Books about Florida or by Floridians ruled in 2018

Florida had a big year in books in 2018. The state always boasts a strong lineup of resident writers, of course, but this year a number of books about Florida and/or by Floridians made headlines everywhere. Here are some highlights.

The Gulf: The Making of an American Sea

University of Florida historian Jack E. Davis' splendid, sweeping history of the Gulf of Mexico was published in 2017, but in April 2018 it scored a well-deserved Pulitzer Prize for history. This one is required — and rewarding — reading for every Floridian.

Beneath a Ruthless Sun: A True Story of Violence, Race, and Justice Lost and Found

This chilling history is Gilbert King's second nonfiction book about crime and systemic racism in Florida's Lake County. His first, the Pulitzer-winning Devil in the Grove, is a force behind the current push to grant posthumous pardons to the Groveland Four. King, who attended the University of South Florida, writes books that read like thrillers and sear with truth.

Florida

If you live with an eye to the dark side of the Sunshine State, acclaimed author Lauren Groff's eerily real short stories might make you feel that, like one of her characters, she has been peeking in your window. A New York state native transplanted to Gainesville, Groff has maintained her outsider's perspective, to stunning effect. This short story collection was a finalist for the National Book Award for fiction.

Caribbean Rim

The 2018 thriller from Randy Wayne White takes place mainly in the Bahamas, but it's the 25th novel — quite a run — in White's series about Marion "Doc" Ford, a marine biologist with a secret side hustle. Ford, like his creator, is a longtime resident of Sanibel, and the books are packed with White's deep knowledge of Florida history and lore. Coming to St. Petersburg Pier in 2019: Doc Ford's Rum Bar & Grille.

The Pope of Palm Beach

Tampa writer and former journalist Tim Dorsey marked a milestone with his 20th novel about the inimitable Serge Storms. (There's also a holiday novella, When Elves Attack.) Serge is a dedicated Floridaphile and a bit of a psychopath, but this book took a sometimes sweet look into his childhood. More Serge is coming in January with No Sunscreen for the Dead.

The Disappearing

Longtime Pinellas County resident (and two-time Edgar winner) Lori Roy made the state's Panhandle a setting for the first time with her fourth novel. It's a chilling family mystery based on the real-life abuses at the Florida School for Boys. Watch for the next Edgar nominations in January.

Barracoon: The Story of the Last "Black Cargo"

Zora Neale Hurston, who lived in Florida off and on throughout her life, wrote this biography of former slave Cudjo Lewis in the 1930s; it was finally published until this year, to great acclaim. Another Floridian, Hurston scholar and Lutz resident Deborah G. Plant, was the book's editor.

Son of Real Florida: Stories From My Life

This collection of engaging essays by Jeff Klinkenberg, the Tampa Bay Times' former Real Florida columnist, was just one of his accomplishments in 2018. He also was named a winner of the Florida Folk Heritage Award and received the Florida Humanities Council's 2018 Florida Lifetime Achievement Award for Writing.

Contact Colette Bancroft at cbancroft@tampabay.com or (727) 893-8435. Follow @colettemb.