books

President Barack Obama and first lady Michelle Obama read
to second-graders at a charter school in Washington.

Bancroft: Book lover Obama has been an inspirational reader in chief

By Colette Bancroft, Times Book Editor

1/13/17

If you love books, for the last eight years you've had a friend in the White House. President Barack Obama is an avid and sophisticated reader (and accomplished writer) who has put his deep appreciation for books and literature front and center throughout his two terms in the White House. Poets read at both his ina …

National Book Critics Circle awards go to Margaret Atwood, Louise Erdrich and more

3/16/17 BooksBy Colette Bancroft, Times Book Editor
NEW YORK — The National Book Critics Circle presented its annual awards at a ceremony here Thursday night.
Events: Jack Davis, Lee Irby to speak at USF St. Petersburg

3/16/17 BooksBy Colette Bancroft, Times Book Editor
Book Talk
Philip Beard (Swing) will discuss and sign his novel about baseball at 11 a.m. March 21 at Bookstore1Sarasota, 12 S Palm Ave., Sarasota.
What's John Oates reading?

3/16/17 BooksBy Piper Castillo, Times Staff Writer
Nightstand
John Oates
If you are of a certain age, he was part of the duo who made you swoon with Sara Smile, and a decade later, Oates, 68, and bandmate Daryl Hall served you a string of MTV-driven hits like Maneater and Private Eyes. Hall and Oates are now gearing …
Notable: Feminism in the future

3/16/17 BooksBy Colette Bancroft, Times Book Editor
Notable
Feminism in the future
In Women's History Month, here are three books about how feminism might look moving forward.
Review: 'Lara' a complex look at the muse of 'Dr. Zhivago'

3/16/17 BooksBy Lev Golinkin, Washington Post
It's standard for biographers of writers to chronicle the sacrifice the artist makes for his muse. As Anna Pasternak evinces in Lara: The Untold Love Story and the Inspiration for Doctor Zhivago, the muse often suffers as well.
Review: Doc Ford squares off with the living and the dead in White's 'Mangrove Lightning'

3/15/17 BooksBy Colette Bancroft, Times Book Editor
One of the many pleasures of Randy Wayne White's series about Doc Ford is the interplay between the minds of Ford and his best friend, Tomlinson.
Review: Margaret Drabble's 'Dark Flood' a clear-eyed story of aging

3/09/17 BooksBy Mike Fasso, Times Staff Writer
With so much written about death, from Solon ("Call no man happy until he is dead") to Trey Parker and Matt Stone ("I promise I will never die"), it takes a brave soul to take up the challenge of saying something new.
What's Jack Latvala reading?

3/08/17 BooksBy Piper Castillo, Times Staff Writer
Nightstand
Jack Latvala
When we caught up with Latvala on Feb. 24, he was heading into his weekend. The state senator, who will end his legislative career due to term limits next year, did not discuss his potential run for governor. Instead, in a quick flurry of texts, Latvala, 65, admitted he …
Events: Jack Davis to discuss, sign 'The Gulf' at Oxford Exchange

3/08/17 BooksBy Colette Bancroft, Times Book Editor
Book Talk
University of Florida professor Jack E. Davis (The Gulf: The Making of an American Sea) will discuss and sign his book at 1:30 p.m. March 12 at the Oxford Exchange, 420 W Kennedy Blvd., Tampa.
Review: Kealing's 'Elvis Ignited' captures a legend's beginnings in Florida

3/08/17 BooksBy Colette Bancroft, Times Book Editor
Elvis Presley died almost 40 years ago, but he comes back to life in the pages of Bob Kealing's Elvis Ignited.