Dave Barry's Greatest Hits, Diamond Dust, and The Southerner's Handbook

This is a report on a couple of books I finished this week.

Dave Barry's Greatest Hits - As I knew it would be, this is a hoot. It contains a collection of columns Barry wrote for the Miami Herald and was published in 1988. Barry offers his bizarro thoughts on a wide variety of topics from a review of his son's kindergarten play "The Cave Man" to pot shots taken at Reagan, Oliver North, television evangelists, and dinosaurs. He is a funny, funny man. 

Diamond Dust - Another mystery starring Bath's most famous murder investigator Peter Diamond. I love this series written by Peter Lovesey. In this, the seventh, someone very close to DS Diamond is murdered. As he is not allowed to be involved in the formal investigation - he is even considered a suspect - he has to conduct his own unofficial inquiry into the crime.

The Southerner's Handbook - A couple of years ago I was spending a quiet weekend at a fine old hotel, the Beaumont Inn, in Harrodsburg, Kentucky. On the bedside table were copies of a magazine I had never heard of - Garden & Gun. I thought it an odd juxtaposition of subjects but found the publication to contain some finely written articles on Southern living. 

This book is a collection of short essays on Living the Good Life put together by the editors of G&G. It is a delight and takes a look at the food and drink, style, sporting and adventure, homes and gardens, and arts and culture of the large area of the country that makes up The South. Here the genteel reader will learn how make Southern biscuits and gravy; how and when to wear seersucker; ways to collect mint Julep cups; how to get invited back as a house guest; the intricacies of college football rivalries; and, how to create a year round cutting garden. There is a laugh-out-loud ode to that iconic Southern libation, sweet tea (also known as hillbilly heroin!). 

But best of all are instructions on how to stock your home library.
Here is the list of five essential Southern books according to Richard Howorth, founder and owner of Square Books in Oxford, Mississippi.

Let Us Now Praise Famous Men (1941) by James Agee and Walker Evans

The Moviegoer (1961) by Walker Percy (I wrote about this one here.)

The Complete Stories (1971) by Flannery O'Connor

All God's Dangers: The Life of Nate Shaw (1974) by Theodore Rosengarten

Long, Last, Happy (2010) by Barry Hannah

Per chance, do any of these books grace your shelves?

Announcing Another Literary Tour

Another Literary Tour!

I am making plans for another literary tour next month. In The Grand Southern Literary Tour of 2012, I headed to the south and a bit west. This time, I am heading south and to the east. I haven't actually named this tour yet, but the itinerary is in the works. 

First Stop:
St. Augustine, Florida

My first ever visit to America's oldest city founded in 1565. It hosts a book festival but, unfortunately, I will miss it by a few weeks. The town seems to be quite bookish and boasts the grave in Evergreen Cemetery of the British writer and illustrator Randolph Caldecott (1846-1886). He only lived in St. Augustine a few months before he died. The Caldecott Medal is given annually to the most distinguished children's picture book of the year. St. Augustine's main library dedicated its children's room to him. 

As a bonus, there is a chocolate factory in the town. Ah, bonbons and books!

Second Stop:
Savannah, Georgia

I have visited Savannah twice but have never actually been to any of its literary sites. It is Flannery O'Connor's (1925-1964) childhood home. American poet and novelist Conrad Aiken (1889-1973) was born in Savannah and is buried in Bonaventure Cemetery. Perhaps most famous is the Mercer Williams House featured in Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil by John Berendt. I plan on watching the movie tonight as part of my research.

Third Stop:
Chimney Rock, North Carolina

I am going to take in down a notch and stay in this little town nestled in the Smoky Mountains. Close by is Asheville, home to Thomas Wolfe (1900-1938). A little bit south is Flat Rock, the location of Connemara, Carl Sandburg's (1878-1967) home. Both are places I have visited and I especially liked the Sandburg house which sits on top of a great hill. Inside, it looks as if the Pulitzer Prize-winning poet has just stepped out to the yard and will be back in a minute. His wife Lillian donated the home and its contents to the National Park Service. Piles of papers and magazines are everywhere. And his book collection. Wow!

En route, there will definitely be stops in bookstores and libraries. And, I am sure there will be surprise finds along the way.