theCardinal' Book Fair Wish List

The Miami Book Fair International is just over a month away so I figured I throw out my dream list of author's to see. I should have done this sooner and sent it to Mitch or Christina but alas it is too probably too late now. Considering the nature of our group I stick mostly to non-fiction writers and only mention fiction writers who dab in politics. Here we go:

• Salman Rushdie, Shalimar the Clown - My money says that Rushdie will be there. When he was in hiding he popped up at B&B for an event so it would be a little odd for him to snub Miami now.

• Christopher Hitchens, Love, Poetry and War: Journey's and Essays and Thomas Jefferson: Author of America - The prolific, brilliant and iconoclastic writer would definitely pack the house.

• Thomas Friedman, The World is Flat: A Brief History of the 21st Century - It really is not that brief and calling it a history of anything is dubious. Despite this Friedman is knowledgeable writer and one with influence it would be interesting to hear him speak.

• Robert Kaplan, Imperial Grunts: The American Military on the Ground - My sophomore year of college I was forced to read Kaplan's essay "The Coming Anarchy", I have been a huge fan ever since . Kaplan is an incredibly astute and gifted writer and observer. I would gladly give everybody on this list up just to see him.

• Richard N. Haass, The Opportunity: America's Moment to Alter History's Course - Haass' slender volume is a revelation and a blueprint for the administration to follow. How ironic if he proves to be more influential from the outside than when he was with the administration.

• Bing West, No True Glory: A Frontline Account of the Battle for Fallujah - West already co-authored the best boots-on-the-ground book of the war in Iraq, The March Up. He goes for seconds here in what is said to be a harrowing account of a critical battle against insurgents.

• David Rothkopf, Running the World: The Inside Story of the National Security Council and the Architects of American Power - Ok I have no idea if Rothkopf is a good speaker or not but I'm a complete dork and I would be interested to hear what he has to say about the NSC.

• Martin Meredith, The Fate of Africa: A History of Fifty Years of Independence - I'm curious.

• Carlos Alberto Montaner, Libertad y Sus Enemigos - Unfortuantely Montaner's events are only in Spanish. A brilliant individual who also happens to have a lively and entertaining speaking style. The breadth and depth of his knowledge is what makes him so much fun to listen too. Everytime he has a new book out he shows up to the fair so I imagine he'll be there.

• Mario Vargas Llosa, La Tentacion de lo Imposible - This slender volume based on lectures delivered at Oxford deals with Victor Hugo and his masterpiece Les Miserables. This is hardly worth a visit from this renowned writer but he's probably in town anyway and with Montaner around there's a chance he'll show up.

• Henry Kissinger - He does not have a book to promote but I would love to get him to sign my copy of Diplomacy and the first two volumes of his memoirs.