Dear Great Book Guru, It’s a very cold snowy day as I’m writing to you and I know more days like this lie ahead so please recommend a book that will totally absorb me. A mystery perhaps that will keep me guessing would be great. Surrounded by Snow........... Dear Surrounded by Snow, I have the perfect book for you: THE WIDOW by John Grisham. Simon Latch is a small-town lawyer in rural Virginia when the case of a lifetime walks in the door of his rather shabby office. Eleanor Barnett is an elderly widow who claims her husband amassed a fortune in Coca Cola and Walmart stocks. Dead ten years, he had two sons he was estranged from but aware of this possible windfall. The estate is very complicated, and Simon offers to take it on with a hefty hourly rate built in. When Eleanor demands more and more of his time, he wonders if it is all worth it. Of course it is, he convinces himself – when she dies the payoff will be tremendous. Throughout the novel, we meet a cadre of fascinating characters - his law secretary Matilda, his estranged wife Paula, his gambling buddies, fellow lawyers all eager to cash in too, and, most troubling, the menacing stepsons. When a very drunk Eleanor is involved in a car accident, Simon represents her and a multitude of problems arise including …. a murder charge. How will he extricate himself now?

Dear Great Book Guru, One of my 2026 resolutions is to set aside time every night for a family read-aloud session. I’m looking for something great to start us off - something that would appeal to both older children and adults. Any thoughts? Family Book Reader..... Dear Family Book Reader, There are lots of great books out there, but I just finished one I really enjoyed and think your family will too: THE WINTER OF THE DOLLHOUSE by Laura Amy Schlitz. Told in multiple perspectives in alternating chapters, the book is suspenseful and poignant. Tiphany (her mother was a huge fan of “Breakfast at Tiffany’s” but a bad speller!) is eleven years-old and pretty much the perfect child, but in her own eyes “plain and ordinary”. She soon becomes a dog walker, actor, thief, and rescuer. The person she rescues is Szilvia Rozsahegyi, an elderly Hungarian woman - owner of a magnificent albeit shabby dollhouse - who soon hires Tiphany to walk her dog. Mr. DeLuca is the cantankerous owner of a toy store who does not like children, especially Tiphany. Gretel and Red are small dolls who have lots to say. Throughout, the usual fairy tale stereotypes are upturned. Szilvia could very well be a witch but instead is an acerbic but loving friend to Tiphany. The girl’s stepmother Holly is devoted to her, and the “wolf” dog becomes her rescuer. There are lost jewels, missing dolls, and a century old mystery – all of which are resolved in a most satisfying conclusion. Definitely a good choice for a family read-aloud!

Dear Great Book Guru, I am in search of a compelling, amusing, challenging read for the cold winter week ahead. PS I love spy thrillers! Weary Winter Reader Dear Weary Winter Reader, I too love a good spy thriller and I just finished a great one: CLOWN TOWN by Mick Herron. Herron has written a series of novels starring the Slow Horses - a group of misfits - members of MI5 (British equivalent in some ways of our FBI) who for medical or psychological reasons have been put on leave. The name comes from their headquarters, Slough House, but more so for their flawed performances. The story opens in Oxford, England where River Cartwright - grandson of David Cartwright who had been the esteemed head of MI5 - is waiting for medical clearance to return to active duty in the organization. River decides to research his grandfather’s library of books recently bequeathed on his death to his alma mater. To River’s puzzlement, one of the books is missing - a book that covered the perilous Troubles - the period in which Irish freedom fighters were terrorizing England. The disgraced and demoted spies – the Slow Horses - are brought in secretly by MI5 to unravel the mysteries of long ago that now threaten to upend a hard-earned peace. Jackson Lamb, leader of the Slow Hoses team and a dissolute genius, would rather his people - his “clowns” - not become involved but is himself intrigued by the politics and possible security lapses of the past. A cast of colorful characters, numerous humorous plot twists, and a clever surprise ending make for a great read and highly recommended!

Dear Great Book Guru, I just came back from Sea Cliff’s Polar Bear Plunge - what fun! While at the beach, some people were talking about a mystery their book club had chosen. It was set on Long Island but had an Irish twist. It sounded great - any thoughts? Polar Bear Plunger.......... Dear Polar Bear Plunger, THE IRISH GOODBYE by Heather Aimee O’Neill is a wonderful book to start the new year. Set on the North Fork of Long Island - perhaps Greenport - the novel opens in 1990 where we meet three sisters: Maggie, Caitlin, and Alice Ryan and their brother Topher. A terrible boating accident has just occurred, and a young friend, Daniel Larkin, is dead. To the girls’ confusion and horror, Topher is taken away by the local police. The next chapter fast forwards to 2015. The sisters are back at the family home for the holidays, each with an intriguing, albeit troubling life story. Their mother who had been raised in an Irish orphanage is viewed by all as strict and very judgmental. Each sister harbors secrets she desperately wants to hide from her mother. Into this turmoil the question of Topher and the boating accident arises, and we realize each of the sisters knows much more than has been revealed. The term “Irish goodbye” has come to mean slipping away from a party to avoid long farewells and in this story there has been a ghostly departure that still haunts the Ryan family after twenty-five years. A compelling read and highly recommended!

Dear Great Book Guru, One of my New Year’s Eve resolutions for 2026 is to read more prize-winning books – perhaps one a week. Can you start me off? Determined Book Lover........... Dear Determined Book Lover, The 2025 Booker Prize winner is a great place to start: FLESH by David Szalay. We meet our hero Istvan as a fifteen year old living with his mother in a shabby Hungarian apartment complex. Their lives are difficult emotionally and financially, and Istvan is eager to move on. When he is hired by another tenant- an older woman- to run errands, things become easier but a chance encounter with her husband results in the husband’s death- was it an accident or was it…murder? Throughout, the novel poses these quandaries – does our hero know more, do more, feel more than his monologue suggests. Istvan response to every question, every situation is “OK” (one reviewer counted 340 OK’s in a 351-page book ). There is a strong Dickensian feel as Istvan faces obstacle after obstacle –juvenile prison, a stint in Iraq , a perhaps heroic moment on the battlefield, rescue by a wealthy patron…. A large part of the book chronicles his fortuitous encounters with influential men and women who see in him qualities he doesn’t recognize in himself and use him to their advantage. As he meets up with these vividly drawn characters, you want to cry out- “no, no- don’t believe them” but our hero goes forward blithely unaware. In the end, we see Everyman in Istvan – stumbling through an OK life. Highly recommended

Dear Great Book Guru, Do you have a list of your favorite books of 2025? I’d love to see if any of my favorites overlap with any of yours. Great Book Lover........... Dear Great Book Lover, I hope we agree on at least some. It was a good year, so it was hard to settle on ten favorites, but here they are in no particular order except for my number one choice: GODS OF NEW YORK. GODS OF NEW YORK – Jonathan Mahler WHAT WE CAN KNOW - Ian McEwan WILD DARK SHORE - Charlotte McConaghy HOLLOW SPACES - Victor Suthammanont NIMBUS - Robert P. Baird THE DOORMAN - Chris Pavone ACTS OF FORGIVENESS - Maura Cheeks THREE DAYS IN JUNE - Anne Tyler JAMES - Percival Everett SHELL GAMES - Bonnie Kistler

Dear Great Book Guru, What a weekend we have had here in Sea Cliff - the Scrooge Stroll, Roots of Gratitude Concert, the Wassail Walk, the Tree and Menorah Lighting, finished off with a visit from Santa and Mrs. Claus! Now I think it’s time to relax and settle down with a good book. Any recommendations? In the Holiday Spirit Dear In the Holiday Spirit, I just read a compelling, albeit disturbing, novel - A GUARDIAN AND A THIEF by Megha Majumdar. Set slightly in the future in the Indian city of Kolkata, the story is told from the perspectives of Ma - a middle-class government administrator - and Boomba - a young worker from an impoverished family. These two are both guardians and thieves. In the beginning of the novel, we learn Ma has been stealing food and money from the agency she has headed, and Boomba has witnessed this. He himself has broken into Ma’s home and stolen money and valuables from her. In both cases they have been doing so to aid/guard their families. Ma has been planning furiously to emigrate to the United States with her elderly father and toddler daughter to join her husband who is teaching at a prestigious university. Inadvertently, Boomba has stolen and discarded the family’s passports and visas, ruining Ma’s plans. Both Ma and Boomba become desperate as they see their families’ plights grow more and more bleak in a country bordering on collapse as environmental forces worsen. Throughout we witness these two struggle in their roles as both thief and guardian, and our sympathies shift from one to the other. Beautifully written,this book has a haunting presence-highly recommended!