We have a remarkable board of directors who work hard at doing this yearround. None of this at all could have been without the good support if everyone here at Miami Dade College and lets give them a huge round of applause. [applause] they are particularly appreciative of the sponsors. Without the sponsors and funding from foundations and governmental, we wouldnt be able to bring you all of this literary extravaganza. And of course our friends. Many of you are friends of the Miami Book Fair and that is a way that you can support the book fare and make sure that it goes on for another 29 years as well. [applause] if you look downstairs at the booth, you are more than welcome to sign up if youd like. I also like to tell you make sure that you pick up the guide on the way out. We have a remarkable program. Tomorrow night in fac fact the t up at night with about 4 00 for those of you that have kids, hes coming with his new series and he will be there at 4 00 followed by a wonderful writer and chris hayes from msnbc. We also have incredible programming that happens in spanish and other languages as well. We have writers from different countries, from latin america and spain but will be with us. The country of paraguay we invite you next thursday with the validity of the opening country so please, come by and learn about their cultural traditions in literature throughout the whole and. And that he will excuse on a personal note, ive been working very closely with the executivee director to send her here at the college. Before that commission is the director of the Miami Book Fair for i wont tell you how many years. It was a lot. And its been announced that alina is the executive director of Cultural Affairs for the entire Miamidade County college. [applause] im looking forward to that. Part of my responsibility is to work very closely with miami debate coke the miami festival celebrating 30 years in march. We have a director with us this evening so mark your calendar for that as well. To see ballet with books in them and opera with books in them, so her influence will be everywhere. Can i take two more minutes from your time to see if you can join me in recognizing mitchell for 30 years for his leadership, for his mission. [applause] again, she said we couldnt do this without our sponsors. We couldnt do it without our publishers and they are fortunate to have an hour minute one of the brilliant we have in the country worldwide. He is the publisher and i know michael is here somewhere. I would hope that he could be recognized. There he is. Thank you. [applause] one of the sponsors they have had for many years that have been huge supporters is channeled to and i want to bring up the executive Vice President and chief operating officer. Please, welcome her. And thank you all. [applause] thank you, everyone and welcome. I am the ceo for your Public Television and radio station. What i was about the Miami Book Fair is that they represent how we should be known here in miami. Sure, we have beautiful beaches and interesting politics. I think increasingly, we will be known for our wacky characters. But if you look to the person to the right and speak to the person to your left, what you will find over engage in the form of the cultured citizens and in growing numbers we are a smarter city then we give ourselves credit for. And we need to get comfortable with that idea. I hope that its because youve been watching more Public Television. But im sure that there is no better way to take up to the next level and to hear from the literary icon. Tom wolfe was born and raised in richmond, virginia, educated at the university and later earned a phd from yale. He spent his first ten years as a newspaper man doing general assignment reporting. And i bet if i called on many of you, you could easily name his novels, the right stuff time in our time, the vanities, a man in full and many more. And now back to blood which reflects back to all of us. How are we going to react to that . He is credited with the birth of new journalism at the desk of the american novel by some. Hes the mark twain of our time. How lucky are we to have a moment in time with him. And what better way to start the conversation, im glad to get them to come to the stage than a published author in his own right. And a man whose name is synonymous with leadership of our own former mayor. Manny diaz, let me turn over to you. Hopefully we can talk is supposed t [applause] good evening, everybody. Lets get started. You chose wall street on the upper sinus your setting and the man in full, you chose atlanta but then i brought my control you wrote about college today, a fictional college. Many believed especially since your daughter graduated my question is, and i think thats what all the fuss want to know is why am i here, how did you choose. If you write a book on immigration. This is still i was working on my last book and people would say what do you want to work on next. And i would say im going to do something with immigration and it was always the same response. Thats interesting. They go to sleep standing. My first choice was vietnamese in california who had huge numbers, theyve now migrated to los angeles, san francisco. Just like the i couldnt read the paper. Then i heard about miami that seems to be the only city in the whole world in which people from another country with another language in a very different culture took over at the voting machine a big metropolitan area and i would say more than one generation, but im talking about i said i have to go see what this is about. I thought the great industry was tourism in miami and then i found out for some time its been shipping including shipping that made the bank has more cash than all of the rest of the Federal Reserve system puts together a. But now it seems to be pretty honest work. [laughter] and i dont know if hes here tonight, a journalist told me miami is choice number two for latin america. Once i was here, i knew so little, but i had a lot of friends, including the mayor and chief of police. That isnt a bad way to start. When we were here we go folks you the mayor and the chief of integrated in a senior in 1961 from an island is. Guest john was born in dublin. He is the ultra irishman and when you look at him you will know you were talking to. One of his colleagues said the rest of them they just looked at them. Thats how i got started and what a way to start a. He put me on a facebook which i never heard of before with 25 people on. I had a slightly nice introduction to the mayor and a big old freedom. That is the best way to meet people. Host racial and ethnic tension not to mention class antagonism seemed to permeate your novels. Do you look for this and then choose the location nor does the location we . Guest i think its so few of the writers i wanted to show the subject of race and ethnicity and all those things. It makes people nervous. But thats america. Thats what america is all abo about. I was raised in richmond and there were two types of people, black and white. When i went to get my job and think that massachusetts and they would say what are you and i didnt know they were talking about. Springfield was a city where people who didnt get a job in boston or new york would come to springfield and say about 170,000. Irish, italian. It was important for them to know where you came from. I said i hope they come from shenandoah valley. But that is the education of. Its a great reading place for people over the world into somehow i get here and it is and its a fantastic accomplishment. There are some of course we probably dont know what theyre talking about, but criticized some of the books, some of the characters are onedimensional or simplistic or play to stereotypes. If i have a complicated side of the house i will send a postcard. Host what about the main character in back to blood figure have t had to admit thats real and that the characters all have a choice to. But the they have in common andt did the morality or choices have in common . Guest i didnt mean to write about it i walk in a lightweight for the characters to arrive and probably because i got a great introduction to the police with. They would steer me in this direction and it was always the right direction. And it must be grateful it couldnt be a let me just say angel had the greatest voice and temperament [inaudible] he was also a very brave undercover policemen. Its a voice as i remember. And he would never put on, but never put on a great. And i was so shocked. What made you zero in on it. I arrived here thinking that it was a race track. There were things like racism and this and that. Think what is the greatest track just looking at in america. No flamingos in the infield. A bit of a. Im not in the infield they require in order to keep their color and if they dont have this. I found out that the real little havana. Half of the population within the city limits. Miami proper . About five i thought it you look at the cafe and they play checkers across the street, youve been there. You have an incredible reputation for the amount of research that you do when you are writing a book. How do you compare the research that you did for charlotte and the research you did in miami for blood, and i dont think youve done this before, so what was it like having a camera following you around a during the research . I know that when i was in office, they followed me around and i didnt particularly like it. [laughter] you will see for yourself what happened to me. One thing i couldnt do this with any camera man on on the private interviews. [inaudible] that is the first thing that i noticed. Anyway, i think that he did a brilliant job. A few years back he came to miami at the invitation and spoke about the contributions to the city life and in your books they are not especially highend or play an important part is that you seem especially some rich guys apartment in manhattan and a close at one of the backdrops. Can you talk about what it means like a . Spin it now it is a driving force artist of the Real Estate Developers in america. I see this in new york over ti time. They move to a godforsaken neighborhood in the worst part of brooklyn and now the rich cant wait. Look at the success that is the artists as they develop. Sometimes they dont treat them nicely to a. You may know the name he was a multifaceted figure but he got the bright idea of talking to real estate people who ha have a lot of good property. The artists used as lofts for a token for 50 a month, that kind of thing and it was the smartest thing he ever did. He suddenly found a corporation moving in this particular area. Certain improvements were happening. Connecticut is to be covered in pavement for more parking space. He had all the parking taken away in each week he had a boat come down the river with a sort of spraying incidents and music playing on the boat and people would gather. Thats the power of art. And it doesnt matter what the artists are like, just as bonus they are artists. On the spiritual side, i dont really know the. The. Every welltodo art collector has an aa who chooses for him or her what he or she likes. I didnt know i like that. [laughter] but it just works. Its a form of religion, i am really believe that in which you just have places to go to worship. Were you just trying to start a fight or be provocative . It seems choosing up sides often sided with mailer and company is sad and negative impact of reviewers on your book . Do you think they used each book as a chance to get even . Yes. [laughter] but i could not resist. I had three of them and they were all old men. And sit around writing reviews. But john updike complained of bladder problems. And then mailer had to rusted out hips i havent made fun of john irving but he was pushing 60. [laughter] three of them had the perfect title. S2 john stage sets up the line for the comedienne. And they were called my three stooges. This isnt true of many bet with a politician if he says what he means. [laughter] he should know better than that. And the reason i have a Long Distance love with joe biden is there was a big outbreak of a disease very contagious. When he was asked by a reporter and the annunciation for the simple truth. So you have to honor the politicians and on friday the publication and the launch of miami transformed. Youre in it. There was a big dispute as to what transform cities. But of course it was all about security. I could not agree with you more. Thank you for holding back. [applause] i really hope there are questions that would be unique for the Miami Book Fair. If you can line up behind this gentle man. A book ago you wrote a description of hiphop music that was so on the many that i thought to myself tom wolfe really gets hiphop music and he likes it. Do you like hiphop music and as a writer do you do anything special to get inside the brain of something for you been doing that for so long it is Second Nature . No. I dont like hiphop. [laughter] but i do like country and western and one of my favorite titles is that aint my truck in her driveway. That is so much. No lexis or a toyota. Its a truck. And railroad music. Not a bad railroad song. Have never had a chance to say this before. [laughter] i remember the last time you were here the audience asked why dont you write about miami . You said hes already done a good enough job for that. But i enjoyed your book did you have pressure of reading other authors from miami or were you inspired . I think i have Read Everything he has written. He is brilliant in the sociological sense and then a guy who falls down in the strip club. And absolutely. I dont think anybody has done miami justice because they dont look around. But there other parts of miami beside south beach. But i havent Read Everything. A lot of your characters is driven by a. You told the audience sex is gods little joke. Say that again. [laughter] i saw you in new york five years ago. At barnes noble. Near the end you said sex is gods little joke. I still believe that. [laughter] just read the papers today and yesterday. [laughter] with all of these ambitions. That gods little joke because god says you can do whatever you want but we will appropriate and have more of your kind if you want it or not. So this country is so full of unwed mothers. Its a tough thing to pull off were to be ceo of a bank. Thank you. I am an immigrant from the bronx new york if we were just wondering to get by with or without spanish. Find it difficult not to get along well also how is your salsa dancing . I am agrees that the tango. Did you have an interpreter with you . Are mask your ability to transform this town into english that is primarily in spanish . And i made a mistake. A glaring mistake. Because the miami herald and a lot of latin to didnt understand. So i thought it was Something Else but i was informed its not correct spanish but now im asking your opinion. I dont know. [laughter] in this town not becoming bilingual over the years but it still isnt day blanket statement. Those that are caucasian are brought up to be speaking spanish and english. [applause] hello. I am referring to charlotte timmons. Do you think there is any hope for Young College women . I am a College Teacher and i am wondering if you think theres any hope for the College Women these days . In general terms . When i wrote that i went to many different colleges. Not meant to be duke. My daughter went there and i named it dupont. But honestly it was supposed to be entirely fixed on fictional. If she doesnt come across on the fourth date then thats it. But today it is a little different if she doesnt come across by the second date and one student said what is this about dates . [laughter] no i think this is worth paying attention to. But the ubiquity, the use everywhere of cell phones which also take pictures and the ipads has cut down some of that wildness that colleges because of you are doing something insane it just haunts people. Who gets into the wrong hands and gets on youtube. That has wild College Parties and makes people much more careful. Wouldnt that be interesting . With Information Technology . I am native from miami. Twenty years ago with those gentlemen on i95 asking if they can help my husband and i. Just having read bonfire of the vanities. And we were robbed at gunpoint but ive raised three children and it is a wonderful city. I love miami. After having done your research and meeting the interesting character to on characters do you think this is the kind of place you thank you could live . There is no blanket statement because there is such a variety. I dont know the statistics for things like single mothers. You probably do but it wouldnt hurt people to cut down a little bit. Do you thank you could live here . Sure. Property is going up in price. You can get a four or five bedroom apartment down near the ocean 400,000. But the real estate decline hit miami long before. But i hear you cant get those great bargains anymore. You say the mayor is told by a mob back to blood. Now i noticed now that now you began your novel using that phrase. What is the phrase . Back to blood. I felt i had to explain in the prologue of the book this is not wet to blood if there are any poorer fans who would like that like Horror Stories but it is bloodlines. I do believe in the age that religion is fading among educated people. But you could be in the english department. They will find a way to get you out. It is unfortunately true. Everyone wants to believe in something absolutely that their own beliefs are chiseled in stone and it is quite natural and after 9 11 to others two kinds of allegiances that announced 9 11 was the result of homosexuality in america that falwell is from lynchburg. What do they think they are doing . That is back to blood. They are both virginians so if you want to hear some more of this theory but everybody identifies with a status group. That if carved in stone would make your group the most important. I was in a Country Store during the second world war. And as it is not just that simple and you just get them over there. [laughter] and then ill tell you what i will do. And then i will ring the bell and then ill shoot. Another good old boy said im sure its not that simple you just cant go barging in. I will hide the rifle underneath i will get to the back of the place and when he when it gets dark i will hide behind the tree and in the morning when he comes out to pletter i will shoot him. [laughter] so the good old boys that is their thinking. That the government is useless you cant even count on them to defend you. And with the ownership of guns. And they want to go shoot hitler if the government wont. And they are perfectly comfortable to be in that status group. But then there would be hell to pay because there are certain agreements and i discovered they are behind the times in miami i go to places with a necktie. But things change. And what people where one where, every man and woman that is a lot. That is in alignment. You dont try to out dress anybody but stay where you are. Anyway i think its the greatest subject in the world, status. Thank you. Last question. I would not be surprised because North Carolina every year brings in guestworkers to pick the cotton. Picking cotton is the worst job in the world its in the height of the heat of the summer and those little bowls have dried up leaves and they are sharp its extremely unpleasant. You cannot find a nativeborn native carolinian any description who will pick cotton. So they bring in the guestworkers also from latin america and they do all of the hard work. And they are happy enough to get the work. I am from columbia and have been here 20 years. When i came here gladly wrote about coming to miami. Will the book be published in spanish . It will be. But the hold up is translation. If i finish the book on time. [laughter] six months ago, there wouldnt be the hold up. But all of my books have been translated into spanish. And ive always been able to do pretty well reading. Thank you so much. [applause]