The Republic of Beige (Paperback) (ISBN-13: 9798190247435)

Paradise Palms is a pleasant Florida Panhandle subdivision containing 214 homes, one neglected swimming pool, two ornamental fountains that have not worked since 2019, and a homeowners' association board that believes it is running a sovereign nation.

The HOA president, Buckminster "Buck" Peebles, has stopped calling himself president and now prefers "Chief Executive Resident." Board rules have become ordinances. Association dues are called taxes. Violation notices are printed on paper featuring an official-looking eagle, although nobody knows why the eagle is holding a paint swatch. Buck has created the Department of Architectural Harmony, the Office of Trash Receptacle Readiness, and a three-person Community Compliance Patrol equipped with golf carts, clipboards, and absolutely no lawful authority to pull anyone over.

The trouble begins when Maggie Rusk, a retired court reporter, receives a $100 fine because her garbage can remained beside her driveway eighteen hours after collection. Maggie reads the notice, reads the recorded covenants, reads Florida law, and politely asks Buck to identify the authority permitting the fine. Buck replies that the board does not have to explain the law because it is the law.

That sentence awakens the neighborhood.