What to know about books from area writers

They arrive in our electronic mailboxes regularly, emails from writers who have penned a book and want us to tell the world.

Southwest Florida authors are busy pounding away at the keyboard when you’d think they’d be outside more, enjoying the Gulf breezes and sandy beaches.

Thankfully for us, they’ve written about themselves, interesting real people and fascinating ones in the fictional world.

Some are for children while others definitely are not.

Once or twice a year, we share these wordsmiths’ books with you. And to get things started, the first author is Annabelle Tometich, a former News-Press and Naples Daily News colleague and longtime food and dining writer. She’s a supremely talented writer who can make Brussels sprouts sound interesting.

‘The Mango Tree’ truly a story about family

A felonious Florida mango memoir? We’re in. Author Annabelle Tometich spent 18 years writing about food and critiquing restaurants for The News-Press in her hometown of Fort Myers. Her first book, “The Mango Tree: A Memoir of Fruit, Florida, and Felony,” debuts April 2, 2024 from Little, Brown. In June 2015, when Tometich’s Filipina mother used her squirrel-sniping BB rifle to shoot out the car window of a white man she claimed was stealing mangoes from her Fort Myers yard, the police stepped in. They arrested Tometich’s mom. They charged the 64-year-old with “firing a missile into an occupied dwelling, vehicle, building, or aircraft,” a second-degree felony.

This led to a call from one of the author’s News-Press colleagues. “Did (your mom) really shoot at that guy — over a mango?” the reporter asked. Tometich told him a version of the truth: “It’s complicated.” So begins “The Mango Tree,” a book that, with humor and clear-eyed compassion, delves into the author’s multiracial childhood in Robert E. Lee County, her relationship with her widowed and fiery immigrant mother, and the fruit tree that loomed large and leafy over her fractured family. 

Melanie Smith’s book helps cope with trauma, loss

Former actress and Naples resident Melanie Smith adds the role of author to her resume with her debut memoir “Unfinished Business.” Released this month, the books details an eight-step process guiding readers through matters of trauma and loss.

Prior to her time as a lifestyle coach, Smith has starred in “Star Trek: Deep Space Nine,” “As the World Turns, and was also featured in three episodes “Seinfeld” as Jerry’s girlfriend Rachel Goldstein (Season 5, “The Raincoats,” “The Hamptons,” “The Opposite”).

Smith has 30 years of research and extensive experience in life coaching with certifications in grief recovery, holistic health and nutrition counseling.

Naples author Adam Makos shines light on heroism

Internationally best-selling author, Adam Makos of Naples was honored with a Christopher Award for his book “Devotion: An Epic Story of Heroism and Friendship” in early 2023.

The book is based on a true story of a Navy aviator duo and the Marines they fought to defend. Makos’ tale of bravery and selflessness is one of 12 winning books for adults and young people given at the 74th Christopher Awards, which gives distinction to media that “affirm the highest values of human spirit.”

The 2014 book was adapted into a movie in November 2022 with starring actors Jonathan Majors and Glen Powell.

Susan Sachs Levine

Children’s book author Susan Sachs Levine lives in Naples and takes inspiration from the local wildlife, particularly the birds, when writing books that serve as an entertaining teaching resource for young children.

As a Florida Master Naturalist and mother of two, Levine combines and applies her knowledge of child-rearing and the natural world into creative and engaging children’s stories.

Levine’s newest release, “Gilbert’s Migrant Vacation,” published in July. It follows the 4,000-mile journey of a Sanderling chick migrating south for the winter. In addition to the entertaining narrative, the picture book includes adorable illustrations and educational information about common shorebirds that can be seen on beaches along the Atlantic and Gulf coasts.

Ex‒NDN editor turns fiction writer

Jeff Bruce, a former Naples Daily News editor, has kept busy in retirement. He’s penned a few novels about Alexander Strange, America’s only full-time weird-news reporter is hunting the elusive Florida vigilante known as Mister Manners.

His latest from last year, “Mister Manners,” is about a character with the same who has been on a rampage, gluing grocery carts to car roofs, hiding pythons in tourists’ beds, and now the cops believe he dumped a load of horse manure on a naked mob bagman.

He’s become a social media phenomenon, a kind of modern-day Robin Hood, striking out against stupidity and rudeness. Who is this guy? Strange is determined to answer that question and to score the first interview with him.

Bruce said his next book, “An Angel in Time,” is expected out by Christmas.

Retired doctor’s autobiography details his journey

Retired Estero doctor Harcourt G. Harris published his memoir “Race and Healing: Autobiography of an Urban Black Physician” in February, detailing the obstacles he had to overcome as a black man on a journey to become a doctor.

In this autobiography, Harris elaborates his experiences as a young black man born in the 1920s hoping to be accepted into the white-dominated field of medicine. Harris hopes to inspire youth with similar dreams to his own through his own story of success.