Comments on: A Fun Mystery Book on the Road Trip to Florida

By: Richard Mussler-Wright

Richard Mussler-Wright — Fri, 25 Jun 2010 16:17:20 +0000

I looked it up…Rose Wilder Lane wrote a fictional short story entitled “Innocence” in 1922, loosely based on her family’s stay in Westville Florida.

By: Kerry Dexter

Kerry Dexter — Fri, 25 Jun 2010 14:32:27 +0000

yes, that’s Buchanan, and as Richard points out, she’s written good non fiction about her days as a Miami crime reporter as well.

one of my favorite movies about Florida is an older one, filmed in the 1950s, and therefore sort of dated, to say the least, but still… it’s called Beneath the 12 Mile Reef, set in Tarpon Springs.
Kerry Dexter would like you to read..kickstart an Irish music recording

By: Devin

Devin — Thu, 24 Jun 2010 23:12:49 +0000

Oddly, I came to like Hiaasen through my daughter and his children’s books first. He is smart and clever and a good writer.
Devin would like you to read..My Travel Business Explained, the Sunday Check-in

By: pen4hire

pen4hire — Thu, 24 Jun 2010 20:14:06 +0000

Well, having read Hiassen’s books for adults, I can totally understand that kids (particularly about 4th or 5th grade would love his children’s books. Whacky sense of humor, as Frugal Kiwi mentions. Thanks everybody for the additional Florida suggestions. I guess I’ll have to take a look at Mississippi Masala just to see why a book about Florida is named for another state.

By: Jennifer Margulis

Jennifer Margulis — Thu, 24 Jun 2010 04:52:06 +0000

My kids read his books! I didn’t even know he wrote for grown-ups. My FAVORITE movie about Florida was Mississippi Masala
Jennifer Margulis would like you to read..Quoted in Southwest’s Spirit Magazine

By: Donna Hull

Donna Hull — Wed, 23 Jun 2010 18:21:24 +0000

I thought surely you were going to spotlight Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings who wrote her Pulitzer prize winning book, The Yearling, while living at Cross Creek in Florida.

Surprise! You chose Carl Hiassen. Skinny Dip is my favorite of his books.
Donna Hull would like you to read..Hilltop Manor’s Triple Berry Cream

By: Frugal Kiwi

Frugal Kiwi — Wed, 23 Jun 2010 18:10:42 +0000

I love Hiaasen’s work, but you do need a certain sense of humour to enjoy it. The sort of sense of humour that is amused by a road kill-eating ex-governor, for instance. Yep, that would be me.
Frugal Kiwi would like you to read..Kowa-bungalow!

By: Richard Mussler-Wright

Richard Mussler-Wright — Wed, 23 Jun 2010 17:57:54 +0000

Speaking of Edna Buchanan, check out her “The Corpse Had a Familiar Face.” These are stories from her Miami Herald days. -r

By: Sheryl

Sheryl — Wed, 23 Jun 2010 17:14:57 +0000

Can’t think of anything specific I’ve read about Florida. But I’d imagine reading these made your trip a whole lot more interesting.

By: pen4hire

pen4hire — Wed, 23 Jun 2010 16:03:41 +0000

Richard: Another interesting book recommendation and how in the world did you come up with the obscure Laura Ingalls Wilder reference? Kerry: Yes, I heard Edna Buchanan speak once, I think. Isn’t she the news paper crime reporter who turned mystery writer? But like I said, I was taking the easy way out with a book I”d already read.