Shows
Florida Book ClubJennine Capo-Crucet and "Say Hello to My Little Friend" - Season 11, Episode 8If you love any of Scarface, orcas, Miami, dangerous family histories, Pitbull impersonators, and/or compelling stories about lost young men looking for narratives to believe in, you will love our conversation with Jennine Capo-Crucet on her novel Say Hello to My Little Friend, which features all of the above, and we are thrilled to have her for our Season 11 finale!
2025-02-0534 minFlorida Book ClubAriel Francisco and "All the Places We Love Have Been Left in Ruins" - Season 11, Episode 7Ariel Francisco's new bilingual poetry collection (Spanish translations by the poet's father!) ruminates on subjects familiar to anyone who's worried at all about Florida's future: development, sea level rise, "resilience", et al. But it's also kind of hopeful, as we discuss with him today. And there are lots of ocean critters, a motif it shares with Ariel's previous collection A Sinking Ship Is Still a Ship, which we discussed with him in Season 9.
2025-01-2948 minFlorida Book ClubCatching Up with Shane Hinton - Season 11, Episode 6In this week's episode, we catch up with Shane Hinton, author of Pinkies and Radio Dark, and editor of We Can't Help It If We're From Florida, ahead of his keynote speech at the Florida College English Assocation conference later this month. He's got a new novel-in-stories (or is it a short story collection?) coming out later in 2025, which he'll preview for us!
2025-01-2239 minFlorida Book ClubKristen Hare and "Hotels, Motels, and Inns of Florida" - Season 11, Episode 5A lot of Florida's boutique resorts, lodges, beach motels, and villas have some pretty intriguing stories to tell! Poynter Institute director of craft and local news Kristen Hare joins us to discuss her new book, the not-quite-history-not-quite-travel-guide Hotels, Motels, and Inns of Florida, which brings these stories to light and will definitely give Floridians some staycation ideas
2025-01-1538 minFlorida Book ClubDarcy Greco and "One More Iris" - Season 11, Episode 4Darcy Greco's novel of addiction, family dysfunction, and despair is saved from bleakness by her resilient and optimistic narrator. Darcy joins us today to discuss what it was like inhabiting this character's dark life during the composition of the novel, why fiction is preferable to memoir as a medium, and how being a northern transplant to Tampa inspired her, to a degree.
2025-01-0837 minFlorida Book ClubRevisiting 'The Storm' with Keith Huneycutt - Season 11, Episode 3The Storm is an important literary document in Florida's history. It's also a compelling storm story (if anyone still wants to read one after 2024). Keith Huneycutt joins us again to talk about the newly-published edition from the University Press of Florida, how we can say with near-certainty who wrote it, and why author Ellen Brown Anderson's legacy matters historically.
2025-01-0222 minFlorida Book ClubAsha Elias and "Pink Glass Houses" - Season 11, Episode 2If a lurid story of PTA drama, fundraising rivalries, Ponzi schemes, and adults acting less mature than their kids sounds fun to you, you will love Asha Elias' novel Pink Glass Houses! Asha joins us this episode to talk about her creative process and more generally about public school, PTA fundraising in Miami, and south Florida literary vibes.
2024-12-2426 minFlorida Book ClubDoug Alderson and "Encounters with Florida's Endangered Wildlife" - Season 11, Episode 1Doug Alderson, author of Encounters with Florida's Endangered Wildlife, joins us to kick off Season 11, discussing his work as a steward and advocate for Florida's most vulnerable (and breathtaking) natural spaces. (There's also a lot of Tallahassee-area shout outs, both in the book and in our conversation!)
2024-12-1834 minFlorida Book ClubLaura van den Berg and "State of Paradise" - Season 10, Episode 8Laura van den Berg's new novel State of Paradise gave me serious Franz Kafka and David Lynch vibes. It contains some of the weirdest evocations of Florida I've ever encountered, and that's saying a lot. I'm not sure we even touched on half of what this book contains, thematically, in this great conversation to wrap up season 10!
2024-08-0728 minFlorida Book ClubAlex Gurtis and "When the Ocean Comes to Me" - Season 10, Episode 7Fans of climate-change poetry and the struggles most people endure under late-stage capitalism in Florida will love Alex Gurtis' When the Ocean Comes to Me. And if you aren't, but you are into imagism, haiku, and/or prose poetry, you will still love our conversation about his new chapbook from Bottlecap Press.
2024-07-3133 minFlorida Book ClubCatching Up With P. Scott Cunningham - Season 10, Episode 6Leaving Florida after you've built a huge legacy with a project like O, Miami must be hard. We welcome back P. Scott Cunningham to talk about relocating to Illinois, how O, Miami will carry on, some rising South Florida authors, and the strange state Florida literary education currently finds itself in.
2024-07-2422 minFlorida Book ClubTyler Gillespie and "Florida Man: Poems Revisited" - Season 10, Episode 5Poet Tyler Gillespie's 2018 collection Florida Man is BACK! The 2024 reissue contains 20 new poems under the title Heat Advisory. He stops by the clubhouse to talk about the book's republication, how Florida has changed since 2018, and why QR codes are aesthetically cool (among other topics).
2024-07-1728 minFlorida Book ClubGale Massey and "Rising" - Season 10, Episode 4Gale Massey presents a varied cast of imperfect, sometimes violent or reckless, but ultimately sympathetic characters in her 2021 collection Rising and Other Stories. We cover her creative process in our conversation, the factors involved in identifying as a "Florida writer," and we also give some shout-outs to Pinellas Park!
2024-07-1025 minFlorida Book ClubAnsel Taylor and "Swampland" - Season 10, Episode 3Lan O Lakes native and recent Ringling College grad Ansel Taylor joins us to discuss his animated series concept Swampland, a fun amalgamation of Gravity Falls, Celtic mythology, and Florida wildlife, among many other elements! He'll also revisit George McCowan's eco-horror film Frogs with us, and talk about why he thinks queer people are drawn to cryptids.
2024-07-0333 minFlorida Book ClubScott Michael Powers and "The Murder Plague" - Season 10, Episode 2"Dystopia" is a frequently-invoked genre description; Scott Michael Powers, author of the novel The Murder Plague, joins us in this episode to discuss his tale of a pathogen emerging from a Florida biotech facility and driving those infected to embark on deranged murderous rampages that destroy the social fabric of the US, and why dystopias have such a broad appeal and rich recent literary history.
2024-06-2627 minFlorida Book ClubLori Roy and "Lake County" - Season 10, Episode 1Gambling, murder, and desperation plague the small town of Hockta, Florida over a several-day period in the 1950s in Lori Roy's compelling new novel Lake County. There's also a (fictionalized) celebrity involved! Lori joins us in conversation about her book to kick off season 10 of Florida Book Club.
2024-06-1926 minFlorida Book ClubMara Beneway and Florida Weird - Season 9, Episode 8Florida Weird is a zine that will remind some readers of a rougher-around-the-edges Islandia Journal. The creator and driving artistic force behind Florida Weird, Mara Beneway, joins us to discuss the zine's creation and how Florida has inspired her, as a non-native. (Also, find out – what is a zine?)
Further Reading
Visit Mara's website
Follow Mara on Instagram
2024-03-0632 minFlorida Book ClubAriel Francisco and "A Sinking Ship Is Still a Ship" - Season 9, Episode 7Ariel Francisco joins us today to discuss his bilingual volume of poems, A Sinking Ship Is Still a Ship, which features haikus, lots of poems about insomnia, and haunting imagery of the sea reclaiming Florida. He also talks a bit about his own translation work!
2024-02-2834 minFlorida Book ClubA Conversation with Illustrator Russell Beans - Season 9, Episode 6Printmaker and illustrator Russell Beans' work depicting cryptids, exotic animals, and rare endangered plants has graced the pages of Islandia Journal since its inception. He joins us to talk about his creative process, the inspiring wonder of the Everglades and south Florida, and where else you can see his work!
2024-02-2122 minFlorida Book ClubMichael Wheaton and "Home Movies" - Season 9, Episode 5Michael Wheaton's Home Movies is hard to classify. It's basically a memoir-essay-treatise of novella length, I guess? And it covers the evolution of media consumption, whether art or creativity matter, land development in Florida, and the value of nostalgia. And the author talks about all that with us today on Florida Book Club!
2024-02-1439 minFlorida Book ClubRyan Rivas and "Lizard People" - Season 9, Episode 4Ryan Rivas is a regular at the Clubhouse; he joins us today to talk about his novella Lizard People, conspiratorial thinking, ideas of white identity, and the marketability of the short novel as a form (and those are all closely related topics here!).
2024-02-0739 minFlorida Book ClubAndrea Rinard and "Murmurations" - Season 9, Episode 3Flash fiction, micro fiction, prose poems, and so-called "short-short stories" may all be technically different forms, but if you like tiny stories of any stripe, you will love Andrea Rinard's 2023 collection Murmurations. She joins the Florida Book Club to discuss her work in this genre, getting inspiration from her students, and her affinity for 1980s settings!
2024-01-3137 minFlorida Book ClubMistie Watkins and "Hiraeth" - Season 9, Episode 2Mistie Watkins joins us to talk about her alluring and compelling work Hiraeth, a collection of poetic, often-surreal vignettes detailing her childhood and family life in Central Florida. There are fairly equal doses of pathos, determination, hope, and beauty in this book, and in our talk!
2024-01-2440 minFlorida Book ClubA Conversation With Jarret Keene - Season 9, Episode 1We kick off Season 9 of Florida Book Club with a wide-ranging conversation covering education in Florida, the Tampa death metal scene of the late 80s-early 90s, and what it was like growing up in the Bay Area during that time. Las Vegas-based author (and Florida native) Jarret Keene joins us for this episode.
2024-01-1740 minFlorida Book ClubA Look Back: Three Years of Florida Book ClubAfter 60+ episodes (and over a dozen blog posts), my producer and I take a look back at three years of Florida Book Club and maybe offer some vague hints as to what's ahead for the podcast!
2023-11-1534 minFlorida Book ClubShane Hinton and "Pinkies" - Season 8, Episode 8Shane Hinton's 2015 collection Pinkies is full of bizarre gems: surreal settings, ominous images, and an absolutely terrific title story where giant predatory pythons roam a suburban community attacking and devouring humans. He joins us today to discuss Pinkies, his work as an editor, what he's got coming up, and memories of his childhood pet.
2023-09-0647 minFlorida Book ClubHeather Sellers and "Field Notes from the Flood Zone" - Season 8, Episode 7On a week where a major hurricane is heading toward Florida, author Heather Sellers joins us to discuss her 2022 Florida Book Prize winning poetry collection Field Notes from the Flood Zone, a somber meditation on Florida's ecological fragility and the ghosts of the past.
2023-08-3024 minFlorida Book ClubAlicia Thompson and "With Love, From Cold World" - Season 8, Episode 6We welcome back Alicia Thompson to discuss her new novel With Love, From Cold World, the romance genre more generally (again), how her life has changed since the publication of her previous novel (Love in the Time of Serial Killers), and the value of content warnings.
2023-08-2348 minFlorida Book ClubErin Kimmerle and "We Carry Their Bones" - Season 8, Episode 5The Dozier School for Boys in Marianna, FL, went by several names in its 100-year history. Under any name, it represents a blighted, ugly chapter in Florida history. University of South Florida anthropologist Erin Kimmerle joins us today to discuss We Carry Their Bones, her compelling account of the work she and her team undertook to bring the atrocities committed there to wider public attention and to bring the remains of those who never left back to their families.
2023-08-1632 minFlorida Book ClubP. Scott Cunningham and "Ya Te Veo" - Season 8, Episode 4Plants that eat people, shout-outs to Zydrunas Ilgauskas, metaphors involving the NES version of Contra, meditations on classical composers, and much more feature in P. Scott Cunningham's 2018 poetry collection Ya Te Veo. He joins us to discuss it, his work with O, Miami, translating poetry from Spanish, and what else he's got going on.
2023-08-0928 minFlorida Book ClubMark Muncy and "Eerie Florida" - Season 8, Episode 3You may have seen "Eerie Florida" author Mark Muncy discussing paranormal history on the Travel Channel or Discovery. Or you may have visited his Hellview Cemetery in St. Petersburg. Or listened to his podcast, Eerie Travels. He's passionate about his work. But today, he took some time to join Florida Book Club to discuss that work with us!
2023-08-0235 minFlorida Book ClubErika Lance and Valerie Willis of 4 Horsemen Publications - Season 8, Episode 2Generally we think of the "apocalypse" as a bad thing. But Erika Lance and Valerie Willis of 4 Horsemen Publications eagerly strive to bring it about! (in the publishing world, that is) They join us to talk about their business model, their press' unique focus and particular mission, and writing under pseudonyms!
2023-07-2628 minFlorida Book ClubMichael Wheaton of Autofocus Books - Season 8, Episode 1Do you like autobiographies? Memoirs? Biopics? True crime? Reality TV? Or any "real-life" adjacent narratives? Then you'll love the works published by Orlando-based Autofocus Books. Founder and publisher Michael Wheaton joins us to talk about how Autofocus got off the ground, his interest in "artful autobiographical writing", and more!
2023-07-1937 minFlorida Book ClubRyan Rivas and "Nextdoor in Colonialtown" - Season 7, Episode 8Nextdoor.com (specifically the Colonialtown North forums of Nextdoor.com) serves as the raw material for Ryan Rivas' fascinating collage of neighborhood photos and excerpted, rearranged, and reassembled posts from the site. He joins us to discuss his creative process, among other things, in our season 7 finale.
2023-04-1941 minFlorida Book ClubTyler Gillespie and "the nature machine!" - Season 7, Episode 7If you like poetry adorned with robot voices, QR codes, webcam videos, and generous references to Britney Spears, Monica Geller, and climate change, join us on this episode as we welcome Tyler Gillespie back to the podcast to discuss his soon-to-be-released collection, the nature machine!.
2023-04-1229 minFlorida Book ClubAndy Huse, Barbara Cruz, Jeff Houck and "The Cuban Sandwich: A History in Layers" - Season 7, Episode 6Who doesn't love sandwiches? Join me and self-described "sandwich obsessives" Andy Huse, Barbara Cruz, and Jeff Houck, all with their own unique set of culinary and historical credentials, as we discuss their new, Florida Book Award Gold Medal winning book The Cuban Sandwich: A History in Layers!
2023-04-0549 minFlorida Book Club"Florida Man Murders" - Season 7, Episode 5Native Floridian Nichole Reed returns to the Florida Book Club to discuss Oxygen's deceptively trashy-looking true crime series from 2021, Florida Man Murders.
2023-03-2226 minFlorida Book ClubJonathan Escoffery and "If I Survive You" - Season 7, Episode 4Author Jonathan Escoffery joins us today to discuss his amazing collection of interlinked short stories, If I Survive You, essential reading for anyone who enjoys indelible characters, skillful shifts in perspective and narration, and portraits of south Florida before, during, and after Hurricane Andrew.
2023-03-1541 minFlorida Book ClubTim Gilmore and "JaxPsychoGeo" - Season 7, Episode 3According to Tim Gilmore, creator and author of JaxPsychoGeo, Jacksonville has always had a hard time telling its stories. Join us as we delve into some of those stories, a lot of which are unsavory and violent, but revelatory about larger cultural forces in not just Jacksonville, but the South in general!
2023-03-1044 minFlorida Book ClubJoey Hedger and "In the Line of a Hurricane, We Wait" - Season 7, Episode 2We here at the Florida Book Club love a good storm story. So does Joey Hedger, author of the 2018 novella In the Line of a Hurricane, We Wait. He joins us today to talk about it and about storm narratives in general.
2023-03-0123 minFlorida Book ClubAlicia Thompson and "Love in the Time of Serial Killers" - Season 7, Episode 1Tune in for the season seven premiere to hear Chris get schooled on the romance genre by Alicia Thompson, Florida native and author of the novel Love in the Time of Serial Killers, a surprising, true crime-steeped rom-com set in the doldrums of a Florida summer.
Further Reading
Buy Love in the Time of Serial Killers via Bookshop.org
Visit Alicia Thompson's website
2023-02-2227 minFlorida Book ClubLaura van den Berg and "I Hold a Wolf By the Ears" - Season 6, Episode 8Fiction writer Laura van den Berg joins us to talk about her most recent collection, I Hold a Wolf By the Ears, midnight logic, and why Florida is a great setting for eerie and unsettling stories. We also get to meet her dog briefly!
2022-11-2338 minFlorida Book ClubGabrielle Calise and "Florida!" - Season 6, Episode 7This big pink book with the puffy cover is better than any Florida travel guide or chamber of commerce video. Editor Gabrielle Calise returns to the Florida Book clubhouse to discuss the rewarding and sometimes-grueling process of making it all come together!
https://www.floridabookclub.com
2022-11-1640 minFlorida Book ClubCourtney Clute and "The Fermi Paradox" - Season 6, Episode 6University of South Florida MFA graduate Courtney Clute's The Fermi Paradox features flash fiction — stories that are incredibly brief but substantive. We discuss the book and the genre more broadly with the author herself on this episode.
2022-11-0927 minFlorida Book ClubRobert Redd and Hidden History of Civil War Florida - Season 6, Episode 5Learn the difference between a battle and a skirmish, along with the events surrounding Florida's secession and its role in the Civil War as we discuss Robert Redd's new book on these topics and others with the author himself!
2022-11-0234 minFlorida Book ClubEnid Shomer and "Shoreless" - Season 6, Episode 4We're joined today by poet and fiction author Enid Shomer to discuss her 2020 poetry collection Shoreless, which examines themes of nature and human frailty and has killer cover art!
2022-10-2640 minFlorida Book ClubOwen Robertson of LAB Theater Project - Season 6, Episode 3Join us for a conversation with Owen Robertson of Tampa's LAB Theater, as he tells us about their playwright-centric focus and commitment to producing original works, the theater scene in Tampa, and the history and future of LAB. We'll also preview the next production, which opens on October 20!
2022-10-1941 minFlorida Book ClubCatching Up With Jason Vuic - Season 6, Episode 2Florida's "town without pity" and a variety of obscure Florida history, memoir, and true-crime books that border on pulp are the topics we discuss with Jason Vuic, author of The Swamp Peddlers, as he drops in to talk about the book he's currently working on. I also reference the exact same passage from Shelley Katz's Alligator for a second week straight.
2022-10-1246 minFlorida Book ClubJason Katz of The Islandia Journal - Season 6, Episode 1"Come for the poetry, stay for the paranormal!" That is how Islandia Journal's founder and publisher, native Miamian Jason Katz, wants you to think of his passion project, which features accounts of cryptids, folklore, myth, and obscure history from Florida and the greater Caribbean region. Contemporary themes and issues are never far out of the picture, though, and the special issue of Islandia looking back at Hurricane Andrew seems especially poignant as we wrap up the 2022 storm season. Join us for this conversation!
2022-10-0541 min
Florida Book ClubBurt I. Gordon's "Empire of the Ants" - Season 5, Episode 8No one would ever confuse Burt I. Gordon for a staunch environmentalist, and if you listen to the commentary on the DVD of his film "Empire of the Ants," even casual viewers might know more about the film than the auteur himself. Join me as I ruminate on this peculiar classic, which has a lot of insights to reveal about the Florida sugar industry both then and now.
2022-07-0622 minFlorida Book ClubKristen Hare and "100 Things To Do in Tampa Bay Before You Die" - Season 5, Episode 7Buffalo chicken sundaes, hospital restaurants, forest castles, why local news matters, and more await in this week's episode. 100 Things to Do in Tampa Bay Before You Die author Kristen Hare joins me to talk about the third edition of her book, obscure Tampa Bay gems, and her work with the Poynter Institute.
2022-06-2943 minFlorida Book ClubJenny Staletovich, WLRN Environmental Reporter - Season 5, Episode 6WLRN environmental reporter Jenny Staletovich talks about her career covering some of Florida's most pressing and urgent issues — and how python stories are, ideally, the "gateway drug" luring audiences in to learn about more mundane but much more important ecological and climate issues!
2022-06-2336 minFlorida Book ClubTyler Gillespie and "The Thing About Florida" - Season 5, Episode 5Python hunters, reptile traders, and people you might know from a meme or bizarre headline are who you might think of when you consider Florida's citizenry, but there's so much more to them and to this state, as you'll find out in this episode, where Tyler Gillespie and I discuss his 2021 book, The Thing About Florida.
2022-06-1542 minFlorida Book ClubRebecca Johnston and "Not to Keep" - Season 5, Episode 4The traumas endured by World War I vets during and after the conflict have mostly faded from public historical memory. Rebecca Johnston joins me to discuss her new novel, Not To Keep, which follows the lives of a tight group of North Florida friends from their rustic childhoods through their experiences war and its painful aftermath.
2022-06-0826 minFlorida Book ClubCraig Pittman and "The State You're In" - Season 5, Episode 3Craig Pittman has been called a Florida Institution, and you can see why when you read his work. He discusses his latest book, a collection of essays and columns culled from a 30-plus year career in journalism, with us on Florida Book Club.
2022-06-0240 minFlorida Book ClubJohn Davis Jr. and "The Places That Hold" - Season 5, Episode 2John Davis Jr. explores a dark period in his home state's history in his Florida Book Award-winning poetry collection The Places That Hold, but there are some lighthearted and thoughtful ruminations on parenthood in there, too. He discusses his work with me on this episode of Florida Book Club.
2022-05-2529 minFlorida Book ClubGianna Russo and "All I See Is Your Glinting" - Season 5, Episode 1Gianna Russo, Tampa's Wordsmith (yes, that's a real office) presents to us in the recently published book All I See is Your Glinting: "Nature and the collective human experience that we all went through" in the later months of 2020, accompanied by striking photos by Jenny Carey.
2022-05-1828 minFlorida Book ClubFlorida Book Club Season 5 - The TrailerIf you can survive Florida, you are the fittest. Season 5 of Florida Book Club is coming Wednesday, May 18!
2022-05-1101 minFlorida Book ClubKathryn Duncan and "Jane Austen and the Buddha" - Season 4, Episode 8Jane Austen and the Buddha are not thinkers one would normally consider together, right? Or, on the surface, we might not think they offer lenses to consider each others' works through. But Kathryn Duncan, a professor of English at St. Leo University and our guest today on Florida Book Club, has literally written the book on that very subject, and she'll discuss it with us on our final episode of Season 4!
2022-02-2333 minFlorida Book ClubMary Lambert's "Mega-Python vs Gatoroid" - Season 4, Episode 7Don't be fooled by the asinine title. Or the ludicrous plot. Or the fact that it stars Tiffany and Debbie Gibson. Or the dollar-store CGI effects. Instead, enjoy Mega-Python vs Gatoroid for its unintentional and accidentally poignant subtexts about Florida wildlife.
2022-02-1717 minFlorida Book ClubFlorida Film History with Lisa Bradberry - Season 4, Episode 6Florida film historian Lisa Bradberry joins me to talk about the rich history of Florida filmmaking, the years early in Oliver Hardy's career when he lived and worked in Jacksonville, and her favorite Florida movies! There's a link to an episode of Florida Crossroads on our website where Lisa appears in a segment beginning at about 12:45, also!
2022-02-0937 minFlorida Book ClubErnest Hemingway's "To Have and Have Not" with Rebecca Johnston - Season 4, Episode 5Harry Morgan of Ernest Hemingway's 1937 novel is probably the worst protagonist ever. But there's possibly more to this novel, which I'd rank as Hemingway's worst. Rebecca Johnston of the Florida Hemingway Society joins me to discuss the positives in this story of Depression-era Key West I may have overlooked.
2022-02-0222 minFlorida Book Club"Vernon, Florida" with Wanda Suttle Duncan - Season 4, Episode 4Fans of Richard Linklater's Slacker or Harmony Korine's Gummo will find a lot to like in Errol Morris' 1981 documentary Vernon, Florida. I'm joined by Wanda Duncan to discuss this quirky little film, which she is really a fan of.
2022-01-2625 minFlorida Book ClubKeith Huneycutt and "The Storm" - Season 4, Episode 3First story with a female narrator set in Florida! First story set in Key West written by a woman! Well, maybe. "The Storm" COULD be those things, but it sat unread in an archive for 150 years. I'll talk about its origins and significance with Keith Huneycutt of Florida Southern College in this episode.
2022-01-1935 minFlorida Book ClubHemingway's "The Strange Country" With Alec Kissoondyal and Henry Johnston - Season 4, Episode 2Today we're revisiting "The Strange Country" of Ernest Hemingway (otherwise known as 1930s Florida), tracing the possible route Hemingway might have taken through the state and how it's reflected in the posthumously-published story. Alec Kissoondyal of University of Florida and Henry Johnston of the Rochester Institute of Technology join me to discuss their plans to discover and memorialize Hemingway's Florida road trip.
2022-01-1236 minFlorida Book ClubKristen Arnett and "Felt in the Jaw" - Season 4, Episode 1You probably know Kristen Arnett from her bestselling 2019 novel Mostly Dead Things. But I first discovered her work in the pages of Felt in the Jaw, her 2017 collection of short stories documenting "the lives of queer women and their families in the light of the bleak Florida sun." There's so much more of the grotesque and ominous in these tales, though; they'd do Flannery O'Connor proud. I'll discuss them with the author herself on this first episode of Season 4.
2022-01-0542 minFlorida Book ClubFlorida Book Club Season 4 - The TrailerWe're back from the beach! The new season of Florida Book Club is coming January 5.
2022-01-0101 minFlorida Book ClubWanda Suttle Duncan and Steve Jarrett on "Zaat" - Season 3, Episode 8Zaat really might be the worst movie ever. It's definitely down near the bottom of the barrel, if not at the absolute bottom. Join me as I discuss this venerable film with Wanda Suttle Duncan — in whose hometown Zaat was filmed! — and film critic Steve Jarrett on this season's final episode of Florida Book Club.
2021-10-0634 minFlorida Book ClubJason Vuic's "The Swamp Peddlers" - Season 3, Episode 7I can't imagine buying property out-of-state sight unseen. But that's what a lot of shady land "developers" were able to convince people do in the 1950s and 60s, selling unimproved patches of Florida swampland. Join me as I discuss the unsavory and environmentally damaging legacy of some of these companies with Jason Vuic, author of The Swamp Peddlers.
2021-09-2936 minFlorida Book ClubRyan Rivas of Burrow Press - Season 3, Episode 6Orlando's Burrow Press has published some of Florida's most well-known and renowned authors -- Kristin Arnett, Laura van den Berg, Sarah Gerard, and John Henry Fleming among them. Today I’m joined by the founder and publisher of Burrow Press, Ryan Rivas, to talk about the early years of the press, how its mission has evolved, and his views on the changing Florida literary scene.
2021-09-2235 minFlorida Book ClubLori Roy and "Chum in the Water" - Season 3, Episode 5Tragic and violent comeuppance born from hubris is as old as Ancient Greece. Join me as I discuss Lori Roy's sinister Florida noir tale "Chum in the Water," which appears in the Akashic Books collection Tampa Bay Noir, with the author herself on this episode of the Florida Book Club.
2021-09-1525 minFlorida Book ClubRevisiting "Fearsome Creatures of Florida" with John Henry Fleming - Season 3, Episode 4This time around, we've got the author himself on board to discuss phantom panthers, skunk apes, beach monsters, and other Florida cryptids that may or may not be lurking in your development or favorite park.
2021-09-0824 minFlorida Book ClubRick Kilby and "Florida's Healing Waters" - Season 3, Episode 3The marketing of Florida’s once-pristine springs has a long and mostly ignoble history. Today I’m joined by Rick Kilby, author of the 2013 book Finding the Fountain of Youth and the 2020 volume Florida’s Healing Waters, to discuss this history, and what the future of these precious natural resources might look like.
2021-09-0133 minFlorida Book ClubA Conversation with Tampa Bay Times Culture Reporter Gabrielle Calise – Season 3, Episode 2She’s interviewed Carole Baskin, researched the history of a spaceship atop a Tampa strip club, and above all, she wants you to see your local newspaper as a vital and trusted community resource. Join me as I talk about these topics and more with Tampa Bay Times Life and Culture reporter Gabrielle Calise.
2021-08-2536 minFlorida Book ClubWanda Suttle Duncan and "Cracker Gothic" - Season 3, Episode 1Wanda Suttle Duncan’s account of her small north Florida hamlet is subtitled “A Florida Woman’s Memoir,” but Cracker Gothic is not what you might think — it’s a heartfelt, often touching, and displays great humor and turns of phrase while documenting the author’s return to her hometown amid heartbreaking circumstances. On the season three premier, I'm joined by the author herself to discuss her process in writing Cracker Gothic and a few anecdotes about Green Cove Springs, Florida, that didn't make it into the book. Visit FloridaBookClub.com.
2021-08-1834 minFlorida Book ClubFlorida Book Club Season 3 - The TrailerThe new season of The Florida Book Club podcast drops August 18.
2021-08-1301 minFlorida Book ClubAja’s, Bartram’s, and LeMoyne’s Alligators of Florida - Season 2, Episode 8There’s a proud lineage of monstrous, gigantic alligators terrorizing humans in pop culture (just see previous episodes of this podcast). But that tradition stretches back to the earliest colonial days. White Europeans have always been fascinated by alligators. Join me as I discuss Alexandre Aja’s 2019 alligator film Crawl through the lens of William Bartram’s and Jacques LeMoyne’s centuries-old accounts of their Florida explorations. Stick around for a special guest at the end!
2021-05-1916 minFlorida Book ClubJohn Henry Fleming's "Fearsome Creatures of Florida" - Season 2, Episode 7“The world is less tame than you’d imagined.” So says John Henry Fleming to the unwary visitor arriving to Florida by plane or cruise ship, or as they leave the boundaries of the theme park. Join me in welcoming back Florida native Amanda Young to this episode, where we discuss Fleming’s 2009 bestiary Fearsome Creatures of Florida and ponder how many of these fictional (?) beasts we may have unknowingly encountered.
2021-05-1226 minFlorida Book ClubA Conversation with Tampa Bay Historian Andy Huse - Season 2, Episode 6There’s a long tradition of making cheesy promotional videos to lure people to Tampa Bay area. One of them, from the 1960s, even features an alien visitor who decides to relocate to St. Pete Beach after seeing all the dazzling attractions the town has to offer! Today, I’m joined by Andy Huse, Special Collections Librarian at University of South Florida, to discuss these old promotional films (and a bit of Tampa Bay culinary history).
2021-05-0536 minFlorida Book ClubAndre Frattino's "A Land Remembered: The Graphic Novel" - Season 2, Episode 5There are certain books most people readily associate with Florida, such as The Yearling or Their Eyes Were Watching God. And more recently, Patrick Smith’s 1984 epic A Land Remembered. I’m joined today by Andre Frattino, whose 2018 graphic novel adaptation of A Land Remembered captures in vivid visual detail all the heartbreak and loss of the MacIvey family across 100 years along with their triumphs, and we see the dynamics of how Florida was settled and, eventually, overpopulated.
2021-04-2834 minFlorida Book ClubMatt Peters of Beating Windward Press - Season 2, Episode 4The exciting, glamorous world of independent publishing, it turns out, actually involves a lot of frustration, hard work, and luck. And during a pandemic year, well... it can still be really rewarding! And as a reader, I can tell you you’ll find some real gems among the offerings from most indie publishers. Join me for a conversation with Matt Peters, founding publisher of Orlando’s Beating Windward Press. Visit us on the web at FloridaBookClub.com.
2021-04-2235 minFlorida Book ClubMike Denham's "A Rogue’s Paradise: Crime and Punishment in Antebellum Florida" - Season 2, Episode 3Florida was as violent a place as anywhere in the US in the early 1800s as in the 21st century. “Stand your ground” was the dominant ethos, there was a distrust of law and government, belief in self-determination and personal “rights,” and tons of guns and booze, just like now! My guest today is James Michael Denham, author of A Rogue’s Paradise: Crime and Punishment in Antebellum Florida. We’ll discuss the frontier era of Florida and the violent legacy it bequeathed to future generations of criminals and law enforcement.
2021-04-1438 minFlorida Book ClubLarry Perez's "Snake in the Grass" - Season 2, Episode 2Will monstrous invasive pythons soon be roaming the streets of suburban Florida? Probably not. But that doesn’t mean they don’t represent a pressing ecological crisis. Larry Perez, a former ranger at Everglades National Park and my guest today, wrote a book in 2012 that warned readers about this issue spreading beyond the Everglades, where the snakes have become established. Has it gotten worse? Join us for the conversation and find out!
2021-04-0723 minFlorida Book ClubVicki Hendricks' "Florida Gothic Stories" - Season 2, Episode 1“Grotesque, Florida Man-type stories” is how my guest today, Florida College English Association president Christina Connor, describes Vicki Hendricks’ 2010 collection Florida Gothic Stories. Does that appeal to you? There are hurricanes, iguanas, identical twins, murders, and rather unconventional human/animal relationships on hand, too. Join us for the discussion!
2021-03-3133 minFlorida Book ClubFlorida Book Club Season 2 - The TrailerComing March 31. Nature's revenge. Twisted Gothic tales of murder. Creatures hiding in the Florida wilderness. Blood-soaked streets and lawless frontier towns. Sound interesting? This is a taste of what awaits you in Florida Book Club Season 2.
2021-03-1801 minFlorida Book ClubShelley Katz's "Alligator" - Season 1, Episode 8"Alligator" looks like the cheapest kind of pulp horror novel upon first glance. The cover, the summary, the title – they all do it no favors in terms of perception. But it is a remarkably compelling book about an economically struggling Everglades town and the hunt for a comically-large killer gator in the local swamps. There’s sneaky depth to it, though, I promise. Join me in the Season 1 finale as I talk about Shelley Katz’s Alligator and issue an invitation to interested readers. *Stick around for a special guest afterward! Further reading at www.FloridaBookClub.com.
2021-01-0621 minFlorida Book ClubShane Hinton's "Radio Dark" - Season 1, Episode 7Shane Hinton’s 2019 novel "Radio Dark" doesn’t seem like the kind of book one would want to read in 2020. It’s about a plague that effectively ends society, it uses its Florida settings to present some truly ominous and disturbing imagery, and generally seems to think humans are doomed. But it’s pretty good! I’m joined by avid reader Tony Litvinas to talk about Hinton’s novel. Further reading at www.FloridaBookClub.com.
2020-12-3022 minFlorida Book Club"The Letters of George Long Brown" - Season 1, Episode 6George Long Brown was no Harriet Beecher Stowe. I mean, he bought slaves when he settled in Florida after emigrating from New England, and Stowe was a fervent abolitionist. But like her, he left us a document of Florida frontier life in the 1800s — and Newnansville, Florida, was indeed frontier back then. I’m joined by Keith Huneycutt, professor of English at Florida Southern College and editor of The Letters of George Long Brown, to discuss the book and Brown’s life. Further reading and full transcript at www.FloridaBookClub.com.
2020-12-2329 minFlorida Book ClubGeorge McCowan's "Frogs" - Season 1, Episode 5Frogs aren’t really scary. Well, unless they’re telepathically controlling lizards, alligators, snakes, and other reptiles and commanding them to attack humans. I mean, these are humans with lots of hubris and a very unfavorable view of Nature in general, so I guess the victims in George McCowan’s 1972 eco-horror film "Frogs" deserve it. But how true to reality are the settings and wildlife depicted in this movie, set and filmed in the Florida Panhandle? I’m joined by two Florida natives who viewed the film and share their thoughts. Further reading and full episode transcript at www.FloridaB...
2020-12-1632 minFlorida Book Club"Florida Reimagined" - Season 1, Episode 4Walt Disney World, it could be argued, has not had a net positive effect on Central Florida, environmentally speaking at least. University of Central Florida professor of art history Keri Watson joins me to discuss her article “From the Sideshow to Walt Disney World: Florida Reimagined,” paying special attention to how Walt Disney went out of his way to shut out the natural environment and attract a certain kind of patron to his planned Orlando-area megapark. Full transcript and further reading at www.FloridaBookClub.com.
2020-12-0927 minFlorida Book Club"Condoms and Hot Tubs Don't Mix" - Season 1, Episode 3There is a book out there filled with sexual anecdotes and stories that in some cases are so embarrassing, frightening, or… well, ordinary, that they make for pretty entertaining reading. “Condoms and Hot Tubs Don’t Mix” was published by Orlando’s Beating Windward Press in 2018, and all the proceeds from its sales go to Planned Parenthood. In this episode, the book’s coeditors, Jennie Jarvis and Leslie Salas, talk about the experience of putting it together. Further reading and a full episode transcript at www.FloridaBookClub.com.
2020-12-0229 minFlorida Book ClubHarriet Beecher Stowe's "Palmetto Leaves" - Season 1, Episode 2Florida before air-conditioning was still somehow considered paradise by a lot of people, including "Uncle Tom’s Cabin" author Harriet Beecher Stowe, who wrote a book on it! Join me as I discuss her 1873 travelogue "Palmetto Leaves" with Florida Institute of Technology professor Debbie Lelekis. Find further reading and a full transcript at FloridaBookClub.com
2020-11-2526 minFlorida Book ClubErnest Hemingway's "The Strange Country" - Season 1, Episode 1Ernest Hemingway’s association with Florida is most commonly defined by his time spent in Key West during the 1930s. However, in “The Strange Country,” published posthumously as part of “The Complete Short Stories of Ernest Hemingway,” the protagonist and his much younger girlfriend embark on a road trip odyssey from Miami to New Orleans, stopping in many distinct Florida locales along the way and catching up on news of the Spanish Civil War. In this episode, I’m joined by my brother, John Nank, an erstwhile Hemingway fanboy, to talk about “The Strange Country.” Find further reading and a full transcrip...
2020-11-1831 min
Florida Book ClubFlorida Book Club – The TrailerHi, I'm Christopher Nank, and I'd like to introduce Florida Book Club, a new podcast focusing on the forgotten, undervalued, underrated, misrepresented, and weird literature, film, media, music, and assorted other pop cultural relics of the Sunshine State. In each episode, myself and occasional assorted guests—sometimes writers, sometimes egghead academics like myself, but mostly just ordinary book and film lovers and fans—will dish on and debate and discuss works we're passionate about. So if you saw book club in the title and were instantly turned off, don't be. We'll take frequent detours into other mediums. That no budg...
2020-10-1401 min