Mile Marker Zero: The Moveable Feast of Key West

Great Read for fans of the Keys

Throughly enjoyed reading this book!

A trip down memory lane...of the heydays of Key West before it was turned into an alternative Disneyworld theme park with tourist schlock and endless T shirt shops up and down Duval Street. I am a native Miamian and have made many trips down to MM Zero over the years and have gradually seen the change....the famous writers, playwrights and Buffet created the mystique of Key West but also brought on its change from from a local hangout to a worldwide tourist destination... I rarely make the trip down anymore....it's expensive and crowded with tourists and cruise ships....a shame but inevitable.Enjoyed reading about the now famous people that once called Key West home....I did find the constant back and forth of stories about the various writers and other members of the cast of Key West (and many wives and children) a bit confusing.....difficult to keep up with all the players in the story. I would have liked more descriptions of old Key West including landmarks, sight, sounds smells and descriptions of the tropical Victorian homes that are all part of the experience. Emphasis was put on the drunken and drug running days of the 70's without the beautiful backdrop of the southernmost city being mentioned......However, I did enjoy the back story of Key West famous residents....they will forever part of the allure and culture of KW.

Purchase a new book for all the great stories of writers down in Key West

I couldn’t put it down. Like Key West characters and back stories, this is for you. I won’t spoil it with and in-depth review.

Upon finishing William McKeen's "Mile Maker Zero," I headed to my computer and started looking for flights to Key West. It's a gift when an author has the ability to drop you smack into a place during a period of time and McKeen wields this magic throughout as he writes of interesting times in an amazing place. I truly felt I was belly up at the Half Shell with Jim Harrison, dodging with Tom McGuane as we ducked furniture thrown by Elizabeth Ashley, watching sunrise with Jimmy Buffet, and shaking my head in amazement as Hunter S. Thompson is holding court with cocktail in one hand and joint in the other. When creative types descend on a destination and make it their own, chaos and legend often ensues. McKeen filters the lies as he explains the lure of a small island town and its inspiration on some of 20th century America's artistic greats. Don't be surprised if, when the journey of "Mile Marker Zero" is over, you find yourself sipping Havana Club on ice and hoping Margot Kidder stops by in a bikini top and cutoffs.

An encyclopedic history of Key West from the early Jimmy buffet era to the present. Can't imagine the amount of time the author spent diagramming .all the mate swapping of his artistic friends. Perhaps a stuffier reviewer would describe the women as easy going sluts and their mates as striving writers and inept drug smugglersBy his definition marijuana smugglers are good old boys and coke smugglers are evil. Well the Colombians are evil, the Key West distributors are still good old bots necessarily wreaking havoc with the poison in order to finance their artistic vision.The fact that the community and it's governmental structure was viewed as totally corrupt is given a lpass.

It was interesting to read the backgrounds of these folks who amazingly have a deep presence in my life. My iPhone is full of Buffet playlists from way back. I keep a copy of McGuane’s “The Longest Silence” in my tackle bag for reading when stuck at airports (fishing travel) or rained out on fishing trips. This is such a great read.

A fantastic read!