Harry Breitenbach was the consummate angler, fishing the Florida Gulf Coast from Tampa to the Ten Thousand Islands. When fishing fresh water rivers like the Withlacoochee, his favorite lure was an improvised affair he called the "Withlacoochee Jitterbug." His luckiest day is not on the river, but when he meets 19-year old Rose Lindermeyer working the perfume counter at the original downtown Maas Brothers Department Store in Tampa. Harry was hooked, and though this tall, elegant young woman was half his age, their unlikely romance lights the pages of this novel. The setting is early 20th century Florida, where the state's origins in the old Confederacy are squeezed by a boom economy fed by sunshine, citrus agriculture and tourism. Tampa becomes a magnet for Americans, Cubans, and every ethnicity. The story itself reflects that diversity. The saga of Harry and Rose unfolds in Ybor City as well as on the lazy rivers and gulf beaches of Florida's modern beginnings. The story revolves around family and the Breitenbachs are rich in contradictions and the emotional angst unique to southern gothic. Withlacoochee Jitterbug is driven by its characters' struggle for redemption and accomplishment. The plot lines are as rich as seafood gumbo; as compelling as the determined angler fighting to land the catch of a lifetime.
