The Florida Book Review

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(Image from a Florida postcard) Weblinks to follow the weather: www.nhc.noaa.gov - This is the official site of the National Hurricane Center. It's probably the most "official" site on the web, so if you have trust issues, go here. They've improved over time, most notably with better maps and a new small news feed at the top. In the past, their maps have been less definitive, with a huge cone, especially for slow-moving storms. Their text descriptions are also very technical and dense. Plus, the site's not as colorful, and we all like colors, don't we? www.wunderground.com/tropical/ - This is Weather Underground's tropical weather site. They are good if you want easy access to a wide range of information, including things like the "historical" diagram which shows how similar past storms have moved. They have a good variety of computer models (which are lacking on the NHC), and they're very easy to navigate. They're also the best source I know of for hurricane blogging - Dr. Jeff Masters blogs about tropical activity pretty consistently, although if you're a complete beginner he may seem a bit jargonish. Plus, they're the best location for hurricane news if you're trying to "one-stop shop" for weather info at your mansion on Fisher Island, your home in the Hamptons, the Manhattan apartment, the London flat and the Chateau on the Loire. On the con side, they are a commercial entity, so there are ads around the site. www.skeetobiteweather.com - These guys have very clear diagrams that show not just where the storm will go, but how strong it will be in different locations. They're also good for more minor systems, as they show details "investigation areas" that may develop into depressions, which neither the NHC nor Weather Underground does. Their historical records, however, have not been updated since 2005. They have a slightly wider variety of computer models than Weather Underground, though you need to visit both sites to see all of them. They can be a bit slow in updating (they normally have a 45-minute to an hour lag in updating after the NHC, as compared to Weather Underground's 5-minute lag), but that's because they end up presenting much more information with their diagrams. They come across as no-frills, with their relatively plain layout and lack of things like "wind history" that the other two throw in. --James Barrett-Morison

Winners of the 2008 Florida Book Awards Book Design Gold Medal:  Emmett H.L. Snellings, Jr., Seminole Views   Children's Literature Gold Medal:  Susan Womble, Newt's World: Beginnings Silver Medal:  Donna Gephart, As If Being 12 3/4 Isn't Bad Enough, My Mother Is Running For President Bronze Medal:  Loreen Leedy,  Missing Math: A Number Mystery   Florida Nonfiction Gold Medal:  Shawn Bean, The First Hollywood Silver Medal:  John Stuart & John Stack, Eds., The New Deal in South Florida  Read our review. Bronze Medal: Rodney Hurst, It was Never about a Hot Dog and a Coke Jeff Klinkenberg, Pilgrim in a Land of Alligators Greg Turner, A Journey into Florida Railroad History   General Fiction Gold Medal:  John Dufresne, Requiem, Mass. Silver Medal:  Tony D'Souza, The Konkans Bronze Medal: Kristy Kiernan, Matters of Faith Debra Dean, Confessions of a Falling Woman   Genre Fiction Gold Medal:  Deborah & Joel Shlian, Rabbit in the Moon Silver Medal:  Lisa Unger, Black Out Bronze Medal: James Swain, The Night Stalker Patrick Kendrick, Papa's Problem Martha Powers, Conspiracy of Silence   Poetry Gold Medal:  David Kirby, Temple Gate Called Beautiful Silver Medal Winner:  Campbell McGrath, Seven Notebooks Bronze Medal: Terri Witek, The Shipwreck Dress Frank Giampietro, Begin Anywhere Helen Wallace, Shimming the Glass House   Spanish Language Book Gold Medal:  Antonio Orlando Rodriguez, Chiquita Silver Medal:  José Álvarez, Principio y fin del mito fidelista   Young Adult Literature Gold Medal:  John Tkac, Whispers from the Bay Silver Medal:  Anne Ake, Everglades Bronze Medal:  Julie Gonzalez, Imaginary Enemy   For more information on these and past winners, please visit the Florida Book Awards website.

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