Miami Book Fair International

"Imagined Anthology of Flight and Escape"

Alicia Zuckerman — Mon, 18 Mar 2013 18:41:31 +0000

Author and former Miami Herald columnist Ana Menendez, who has been living in Amsterdam, is returning to South Florida for the Miami Book Fair International, the eight-day literary party beginning Nov. 13. Ana has a new book titled Adios, Happy Homeland and will be speaking about it during The Writer’s Voice panel at the fair Sunday, Nov. 20.

Tweet Us A Story Remix: We Have A Winner

Heather Hernandez — Fri, 23 Nov 2012 17:00:00 +0000

Two weeks ago, we asked you to co-author a story with Junot Diaz.

Last week, we asked you to remix that story with submissions that may or may not have made the final narrative.

This week, we have a winner.

Florida Book Awards Winners Aren't Just Accomplished Writers

Bob Morison — Mon, 19 Nov 2012 18:20:17 +0000

The Florida Book Awards (FBA) panel had it all—brilliant readings, thought-provoking discussion, and a harmonica solo. It featured four of the 2011 award winners. Leonard Nash, himself an FBA winner and then judge, introduced the writers with a combination of standard credentials and lesser known facts.

Lynne Barrett (general fiction award) read from her story collection Magpies. In "One Hippopotamus," a story comes to light and a romance unfolds thanks to a so-Florida event—a thunderstorm-induced power outage.

Book Fair One-Liners: Duncan's Accent Makes Everything Sound Right With The World

Heather Hernandez — Sun, 18 Nov 2012 23:47:46 +0000

Ed Irvin isn't short of kind things to say, whether it's about a male or female author. Here's his latest feedback:

"Glen Duncan, author of Talulla Rising, wastes no time on small talk, launching straight into his reading. His accent brings a hypnotic, sleep-inducing serenity to his words, even as he describes a werewolf tearing the throat from a woman."

Pork, Pain, Bananas And All The Usual Poetry Stuff

Ashley Jones — Sun, 18 Nov 2012 23:38:35 +0000

This was the event to end all events. A beautiful poetry reading by Campbell McGrath, Kevin Young, Richard Blanco, and Dana Gioia. Young dealt us pork and pain. McGrath bathed us in banana and creatures from the bay. Blanco showed us the shame in Legos, and Gioia recited his classic verse with effortless style.

Book Fair One-Liners: Things We Still Don't Get About Women

Heather Hernandez — Sun, 18 Nov 2012 23:13:10 +0000

Annik Adey-Babinsky, of the Florida Book Review, shared this with us earlier:

"Building Three Chapman Hall: Naomi Wolf begins by telling the audience that she wrote Vagina: A New Biography, because she found that western society's understanding of female sexuality was 40 years out of date."

One book and 40 more years current, I'm still on the fence about society having women down to a science.

16 Candles, 140 Characters: Molly Ringwald At The Miami Book Fair

Heather Hernandez — Sun, 18 Nov 2012 21:05:34 +0000

There's a lot of swooning to be done when a well-known Brat Packer decides to spend part of her day reading to you from her new book When it Happens to You. Here are just a few of the many endearing comments we've spotted on the web today about Molly Ringwald:

"The audience releases a collective groan when the presenter announces that Molly Ringwald will only be signing books following her reading. No DVDs, posters, or other memorabilia." - Ed Lavin

Graphic Novelists Opt To Kill Shakespeare

Sarah Mason — Sun, 18 Nov 2012 18:57:35 +0000

Kill Shakespeare! Those are the first words to which my engineer boyfriend Adam was attracted when we arrived at the Book Fair (other than "ham and cheese croissant"). He beelined to the colorful table and picked up a book with a quill pen drawn on the cover, and we were greeted by Conor McCreery's friendly, "Hello! Do you like graphic novels?" Both Adam and I are fairly indifferent, and I think Conor could tell, but he didn't miss a beat.

Book Fair One-Liners: Cool Nickname, Thanks Autocorrect

Heather Hernandez — Sun, 18 Nov 2012 17:50:17 +0000

Ed Irvin reminds us why we can't always trust technology to have our backs:

"Siobhan Vivian, co-author of Burn for Burn, comparing stories of name butcherings, says her college writing professor took to calling her Soybean because that's what Microsoft Word auto-corrected her name to."

Ed Irvin is a contributor to the Florida Book Review.

Book Fair One-Liners: Thanks For The Heads-Up, @MiamiBookFair!

Heather Hernandez — Sun, 18 Nov 2012 17:14:12 +0000

If you're looking for a way to get to there or a place to park, @MiamiBookFair shared this helpful gem this morning:

How to get to Fair: Drive & park @miamiparking garage for $5; Metromover College Bayside or North; Trolley; Bike & get $3 discount #MBFI

Miami Book Fair Panel: Mystery Writers Are All Business And Pleasure

Sarah Mason — Sun, 18 Nov 2012 16:24:35 +0000

The Mystery Writers of America panel were all business. At least, they were until they became mystery writers. The panel, held in what the moderator called "the recovery room," featured three members from the association: James Grippando, Jeffrey Siger, and Sharon Potts. All three members were "over-educated lawyers and business people who have fallen upon hard times as writers."

Book Fair One-Liners: The World Changes So Fast, It Comes To You

Jessica Meszaros — Sat, 17 Nov 2012 21:00:00 +0000

Writer Josip Novakovich, was quoted on Twitter from Eileen Spiegler.

'No point in traveling, because the world changes so fast, it comes to you.' - Josip Novakovich #mbfi
— eileen spiegler (@espiegler) November 17, 2012

Writer Junot Diaz Turns His Talk Into A Comedy Show At The Miami Book Fair

Jennifer Maritza McCauley — Sat, 17 Nov 2012 20:29:18 +0000

Everybody knows Junot Diaz is a cool cat. A slick dude, a sharp-talker. He’s also a literary superstar. Mix brilliance with sly wit and you’ve got a fantastic reading.

Tonight, Junot Diaz made an evening stop at the Miami Book Fair. At 6:45 pm, the Dominican-American writer sauntered up to stage wearing a faded red t-shirt and glasses. Diaz casually leaned on the podium, scanned the crowd and said, “It’s great you all came out here. It’s Monday…and you’ve got plenty of shit to do on Monday.”

Book Fair One-Liners: Author Hanna Rosin's Top Three

Jessica Meszaros — Sat, 17 Nov 2012 20:00:00 +0000

Diana Moskovitz is tweeting from Hanna Rosin's talk at Miami Book Fair International today.

The End of Men is not a feminist manifesto or delusional, @hannarosin says.

Author Lemony Snicket Is A No-Show At Miami Book Fair International

Louis K. Lowy — Sat, 17 Nov 2012 19:30:00 +0000

I'm standing in a line dominated by tousle-headed kids, grandparents with tousle-headed kids, and soccer moms with tousle-headed kids. The antsy kids range in age from seven to fifteen years old. There are about three hundred of us in total.

Book Fair One-Liners: We've Become A Market Society, And It's Destroying Us

Jessica Meszaros — Sat, 17 Nov 2012 18:57:23 +0000

Miami Book Fair International visitor, @glenn_ebooks, tweeted a memorable moment from Harvard professor, Michael Sandel, today.

We’ve become a market society not just a market economy and it’s slowly destroying us - Michael Sandel at #MBFI
— glenn (@glenn_ebooks) November 17, 2012

Delving Into Past Lives At The Miami Book Fair

Jan Becker — Sat, 17 Nov 2012 18:40:27 +0000

The volunteers at the Book Fair have a rough job herding the audience into their seats before each event. As I entered Chapman Auditorium for the Evening with Drs. Brian and Amy Weiss, I asked one of the volunteers where I should sit. He answered, "I don't care where you sit, as long as you don't run nobody over." Looking around, I could see this might be a bit of a concern.

Book Fair One-Liners: Youth Know Nothing

Jessica Meszaros — Sat, 17 Nov 2012 18:00:52 +0000

Erica K. Landau tweets from the talk of American author, Camille Paglia, in today's Miami Book Fair International.

Paglia goes off on postmodernism and that youth know nothing and that the left has nothing to offer them. #firsttwominutes #MBFI
— Erica K. Landau (@riotwoman) November 17, 2012

Reporter Jeffrey Toobin Tells Miami Book Fair It's Obama vs. Supreme Court

Jan Becker — Sat, 17 Nov 2012 17:37:18 +0000

Jeffrey Toobin’s discussion of his latest book, The Oath: The Obama White House vs the Supreme Court, began right after the crowd for the Evening with Drs. Brian and Amy Weiss let out. Toobin is a legal analyst and reporter for CNN and The New Yorker. The room was filled with attendees, many who stayed in their seats during the intermission between events.

Book Fair One-Liners: Author Dave Barry's Top Three

Jessica Meszaros — Sat, 17 Nov 2012 17:02:30 +0000

Miami Book Fair International goer, Hannah Sampson, tweets one-liners from author Dave Barry's talk today.

"Ppl are always surprised we have a good book fair in Miami because they think we're all degenerates. And we are.

Author Sandra Cisnero Gets Personal

Marci Calabretta — Sat, 17 Nov 2012 16:32:19 +0000

Because today has not been a good day. I considered not attending the Evening With Sandra Cisneros, but I am so glad I did. When she walked on stage, I knew right away this was not my typical author-visits-college-to-impart-literary-wisdom-to-aspiring-writers sort of reading. This was a cozy, exciting conversation. Cisneros brought a green Frida Kahlo tote bag on stage, which oddly complimented her sea-green dress with an under-ruffle of maroon and then green again, black stockings, beige suede shoes. Swanky.

Book Fair One-Liners: Writers Are Poor Representatives Of Their Book

Marci Calabretta — Sat, 17 Nov 2012 16:03:15 +0000

Adam Gopnik illuminates the evening with stories rather than excerpts: "I feel writers are often poor representatives of their book and the most fun is in the Q & A anyway."

Marci Calabretta is a contributor to the Florida Book Review. Calabretta attended the Adam Gopnik talk on Thursday, Nov. 15 . You can check out FBR's full live blog of the 2012 book fair here.

Pushing And Shoving For Bargain Books

Sarah L. Mason — Sat, 17 Nov 2012 15:29:57 +0000

So I didn't make it far. I walked into the book fair and the first thing I saw was a sign that read, "Hardcover books $2, All others $1," a great deal from the Friends of the Miami-Dade Public Library.

The Story Doesn’t End Here: Remix A Story With Junot Díaz

Sammy Mack — Fri, 16 Nov 2012 17:00:00 +0000

Earlier this week, we asked you to help us tell a story—140 characters at a time—in honor of Miami Book Fair International.

We tweeted out the first line, given to us by Pulitzer-winning author Junot Díaz: “The dogs hadn’t barked all week.”

Pretty In Pink Redux In Miami

Alicia Zuckerman — Fri, 16 Nov 2012 15:30:00 +0000

At long last, brat pack heartthrobs Molly Ringwald and Andrew McCarthy will cross paths again. They're both appearing at the Miami Book Fair International on the same day, in the same room ... but not, sadly, at the same time. They'll be separated by five hours. Ohhhhhhh.

Bunny Yeager: "Sexy In a Nice Way"

Trina Sargalski and Clotilde Luce — Fri, 16 Nov 2012 11:13:52 +0000

Whether we like it or not, South Florida is known for sun, beaches…and skin. Back in the 1950s, pin-up model Bettie Page posed for some of her most classic photos here.

Introducing Book Fair Readers To Haiti

Marva Hinton — Thu, 15 Nov 2012 11:30:00 +0000

All week, we're talking with Florida authors appearing at the Miami Book Fair. So Spoke the Earth is an anthology of stories, poems and essays about Haiti.

The book is divided into three sections: death and tragedy; the nation’s rich storytelling tradition; and Haiti’s economic struggles.

Although the book was published in the United States (by Women Writers of Haitian Descent), all of the pieces in the second section are in French or Haitian Creole.

How Key West Stays Quirky

Arianna Prothero — Thu, 15 Nov 2012 11:11:32 +0000

Robert Kerstein is a government professor at the University of Tampa. But when he's not teaching on the other coast, he likes hanging out in Key West. His frequent trips there have translated into a new book about how the little city at the bottom of the peninsula has managed to maintain its unique character while becoming a major tourist town. The book is called Key West: On The Edge, Inventing the Conch Republic. And this weekend, Kerstein will be appearing at the Miami Book Fair International.

Tom Wolfe's Signature At Miami Book Fair Resembles A Tropical Storm

Jan Becker — Wed, 14 Nov 2012 20:58:52 +0000

Things are a little different when Tom Wolfe comes to the Book Fair. For example, the stand-by line in the back alley, where they take the people who think they can just walk in without securing a ticket first, fills up. I know, because I ducked down that alley to have a private moment with my press pass. As soon as the Book Fair employees walked away, a shadowy man appeared and began to scalp tickets to the event. Think about that for a second--scalpers at a book fair. Who could have imagined?

How Ghosts Of Legendary Miami Family Fire Poet's Imagination

Christine DiMattei — Wed, 14 Nov 2012 16:00:00 +0000

"This is a work of fiction," cautions the introduction to poet C.M. Clark's latest book, "Charles Deering Forecasts the Weather & Other Poems."

Whatever would Charles Deering say?

If there's one person who can at least guess, it's Clark. She was the very first Literary Artist-in-Residence for the Deering Estate, which stands alongside the Biltmore Hotel and Vizcaya as one of Miami-Dade's historical gems. The estate was built in 1916 by Deering, a wealthy industrialist, and once housed one of the most extensive art collections in our region.