Dear Great Book Guru,  Sea Cliff Beach Cafe is now open seven days a week and I love nothing better than heading down there for a delicious breakfast (the Greek omelet is my favorite) followed by a couple hours reading under one of those  lovely blue stripped umbrellas. Do you have a good book to recommend? 

Fervent Fan of the Beach Café

Dear Fervent Fan of the Beach Café,  I just read the perfect book for reading on Sea Cliff’s beautiful beach: MODERN LOVERS  by Emma Straub.  Set in present day Brooklyn, this novel traces  four members of a 1980’s almost  successful  Oberlin College rock band as they grow into middle age  on a tree-lined block in Ditmas Park.  Restaurants, real estate, and romance are the chief concerns of these aging band members as they fall in and out of love.  When a secret diary detailing their early years together is found everyone begins to rethink past choices.    Zoe and Jane (  long married and harried restaurateurs), Elizabeth (local real estate maven), and Andrew (a duped investor in a nearby Yoga studio) are a colorful lot. While much of Straub’s writing seems to spoof  present day concerns, it is done with a light touch that makes for a fast fun read.  Recommended!