne Barrett

     The Seattle Times highlights Books and Books as one of the  “unique” US bookstores, saluting the Coral Gables, Miami Beach, Bal Harbor and (new) Grand Cayman stores for beauty, knowledge, great food, and the incredible lineup of author events —70 a month.  We think Florida independent bookstores are varied and full of local flavor—not to mention the ghost of Kerouac over at Haslam’s.  Take a look at our Bookstores page which is arranged more or less geographically.  In upcoming months we are going to have a Bookstore Corner to profile some of the diverse stores in the state: big, small, new, antiquarian, special interest, or fresh combinations. (Has anyone realized my dream of the bookstore/laundromat?) We’ll be happy to take some nominations or to hear from authors on tour about their experiences and recommendations. Write us at floridabookreview@gmail.com.

              —Lynne Barrett

   Thanks to all who entered our first ever FBR holiday writing contest.  We appreciate how many of you found time in this busy month to respond to our call for submissions.  Our staff read the entries blind and came up with a tie for first place, with two very different pieces which center on family, one full of the demands, stress, and humor of this time, another showing how memory freights the holidays with loss.  We have, as well, an honorable mention which looks at New Years past and present.
     The prize-winners are:
First place (tie): Karen Martin of Staunton, VA & Elaine Winer of Miami Beach
Honorable Mention: Joan Lipinsky Cochran of Boca Raton
     All three have an only-in-Florida sense of place.  All are printed at right.  When the presents are wrapped—and unwrapped—we hope you’ll read them and reflect on the special nature of the season in the Sunshine State.  We're wishing everyone a time of comfort and joy.
        —Lynne Barrett

    On Monday, it seems no one knew anything of Florida’s first Poet Laureate beyond a single sentence on the state’s arts website.  Even this bare mention contained an error (since speedily corrected), the wrong middle initial.  In just a few days on the trail, Antolin Carbonell has pulled together the sketch of his life posted below.
                    —Lynne Barrett