{"product_id":"9780813047003","title":"Matecumbe","description":"\u003cp\u003ePulitzer Prize-winning author James A. Michener was in his sixties when he began traveling frequently to the Florida Keys. One result of those visits was the novel \u003ci\u003eMatecumbe,\u003c\/i\u003e named after two of the islands that comprise the town of Islamorada, located approximately half way between Miami and Key West.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eNever before published, \u003ci\u003eMatecumbe\u003c\/i\u003e features many of the hallmarks of Michener's best work, including detailed descriptions of place. However, the plot is much more intimate than that found in most of his large-scale, epic historical novels. Focusing on the parallel lives of a woman and her mother, both divorced, Michener spent his creative energy on character development and allegorical storytelling. Random House, his publisher, wasn't pleased, and wanted the mega-best-selling author to concentrate on producing \"heavyweight\" books like \u003ci\u003eHawaii\u003c\/i\u003e and \u003ci\u003eCentennial. Matecumbe\u003c\/i\u003e seemed too much in the vein of his earlier romance novel, \u003ci\u003eSayonara.\u003c\/i\u003e So it sat in a drawer until, eventually, Michener gifted it--including the copyright--to Joe Avenick, his friend and former ghostwriter. Avenick played a key role in the research and writing of \u003ci\u003eSports in America\u003c\/i\u003e and \u003ci\u003eChesapeake,\u003c\/i\u003e and introduced Michener to Melissa (Missy) DeMaio, who soon became the primary reason for Michener's increasingly frequent visits to the Keys.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eBiographers and critics have long agreed that Michener's personality and his characters were both affected by his relationship with DeMaio. As perhaps his most encompassing autobiographical novel, and the one written in the midst of these changes, \u003ci\u003eMatecumbe\u003c\/i\u003e provides what may be tantalizing glimpses into Michener's life.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"University Press of Florida","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":47119122890992,"sku":"9780813047003","price":9.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0737\/7593\/9824\/files\/9780813047003_p0.jpg?v=1763737997","url":"https:\/\/shop-qa.barnesandnoble.com\/products\/9780813047003","provider":"Barnes \u0026 Noble (DEV)","version":"1.0","type":"link"}