Coordinated by the Florida State University Libraries, the Florida Book Awards is the nation’s most comprehensive state book awards program. It was established in 2006 to celebrate the best Florida literature.
We are pleased to announce our four award-winning books in this year’s competition.
RICHARD E. RICE GOLD MEDAL FOR VISUAL ARTS
William Morgan: Evolution of an Architect
by Richard Shieldhouse
William Morgan (1930–2016) was a bold, innovative, and highly imaginative architect known internationally for fusing ancient and modern styles and for his early championing of green design principles. This extensively illustrated book traces Morgan’s life story and the evolution of Morgan’s guiding ideas—economy, efficiency, visual delight, imaginative use of everyday materials, and environmental sensitivity.
Morgan was unique among architects for his interest in ancient North America and for blending a modern style characterized by its rejection of history with the design language of prehistory. Highlighting how his work has impacted many areas of architecture, including urban design, this book celebrates Morgan’s continuing legacy.
FLORIDA NONFICTION, SILVER MEDALIST
In Season: Stories of Discovery, Loss, Home, and Places In Between
edited by Jim Ross
First-time travelers to Florida often imagine the state as just a vacationland or a swamp—a place to visit and to leave behind. But the writers in this collection discover the truth that everyone who’s lived in the state knows. When you venture into Florida you won’t find what you expect . . . and what you do find will stay with you forever.
The authors of these essays come to Florida for different reasons. Love, fortune, family, rest, natural beauty, or a fresh start. They encounter a place so diverse that it defies easy categorization. For all of these writers, Florida is a force that brings about moments of personal insight and growth, a place where hard lessons are learned and true joy is experienced. Their essays illustrate that the places we inhabit put a stamp on us, even if we only call them home for a season.
FLORIDA NONFICTION, BRONZE MEDALIST
Gamble Rogers: A Troubadour’s Life
by Bruce Horovitz
Beloved raconteur, environmentalist, and down-home philosopher, Gamble Rogers (1937–1991) ushered in a renaissance of folk music to a place and time that desperately needed it. In this book, Bruce Horovitz tells the story of how Rogers infused Florida’s rapidly commercializing landscape with a refreshing dose of homegrown authenticity and how his distinctive music and personality touched the nation.
The life of Gamble Rogers is a window into an important creative subculture that continues to flourish today as contemporary folk artists take on roles similar to the one Rogers established for himself. A modern-day troubadour, Rogers delighted in entertaining audiences with what was familiar and real—by championing the ordinary people of his home community who were closest to his heart.
GENERAL NONFICTION, BRONZE MEDALIST
Key to the New World: A History of Early Colonial Cuba
by Luis Martínez-Fernández
Scholarly and popular attention tends to focus heavily on Cuba’s recent history: its notoriety as the world’s largest exporter of sugar and the Western hemisphere’s first socialist nation. Key to the New World is the first comprehensive history of early colonial Cuba written in English and fills the gap in our knowledge of the island before 1700.
Luis Martínez-Fernández presents a holistic portrait of the island nation that interrelates geography, economy, society, politics, and culture and weaves these threads into a narrative that begins with the first arrival of indigenous people around 7,000 years ago. In these often-overlooked centuries, Martínez-Fernández finds the roots of many of Cuba’s enduring economic, political, social, and cultural complexities. The result is a sweeping history, a seminal text that makes clear that to fully grasp revolutionary or contemporary Cuba we must first understand what came before.
View these and other recent award-winning books here and use code WINNER at checkout for discounts on these titles!
Discount ends April 12.
The Florida Bookshelf 