Page Turner Here Come the Scribes

SavannahBuzz
Cultured
BOOK FEST TICKETS
Local
Current
T.C. Boyle
D E B O R AH F EING O L D
Isabel Wilkerson
David Baldacci
J AMIES O N F R Y
Kimberly Schlegel Whitman
J O E HENS O N
Bobby Deen
A L E X AN D E R J AMES
Tickets cost $10 each for opening night with
Dave Barry, the keynote address with James
Patterson, the lifestyle event with Bobby
Deen and the closing address with David
Baldacci. All ticketed events are held at
SCAD’s Trustees Theater, 216 E. Broughton
St. Purchase tickets by phone at 525-5050
or online at www.savannahboxoffice.com.
James Patterson
Here Come the Scribes
The sixth annual Savannah Book Festival mixes highbrow literature,
offbeat humor and twisted whodunits for one of the South’s most intimate
and engaging literary affairs.
Page Turner
Amy Paige Condon gets 10 questions with Pulitzer
Prize-winning writer—and Savannah Book Festival
opening act—Dave Barry.
Savannah Magazine: What are your impressions of the Hostess City—and what are you
most looking forward to seeing and doing in
the Garden of Good and Evil?
I don’t really have any impressions yet.
But if I have to pick, I’m going with Evil.
As the keynote speaker kicking off the sixth
annual Savannah Book Festival, what can
you tell us about the joys of book tours?
Public speaking? Waking up in strange cities?
Both of those are great, of course. Also,
not having clean underwear.
The title of your latest novel, Insane City,
is a title that could apply as easily to
Savannah as to your home base, Miami.
How do you get to the heart of a place in
your writing?
I’m not really aiming for the heart. I’m
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aiming more for the spleen. Or maybe the
groin. But no essential organs.
What criteria do you use to determine
whether or not you like a city?
One: Not taking itself too seriously. Two:
Beer. Three: Not taking its beer too seriously.
So, Insane City deals with the pitfalls of a
destination wedding. Savannah has become
the capital of destination weddings. Any
advice for couples, such as how to avoid
murders, cannibals, the smell of horsedrawn carriages?
Wait—you have cannibals, too? I am
rethinking this appearance.
What advice do you have for the ultimate
Valentine’s Day gift? After all, you did
write Dave Barry’s Guide to Guys and you’re
well-known for your annual Guide to Giving.
The ultimate Valentine’s Day gift for a
woman is something that has no conceivable
use, such as candles or jewelry. The ultimate
gift for a man is something that also has no
conceivable use, but can be plugged in.
Do you believe in soul mates?
They are every bit as real as the Easter
Bunny.
Your novels have been described as darkly
comic and suspenseful, like those of other
Florida writers (Carl Hiaasen, Tim Dorsey).
Is there something in the water?
Yes. Manatees.
How do you think humor staves off the
anxiety of modern living?
I don’t know about the anxiety of modern
living, but it sure staves off having to get a
real job.
Where do you keep your Pulitzer medal? Do
you wear it on special occasions?
It’s not a medal. It looks like a middleschool diploma. So it is basically unwearable.
Something needs to be done about this.
B
ibliophiles, be aware!
More than 40 celebrated
and beloved authors will
descend upon the Creative Coast
Feb. 14-17 for the sixth annual
Savannah Book Festival—bestselling
thrillers James Patterson, David
Baldacci and Dave Barry (amusing as
ever, opposite) among them.
Almost entirely free and open
to the public, the SBF offers a good
story for readers of every genre.
Plot your own literary adventure.
For the
Nesters
Native son
Bobby Deen will
join lifestyle expert
Kimberly Schlegel
Whitman on Feb.
15 for an afternoon of refined and
BUYING
BOOKS
relaxed advice on entertaining.
Savannah sweethearts Cheryl and
Griffith Day will talk about The
Back in the Day Bakery Cookbook,
named one of Amazon’s Top 10
cookbooks for 2012. And Holley
Jaakkola and Kimberly Ergul
will teach us how to celebrate,
Savannah-style.
For the
Thinkers
One of the festival’s main missions
is to promote civil
discourse. This
year’s lineup fulfills
that promise with Time magazine’s
executive editor, Michael Duffy, and
essayist, Nancy Gibbs; business
and technology guru Daniel Pink;
cultural columnist Leonard Pitts Jr.;
ABC News’ senior White House
correspondent, Jake Tapper; historian and biographer Evan Thomas;
and Pulitzer Prize-winning reporter
Isabel Wilkerson.
For the
Literati
T.C. Boyle,
Paula McLain, J.R.
Moehringer, B.A.
Shapiro, Mary
Sharratt and Colm
Toibin will lead us into imaginary
worlds as far afield as the California
Channel Islands, Jazz Age Paris
and Istanbul. Memoirists Dr.
Heidi Squier Kraft and Susanna
Sonnenberg will surely enlighten
and inspire with stories drawn from
their personal experiences.
Books will be on sale by Ex Libris Bookstore at Trustees Theater during all ticketed events and
at Telfair Square for the free events. A portion of the proceeds will benefit the SBF. You must
buy your books at the venues to have them signed by the authors. Book-signing procedures are
available at www.savannahbookfestival.org.
Risha Carnes
Artist and owner,
Extant Fair
LISTENING »
The Haunted Man
by Bat for Lashes
This new album
offers the sweeping
orchestration and
emotionally rich pop
“fix” I covet during
the quieter, colder
months. Like others
who satisfy this
craving for me—Kate
Bush, Nico, Sade,
Nina Simone—
Natasha Khan fully
earns her place
within the enigmatic
circle of righteous
ladies. Reading »
From Dawn to
Decadence by
Jacques Martin
Barzun
The great historian
of ideas and culture
presents his account
of all the great works
of the Western mind
in the last five centuries. With a philosophical foundation,
it spans topics like
technology, cuisine,
high art and pop
culture, which I love
to read about. SURFing »
Materialwrld.com
This brand new site
based in New York
City provides a look
inside the closets of
its members, from
well-known fashion
icons and bloggers
to industry professionals. And you
can purchase things
directly from their
closets! J AN U A R Y / F E B R U A R Y 2 0 1 3
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