Dear Great Book Guru, Sea Cliff is filled with great things to do this time of year- the St. Boniface Fair, SC Baseball/Softball games, parades, school concerts….My problem is I have little time left for reading now, and as luck would have it, it is my turn to host my book club.  Please, please suggest something not too long, very easy to read, and good for discussion.  Can you help me?

Harried Book Club Host

Dear Harried, Interestingly, my book club just met and our selection might be what you are looking for: THE ART OF HEARING HEARTBEATS  by Jan-Phillip Sendker.  This short novel (320 pages) is set in Burma and takes place from the 1950’s to the present.  A successful attorney mysteriously disappears from his home in New York City leaving behind a wife and two grown children.  Four years elapse with no word from him. While going through his papers, his daughter Julia finds a letter which suggests he has had a secret life and love for many, many years.  She travels to the location mentioned in the letter where she meets a man who promises to reveal all her father’s secrets.  We learn about two teenage lovers- one blind and one crippled- who despite living with tremendous deprivation and ill fortune, find enduring love.  Filled with spiritualism and mysticism, this international bestseller evoked wildly diverse reactions from my fellow book club members.  Most enjoyed it tremendously while a few (myself included) found it saccharine and predictable. You might enjoy this ….or maybe not.