Books and Books

Have I raved about this new favorite spot yet? Books and Books is an independent bookstore in Miami (that rare, nearly extinct bird). I go to the store in Coral Gables (pictured above), but there are also branches on Miami Beach, in Bal Harbor and the Cayman Islands as well! The calendar of author events is so good I sometimes feel as though I've been spirited away into some kind of literary dreamscape. The point of my overwrought superlatives - I never cease to be amazed at the wealth of art, literature, poetry and other creative opportunities in Miami. This is partly the joy of low expectations, but I do think this is a city on an upswing. Of course, in the months since I moved here I have gravitated toward my interests. My point is, either I moved here at just the right time, or this city is not asvacuous as the view from South Beach suggests.

Recent highlights include the Miami Book Fair, South Beach Comedy Festival, philosophy lectures at the University of Miami, the Jewish Film Festival, discovering West Coconut Grove, all Books and Books, all the time...and these are events I've been able to attend, not a full calendar; I'd never get to work if I attended everything I wanted to!

I do feel frustrated that museums cost a lot, and sometimes it is difficult to get as immersed in the art scene as I would like to be. Mostly, contemporary art is daunting because I just don't understand! Still, there's so much to do here, and that's not so good for my bibliographic ADHD. My greatest strength and weakness is how much I absorb, the scope of my interests, from art to tennis and radio and piano and more. Jill of all trades and mistress of none.

I absorb a little too much I think, maybe I should put some blinkers on to write, and tune out some frequencies, interesting though they may be. But then again, who wants to be a mistress....