Dear Great Book Guru,   Last weekend, I went to a really lovely exhibit of Sea Cliff landscapes sponsored by the Sea Cliff Arts Council at the Sea Cliff Library. Photos, oils, pastels, and watercolors were all represented and the unique beauty that is Sea Cliff was captured in each one of the entries. A local book group was there to support some of its members who were exhibiting and one of them mentioned a new book they planned on discussing- it was set in the 1940’s and featured two sisters’ adventures here and in Europe. Any thoughts?  Sea Cliff Landscape Lover

Dear Sea Cliff Landscape Lover,  I loved the exhibit too- Kathleen DiResta did a great job gathering the works of over twenty very talented local artists.  And, yes, I recently read Amy Bloom’s LUCKY US and enjoyed it immensely.  This is an unconventional story of luck- good and bad and the reader is never sure which is which. Tragedy, triumph, disaster, success- all intermingle.  Nothing is as it seems: forged college transcripts and birth certificates, betraying mothers and lovers, clever fortune tellers and makeup artists create a world where truth is completely elusive. The characters are funny, star-crossed plucky victims of fate.  Their improbable journey takes them from Ohio to Dresden, London, Hollywood, Brooklyn and Great Neck – with each stop along the way portrayed in rich, colorful detail.   A hard book to summarize and even harder to forget- highly recommended!