Best. State. Ever.: A Florida Man Defends His Homeland

by Dave Barry

A New York Times bestseller—a brilliantly funny exploration of the Sunshine State from the man who knows it best: Pulitzer Prize winner Dave Barry.

We never know what will happen next in Florida. We know only that, any minute now, something will. Every few months, Dave Barry gets a call from some media person wanting to know, “What the hell is wrong with Florida?” Somehow, the state's acquired an image as a subtropical festival of stupid, and as a loyal Floridian, Dave begs to differ.

Join him as he goes in hunt of the legendary Skunk Ape; hobnobs with the mermaids of Weeki Wachee Springs; and visits Cassadaga, the psychic capital of the world, to have his dog's aura read (apparently, she's "very spiritual"). Hitch a ride for the non-stop thrills of alligator-wrestling ("the gators display the same fighting spirit as a Barcalounger"), the hair-raising spectacle of a clothing-optional bar in Key West, and the manly manliness of the Machine Gun Experience in Miami.

It's the most hilarious book yet from “the funniest damn writer in the whole country” (Carl Hiaasen, and he should know). By the end, you'll have to admit that whatever else you might think about Florida—you can never say it's boring.

• ISBN13: 9781101982600
• Publish Date: 6 September 2016
• Publish Status: Out of Stock
• Out of Print: 25 March 2021
• Publish Country: US
• Publisher: Penguin Putnam Inc
• Imprint: G P Putnam's Sons
• Format: Hardcover
• Pages: 240
• Language: English

Reviews

[funbreaker4opal]

I actually really appreciate this book. While I'm not a Floridian, it sometimes seems like everyone only sees the drunken idiot incidents in the news and then apply that to everything that walks within the borders of the state.

[MurderByDeath]

I needed something light and non-fiction(ish) last night and this was perfect.  I've never read Barry before, but I knew I was in for fun and maybe a laugh or two.  I not only wasn't disappointed, but I now have the urge to, next time I'm home, shove MT in the car and subject him to all the wacky, tacky tourist traps from my childhood.   The introduction and first chapter read almost like a stand-up routine; the majority of pure hilarity is found here the beginning.  The rest of the book is definitely humorous but reads more like a Bill Bryson book, only much less British.   What I liked best about the book though, was that Barry points out what is obvious to those of us that are true natives to Florida:  all the weird, crazy stuff that the other 49 states laugh at Florida over is pretty much always perpetuated by people who came from those other 49 states.  If y'all would just stop shipping your nut jobs south, Florida would be as normal as the rest, but it would also be a lot less fun.