Naked Came the Manatee (ISBN 978-0399141928) is a 1996 mystery thriller parody novel, written by thirteen Florida writers: Carl Hiaasen, Elmore Leonard, Dave Barry, James W. Hall, Edna Buchanan, Les Standiford, Paul Levine, Brian Antoni, Tananarive Due, John Dufresne, Vicki Hendricks, Carolina Hospital, and Evelyn Mayerson. It is composed of thirteen chapters, each written by a different Miami-area writer. It was originally published as a serial in the Miami Herald's Tropic magazine, one chapter per issue, and later published as a single novel. Its title is a reference to the literary hoax Naked Came the Stranger. The book was conceived of and edited by Tom Shroder, then editor of Tropic. Dave Barry came up with the first chapter, which was then handed to the next writer, and so on until Carl Hiaasen had to tie all the loose threads together in the final chapter. Each chapter was written on deadline for publication in the magazine.

The plot involves three crime-solving characters from three of the writers' previous, non-parody, mystery/thriller works – Les Standiford's John Deal, Paul Levine's Jake Lassiter, and Edna Buchanan's Britt Montero – coming together to help an elderly environmentalist and her granddaughter investigate the mystery behind a package delivered by a precocious Miami-area manatee named Booger.

All proceeds from the novel were donated to charity.

Two petty thugs, Hector and Phil, after retrieving a mysterious package from a courier off the coast of Cuba, begin arguing over the wheel of their skiff, and collide with "Booger", a manatee that favors the waters near Coconut Grove. Their package goes flying off the boat and snags on Booger's hide.

John Deal takes a shortcut to avoid a traffic jam in Coconut Grove, swerves to avoid a man standing in the road, and his car plunges into the ocean. Deal is saved from drowning by Booger, who nudges him to the surface and into the care of Marion McAlister Williams, a 102-year-old local matron. The package gets snagged on Deal, and Marion hauls them both onto shore.

Deal consults with attorney Jake Lassiter about suing the City of Miami for whiplash, but they are interrupted by Hector, who Deal has noticed following him. Deciding that the package must be valuable, Lassiter insists on having Marion's granddaughter, Fay Leonard (a dive shop operator) retrieve it. When they open it, they are shocked to find a sealed refrigeration unit containing what appears to be Fidel Castro's severed head.

Hector and Phil kidnap Fay and demand the package in return. Lassiter calls news reporter Britt Montero, needing help to confirm the identity of the head before they trade it for Fay's life.

Booger, distressed by Fay's abduction, swims to the waters near Marion's home, where she cuts away a variety of debris snagged on his hide, including an identical silver package. When Phil sheepishly admits to Hector that Fay is his ex-wife, they let her go with instructions to retrieve the package from Marion.