Dear Great Book Guru, What a weekend I just had! First, an amazing Summer Solstice party with a bevy of Sea Cliff luminaries in attendance and then followed the next day by the loveliest of bridal showers for Gillian DiPietro and Joseph Anzalone hosted by Emily Gordon. The tasty treats were prepared by Ricky Silver (silvercaterers.com). During the Solstice party , news came of the passing of the New York State Marriage Equality Act and one of the first people to be interviewed by the media was Sea Cliff resident and author Sarah Ellis. Many of the partygoers had read her book but no one could remember its title. Do you know the book and have you read it? Weekend Partygoer

Dear Weekend Partygoer, I was at both events too and enjoyed them immensely. Yes, I have read Sarah's book that she co-authored with her partner Kristen Henderson: TIMES X TWO. I finished it in one evening and loved it. Funny, compassionate, suspenseful, and with multiple references to Sea Cliff- you can't get better than that! Sarah and Kristen are the parents of a beautiful boy and girl- weeks apart- twins of sort. The book traces the lives of the two women- Sarah, a highly successful executive at REAL SIMPLE magazine and Kristen, founder, songwriter, and lead guitarist of the famed ANTIGONE RISING band- their childhoods, their college years, their initial meeting and courtship, and finally the births of their children. The book is a beautiful tribute to Sarah and Kristen and all the people in their lives. Highly recommended!

Just a reminder- the Sea Cliff Civic Association's annual Fourth of July Celebration and Reading of the Declaration of Independence will be held on the Village Green outside the Sea Cliff Library at 10am on Monday, the 4th. This is a beautiful event -appropriate for both children and adults .

Dear Great Book Guru Tonight is the Ice Cream Social that the Sea Cliff Civic Association hosts on the last day of school. Matthew and Lorraine Garry, Deidre Mannix, Julie Gordon, and Laura Parker always do such a great job. My children and I love this event and I especially love that it is held in Spooky Park. There is something mysterious and magical about that park. Talking about mysterious…. I am a great lover of mysteries and am always looking for a new series to throw myself into. Do you have anything to recommend? Mystery Maven

Dear Mystery Maven, I too love a good mystery and just this weekend I discovered a new series- well, new to me -but the author Hazel Holt has written nineteen books over the last twenty five years, always with Shelia Malory as her heroine. I read GONE AWAY (first of the nineteen)) and then THE CRUELLEST MONTH. I so loved both that I plan on reading the entire series. Shelia Malory is a fiftyish widow living in a small town outside of London. She has a strong academic bent so the books contain many literary references; the title CRUELLEST MONTH refers to T.S. Eliot's "April is the cruelest month." Malory visits the Oxford home of old friends and spends part of each beautiful spring day in the Bodleian Library where a particularly unpleasant researcher has been found dead under a pile of ancient books. Was this an accident or was it murder? Old diaries, World War II crimes, forged coins and much more come into play before the mystery is solved. Of course, the beauty of these novels lies in their character and set development with the resolution almost an afterthought. Very enjoyable!

Dear Great Book Guru, I was at the fabulous Flag Day Concert this weekend sponsored by the Sea Cliff Civic Association and organized by Phil Como. The people I was sitting near were trying to come with a great book for Father's Day. Do you have any suggestions? Devoted Son

Dear Devoted, I thought that concert was wonderful, too. I was sitting next to the Mayor and First Lady of Sea Cliff Bruce and Robyn Kennedy and we all agreed it was a great afternoon, and interestingly, we did talk about a book that would make the perfect Father's Day gift: MY FATHER'S FORTUNE by Michael Frayn. Frayn was a young boy in England during World War II and in this biography of his father we learn much about that time in history and also the complicated relationship many if not all men have with their fathers. Frayn writes, “my father moved lightly over the earth, scarcely leaving a footprint, scarcely a shadow.” And herein lies the quiet beauty of the book- we become fascinated by a rather ordinary man as we see him through the eyes of his son- an extraordinarily successful novelist and playwright. Early on Frayn feels unable to live up to his father's rather mundane expectations and then as time goes on he eclipses his father's achievements. The guilt that accompanied both of these periods is finally resolved at the conclusion of the book when Frayn recognizes his father in himself and is left to wonder why it was so hard to express love and yes, gratitude.

Dear Great Book Guru, I am so, so sad today. My good friend Evie Haim died this past weekend. Can you think of something I could read that would offer me some comfort. Grieving Friend

Dear Grieving Friend, You and all of Sea Cliff lost a great friend- Evie touched the lives of so many people from the youngest to the eldest among us. Her work with Landmarks is an enduring legacy, but her spirit also lives on in the hearts of so many of us who called her friend. Bob and the children are in everyone's thoughts and, yes, there is comfort to be found in books- small comfort, but comfort nevertheless. NECESSARY LOSSES by Judith Viorst was written almost fifteen years ago but is still wildly available. Viorst takes us gingerly through the losses one endures over a lifetime and helps us to see each loss as part of large, encompassing canvas. Whether it is a friend, your youth, a parent-Viorst sees all loss sharing an underlying sameness ; the book starts when we are young children and takes us up until the final loss: our own death- the loss of self. While this book may sound grim, it is actually very uplifting. Poems abound throughout and set an inspiring tone. Viorst leaves us with a feeling of peace despite the pain that these necessary losses bring to us.

Dear Great Book Guru,
I am so excited about the Village-wide Garage Sale this weekend in Sea Cliff and especially the Friends of the Library's sale on the Village Green- there will be hundreds and hundreds of books at bargain prices and even a crafts table for children. But I have a mission: it is my friend Paul's birthday and I'd like to get him a great book- he loves music from the "80's and an interesting plot line. Any thoughts? Frugal Gift Giver

Dear Frugal, I have a great idea for your friend and if you are lucky you will find it at the sale: A VISIT FROM THE GOON SQUAD by Jennifer Egan. The goon squad is Time and we are all its victims - a rather sobering theme for a birthday gift…. Egan's novel is a series of sketches in which we meet thirteen characters whose lives are interconnected. It spans from the 1960's through 2019 and takes place largely in New York City but there are scenes set in Africa, Italy, and California. Each person impacts others-some in minor ways, some in major ways - but it is Time that always triumphs. We meet Benny as a forty year old and then as a teenager and finally as a man in his sixties. When we meet Sasha in the opening pages, she is a thirty-five year old kleptomaniac and then a tortured young girl in Italy, and finally a settled sixty -year old. The young man Alex whose wallet she steals in 2003 reappears in 2019 as internet scammer of sorts working for Benny in a world that is experiencing a baby boom after fifteen years of war. As you can tell, we bounce back and forth over countries and decades; it's a wild ride and read - very worthwhile!

Dear Great Book Guru,
Sea Cliff is such a wonderful place any time of year, but May is a particularly special time. I just came home from the Landmarks House Tour. It was amazing: there were so many homes- from tiny jewel boxes to majestic castles- and so much in between. But next Monday is Memorial Day with its spirited parade through the Village and its bittersweet conclusion at Clifton Park; I would like to read something befitting this day. Do you have a suggestion? Memorial Day Observer

Dear Memorial Day Observer, I agree with you- the House Tour was the best ever- Tina Marchese and Leslie Guerci and all their committee members are to be congratulated on a job well done! Of course, Memorial Day evokes another side of life in Sea Cliff and I admire your desire to set the tone with a tome…. I would recommend A PEACE TO END ALL PEACE by David Fromkin. The title comes a British commander's comment at the end of World War I, " After the war to end all war, they have been pretty successful in making a peace to end all peace" referring to the decisions by the British and to a smaller extent the Americans and the French that created new borders, new countries, and new hostilities. The book delves into the many missteps and misconceptions whose repercussions continue to plague the world today. Can we learn from the mistakes of those who came before? The book suggests probably not, and this makes Memorial Day all the more poignant an observance.

Dear Great Book Guru, I have been reading that an award-winning, recently published poet is doing a reading of his work this weekend at the Sea Cliff Library. I don't like much of modern poetry, but I am intrigued at the thought of a local Sea Cliff writer sharing his work with us. Do you think I would enjoy the event and is there any way I could prepare myself for the experience? Fearful Fan

Dear Fearful Fan, Fear not…. you are going to have a wonderful, wonderful afternoon. On Saturday, May 21, 1pm at the Sea Cliff Library, Charles Hansmann will be reading from his latest work -LONELINESS JACKET- a majestic collection of his poetry. "Some lines I know by heart as soon as I read them" is a passage from one of Hansmann's poems, but it could be said of much of his work. There is a simple elegance in his descriptions of life's tiny shared moments, and while he writes of loneliness, his tenacious connection to the world and his loved ones pervades each of his poems. You will soon realize you understand far more than you thought, but if you still would like to do a little preparation there is a new guide to modern poetry that might give you the confidence you seek- BEAUTIFUL AND POINTLESS by David Orr. As Orr says, "poetry matters to people for the same reason anything appeals to anyone: because they love it" and I am certain you will love Hansmann's poetry. In fact, there is talk of naming him the Poet Laureate of Sea Cliff. He has my vote…