Naked Came the Manatee
Encyclopedia
Naked Came the Manatee is a mystery
thriller parody
novel published in 1996. It is composed of thirteen chapters, each written by a different Miami-area writer. It was originally published as a serial in the Miami Herald's Tropic magazine, one chapter per issue, and later published as a single novel. Its title is a reference to the literary hoax Naked Came the Stranger
. The book was conceived of and edited by Tom Shroder
, then editor of "Tropic." Dave Barry came up with the first chapter, which was then handed to the next writer, and so on until Carl Hiassen had to tie all the lose threads together in the final chapter. Each chapter was written on deadline for publication in the magazine.
The plot involves three crime-fighting characters from three of the writers' previous, non-parody, mystery/thriller works coming together to help an elderly environmentalist and her granddaughter investigate the mystery behind a package delivered by a precocious Miami-area manatee
named Booger. John Dufresne opens his chapter in a spoof on Moby-Dick
, with the line "Call me Booger..."
All proceeds from the novel were donated to charity.
The writers of the different chapters are:
Mystery fiction
Mystery fiction is a loosely-defined term.1.It is often used as a synonym for detective fiction or crime fiction— in other words a novel or short story in which a detective investigates and solves a crime mystery. Sometimes mystery books are nonfiction...
thriller parody
Parody
A parody , in current usage, is an imitative work created to mock, comment on, or trivialise an original work, its subject, author, style, or some other target, by means of humorous, satiric or ironic imitation...
novel published in 1996. It is composed of thirteen chapters, each written by a different Miami-area writer. It was originally published as a serial in the Miami Herald's Tropic magazine, one chapter per issue, and later published as a single novel. Its title is a reference to the literary hoax Naked Came the Stranger
Naked Came the Stranger
Naked Came the Stranger is a 1969 novel written as a literary hoax poking fun at contemporary American culture. Though credited to "Penelope Ashe", it was in fact written by a group of twenty-four prominent journalists led by Newsday columnist Mike McGrady...
. The book was conceived of and edited by Tom Shroder
Tom Shroder
Tom Shroder is an award-winning journalist, writer and editor, who worked for the Washington Post for many years. Shroder is co-author of Fire on the Horizon: the Untold Story of the Gulf Oil Disaster and author of Old Souls: Scientific Evidence From Children Who Remember Previous Lives...
, then editor of "Tropic." Dave Barry came up with the first chapter, which was then handed to the next writer, and so on until Carl Hiassen had to tie all the lose threads together in the final chapter. Each chapter was written on deadline for publication in the magazine.
The plot involves three crime-fighting characters from three of the writers' previous, non-parody, mystery/thriller works coming together to help an elderly environmentalist and her granddaughter investigate the mystery behind a package delivered by a precocious Miami-area manatee
Manatee
Manatees are large, fully aquatic, mostly herbivorous marine mammals sometimes known as sea cows...
named Booger. John Dufresne opens his chapter in a spoof on Moby-Dick
Moby-Dick
Moby-Dick; or, The Whale, was written by American author Herman Melville and first published in 1851. It is considered by some to be a Great American Novel and a treasure of world literature. The story tells the adventures of wandering sailor Ishmael, and his voyage on the whaleship Pequod,...
, with the line "Call me Booger..."
All proceeds from the novel were donated to charity.
The writers of the different chapters are:
- Dave BarryDave BarryDavid "Dave" Barry is a Pulitzer Prize-winning American author and columnist, who wrote a nationally syndicated humor column for The Miami Herald from 1983 to 2005. He has also written numerous books of humor and parody, as well as comedic novels.-Biography:Barry was born in Armonk, New York,...
- Les StandifordLes StandifordLes Standiford is a historian and author and has since 1985 been the Director of the Florida International University Creative Writing Program. Although his most recent works have been narrative non-fiction historical pieces in the style of David McCulloch, his John Deal novels set him firmly in ...
- Paul LevinePaul LevinePaul Levine is an American author of crime fiction, particularly legal thrillers. His novels have been translated into 21 languages. He has written three series, known generally by the names of the protagonists: "Jake Lassiter," "Solomon and Lord," and “Jimmy Payne.”Lassiter, a Miami Dolphins...
- Edna BuchananEdna BuchananEdna Buchanan is an American journalist and author best known for her crime mystery novels.She was born in Paterson, New Jersey and attended Montclair State College. As one of the first female crime journalists in Miami, she wrote for the Miami Beach Daily Sun and the Miami Herald as a general...
- James W. Hall
- Carolina Hospital
- Evelyn Mayerson
- Tananarive DueTananarive DueTananarive Due is an American author.-Biography:Tananarive Priscilla Due was born in Tallahassee, Florida, the oldest of three daughters of civil rights activist Patricia Stephens Due and civil rights lawyer John D. Due Jr...
- Brian Antoni
- Vicki Hendricks
- John DufresneJohn DufresneJohn Dufresne is an American author of French Canadian descent born in Worcester, Massachusetts. He graduated from Worcester State College in 1970 and the University of Arkansas in 1984. He is a professor in the Master of Fine Arts Creative Writing program of the English Department at Florida...
- Elmore LeonardElmore LeonardElmore John Leonard Jr. , better known as Elmore Leonard, is an American novelist and screenwriter. His earliest published novels in the 1950s were westerns, but Leonard went on to specialize in crime fiction and suspense thrillers, many of which have been adapted into motion pictures.Among his...
- Carl HiaasenCarl HiaasenCarl Hiaasen is an American journalist, columnist and novelist.- Early years :Born in 1953 and raised in Plantation, Florida, of Norwegian heritage, Hiaasen was the first of four children and the son of a lawyer, Kermit Odel, and teacher, Patricia...