Literary Scene

By Ryan G. Van Cleave

Ryan reviews three nonfiction books about Florida

Florida-Made: The 25 Most Important Figures Who Shaped the State
by George S. Lemieux and Laura E. Mize
This book—authored by Florida’s 34th US senator George LeMieux and Ft. Lauderdale freelance journalist and Palm Beach Post reporter Laura Mize—would be interesting enough were it simply offering the stories behind some of the most important figures in Florida history. But it goes a step further—it boldly attempts to rank them, starting with #1 (Henry Morrison Flagler) to #25 (Chief James Edward Billie). I might disagree with where a few figures fell between #16 and #23, but this is an interesting list, nonetheless.

The obvious choices are here, such as Marjory Stoneman Douglas, the “grande dame” of the Everglades, who nearly single-handedly saved that land via environmental activism and journalism, as well as Walt Disney, whose theme park dreams made Orlando the nation’s most-visited destination and who created an entertainment empire that accounts for more than half of Florida’s annual visitors. But this book also has choices such as #23, George Washington Jenkins, Jr., who started up Publix—Florida’s largest private employer and best-known homegrown company. And there’s #8, Dr. John Gorrie, whose patented ice-making and refrigeration machine was the first major advance in artificial cooling.

This is a well-documented, well-researched book with more information about these important Florida icons than most know. It’s well worth the read, whether you agree with the rankings or not.

Rating: 4 out of 5 

Son of Real Florida: Stories from My Life
by Jeff Klinkenberg
I’m a sucker for Florida stories, so award-winning journalist Jeff Klinkenberg’s new collection of essays is right up my alley. He’s a Florida person through and through, growing up in Miami, exploring the Everglades as a kid, and studying journalism at the University of Florida (where he’s in the UF Journalism College’s Hall of Fame).

With the clarity and accuracy that one would expect of a decades-long writer for the Tampa Bay Times, Klinkenberg’s stories are tender, potent, and memorable. Unlike so many of the gosh-isn’t-Florida-weird tales one finds online, these pieces resonate with mystery, wonder, and love. Some of my faves? Solomon’s Castle, The Photo Laureate of Silver Springs, Billy the Kid Emerson, and the Seven Mile Bridge. But plenty more are well worth savoring. 

Klinkenberg also shares stories about the newspaper world. Here’s a sample from “A Newspaperman in Florida.”

“When I started at the Miami News in 1966, reporters typed their stories with two fingers on cheap paper. If they needed to move paragraphs around, they did so with scissors and glue. They impaled finished stories on metal spikes for a psychopathic editor who forbade talking until sunrise.” While I wouldn’t want to have lived through those times, they sure are interesting—and sometimes fun—to read about.

This is a fine, fine book about the people, places, culture, and cuisine of the Sunshine State.

Rating: 4.25 out of 5
www.jeffklinkenberg.com

Phil Gernhard, Record Man
by Bill DeYoung

I confess—despite having a fairly strong background in music, I didn’t know the name Phil Gernhard. But thanks to St. Petersburg author and music journalist Bill DeYoung’s new book, I now realize that Gernhard was a Florida music powerhouse who deserves more notoriety.

While Gernhard was born in Chicago, he was raised in Sarasota which, in that time, was “sleepy and relatively isolated, surrounded on three sides by cattle ranches and citrus groves. The Interstate Highway System didn’t come that far south, so tourists weren’t exactly arriving by the busload.” Gernhard’s father was prone to “rage-aholic fits,” and when they happened, Gernhard and his sister would run away to the Ringling Museum and hide in the gardens.

Clearly, Sarasota played a big part in Gernhard’s life. But then on February 21, 1956, Gernhard “plunked down fifty cents of his hard-earned money, from working in a downtown café, to see his idol, Elvis Presley, at the Florida Theater.” In 1988, Gernhard told the Herald-Tribune that “that night had a tremendous impact on my life and became a driving force in all these years as a record producer. There’s not a gold record or award on my wall that does not owe at least part of its existence to that night and inspiration of his performance and personality.”

Soon after hearing Elvis, Gernhard recorded his first million-copy selling record—“Stay” by Maurice Williams and the Zodiacs—at age 19. And his storied career just took off from there. He discovered and produced hits for Lobo, Jim Stafford, and the Bellamy Brothers. He revived the career of Dion DiMucci. He launched the careers of Tim McGraw and Rodney Atkins, and many others. It doesn’t take many pages in this book to realize that in the world of music, Gernhard was and still is a legend.

DeYoung does a powerful job of detailing Gernhard’s troubled life—from his struggles with addiction to four divorces to prostate cancer to him finally taking his own life—while still revealing how this amazing man with a near-magical sense for spotting hit songs helped make the dreams of others manifest into reality. And for those who’ve been in this area for more than a few years, this book might be a lovely dose of nostalgia too since Florida is often the stage for the best stories.

 Rating: 4 out of 5
www.BillDeYoung.com

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