Dear Reader

Dear Reader Column 01-31-2020

Dear Reader,

Today is the last day to enter my annual Garage Sale Giveaway! To see a photo of the miniature totem and to enter click here.

My 13-year-old grandson Paul is now taller than me, and 11-year-old James is heading in that direction, too. Indeed, they grow up fast. So I dug back through some of my writing to remember when...

There's a luxury in being a grandparent that I didn't have when I was a parent.

Paul, my three-year-old grandson and I were walking through the woods the other day when I noticed how fascinated he was by a stick. Grandma had planned on a scenic walk, but Paul wanted to stay in one place so he could twirl a stick in the dirt and stab a few leaves. He was quite amused. I couldn't imagine what make-believe story Paul was crafting, because the stick looked so plain and ordinary to me.

Grandparents have time to stop and play with a stick in the dirt. Parents are busy buying groceries, cleaning up the messes that Paul and his one-year-old brother James continually make, stressing about doctor appointments, getting kids to preschool on time, working jobs, and trying to carve out some time for themselves, so they can be good parents.

My husband and I--we can tag-team when the grandchildren come to visit. So when Paul wants to "wash" dishes for an hour, and James wants to take everything out of Grandma's kitchen cupboard, that's okay. Our time is completely devoted to the boys and we can clean up as we go. Parents don't have that luxury. And they don't always have the luxury of letting Paul stop in the middle of a scenic walk in the woods so he can twirl a stick in the dirt, or lean over a sign marker that's so low to the ground, that my grandson thinks it was put there just for him to play on and pretend.

"Stay on the Trail" the sign says, and Grandma and Grandson do stay on the trail. But isn't it wonderful that grandparents have the time to venture off a trail, building castles, fighting dragons and twirling sticks along the way.

Thanks for reading with me. It's so good to read with friends.

Suzanne Beecher
[email protected]

AUTHORBUZZ: Click here to discover new books, "meet" the authors and enter to win.

This month's Penguin Classics book is THE AGE OF INNOCENCE, by Edith Wharton. I have a copy of the book to share with a lucky reader, so start reading today and enter for your chance to win.

Dear Reader Column 01-30-2020

Dear Reader,

It's my annual Garage Sale Giveaway!

Warm and sunny all year long, here in Sarasota, Florida, every weekend someone is inspired to sift and sort, and price those once-cherished items, and put up "Garage Sale Today" signs all around their neighborhood.

Today's Garage Sale Giveaway is a miniature, wooden totem pole, less than four inches tall from Alaska. Shirley, who's lived in Sarasota for over fifty years, decided to downsize and move into a retirement villa, and so some of the travel souvenirs she and her husband Clyde acquired need to find a good home.

How about your home? To see a photo of the miniature totem and to enter today's Garage Sale Giveaway, click here.

The Garage Sale Giveaway only runs for two days, so enter today.

* Congratulations to the winners of A Long Time Comin'. by guest author Robin W. Pearson: Bonnie D., Jane M. and Mary B.

Thanks for reading with me. It's so good to read with friends.

Suzanne Beecher
[email protected]

AUTHORBUZZ: Click here to discover new books, "meet" the authors and enter to win.

With so many new books out every week, we promise these titles deserve your attention:

(Fiction)
TWIST OF FATE by Jill Shalvis

(Fiction)
CARTIER'S HOPE by M.J Rose

Go to: http://authorbuzz.com/dearreader

This month's Penguin Classics book is THE AGE OF INNOCENCE, by Edith Wharton. I have a copy of the book to share with a lucky reader, so start reading today and enter for your chance to win.

Dear Reader Column 01-29-2020

Dear Reader,

Frequently authors and publishers send me books to consider featuring at the book club. It's a wonderful perk with my job and it gives me the opportunity to send free books to readers, too. As I was perusing the book, How to Change Your Mind: What the New Science of Psychedelics Teaches Us About Consciousness, Dying, Addiction, Depression, and Transcendence, by Michael Pollan, these words felt like they were written just for me:

"Trust and let go. Always move toward, rather than try to flee, anything truly threatening or monstrous you encounter--look it straight in the eyes. Dig in your heels and ask, 'What are you doing in my mind?' Or, 'What can I learn from you?'"

Pollan's advice is pinned to a canvas on the wall of my bedroom. I re-read it often. It's become self-therapy--a self-awareness for me. Whenever I'm feeling afraid, confused or lost, instead of trying to dismiss my feelings or shove them in the back of my mind and continue my day, I sit with Pollan's words for a while. And as I'm having a conversation, out loud with myself, about why I'm troubled, I ask the questions, "What are you doing in my mind? What can I learn from you?"

The first thing I always discover is that simply announcing my fear out loud lessens the weight of it. That's the easy part. The hard part is sitting patiently waiting for answers to my questions. From experience, I've come to realize that in fact, deep down, I do know the answers to "What are you doing in my mind? What can I learn from you?" I'm just not ready to accept them. But eventually as Pollan advises, I am able to "trust and let go."

Thanks for reading with me. It's so good to read with friends.

Suzanne Beecher
[email protected]

AUTHORBUZZ: Click here to discover new books, "meet" the authors and enter to win.

This month's Penguin Classics book is THE AGE OF INNOCENCE, by Edith Wharton. I have a copy of the book to share with a lucky reader, so start reading today and enter for your chance to win.

Dear Reader Column 01-28-2020

Dear Reader,

Today's guest author, Nina Sadowsky, has written numerous original screenplays and adaptations for such companies as Walt Disney Company, Working Title Films, and Lifetime Television. She was the executive producer of The Wedding Planner, has produced many other films, and was president of Meg Ryan's Prufrock Pictures. Sadowsky is the program director for NYU Los Angeles, a Global Programs initiative that provides an experiential learning environment for students preparing for careers in the entertainment and media industries. Nina's new novel is The Empty Bed, following Just Fall and The Burial Society.

Please welcome Nina Sadowsky to the book club:
https://www.ninarsadowsky.com/contact

On Why I Make Collages Out of Junk

Making collages has been a hobby of mine for years. I started because I tend to collect things that connect me to good memories, so I'd come back from travels with every receipt, brochure, ticket stub, store bag, business card and map I'd gathered. Stuffed into a bag, these bits and pieces just took up space until I began cutting and shredding the ephemera I'd collected and repurposing it into art. 

My inspirations expanded. My daughter's sonogram photograph became the centerpiece of one such work, surrounded by elements culled from the cards I'd received at the baby shower thrown in her honor. A broken paper shredder was scavenged to become an homage to a lost job opportunity. When my mother died, I created a work constructed from the broken odds and ends that resided in her junk drawer (a highlight is an old IBM Selectric typewriter ball).

And I always create a collage in connection with a new piece of writing. 

Good writing requires both vertical and lateral thinking. The former involves an understanding of structure, commerciality and the stereotypes that inform our culture, and must be balanced by the former which requires a personal, authentic voice that can wield these tropes in a way that transcends cliches with originality. Collage is my way of jumpstarting my dreamy, speculative dives into ideation, my way of opening up to my lateral mind. The process of cutting and tearing, placing and shaping, reconsidering and repurposing on a piece of canvas or clayboard frees my mind to do the same with the work I'm writing. 

I find the urge to create a collage usually strikes in the middle of the writing process when the outline that I so carefully crafted before launching into a draft is screaming to be re-examined. My characters have taken over and the decisions I made with my careful vertical thinking no longer seem applicable to the direction my story is going, whether I like it or not. The next thing I know, I'm surrounded by paper and junk and glue.

Since my books are internationally set, I often have a cache of "supplies" laid away from a research trip. For my latest novel, The Empty Bed, I created one of my largest pieces yet, using materials I had collected on a trip to Hong Kong (featured in the book) and Tokyo (which I'm keeping in reserve for a later novel).

--Nina Sadowsky

Contact Nina at: https://www.ninarsadowsky.com/contact

(Click on each picture to read about Nina's work.)

Thanks for reading with me. It's so good to read with friends.

Suzanne Beecher
[email protected]

AUTHORBUZZ: Click here to discover new books, "meet" the authors and enter to win.

CARTIER'S HOPE by M.J Rose

Cartier's Hope takes place in New York, 1910: A city of Fifth Avenue mansions and crumbling Lower East Side tenements. A city where the suffrage movement was growing stronger daily, but most women reporters were still delegated to the fashion and lifestyle pages. This is the story of one of those reporters, Vera Garland, a woman set on making her mark in a man's world of serious journalism.

Go to: AUTHORBUZZ click on CARTIER'S HOPE to read more and to email author M.J Rose, you'll get a reply.

This month's Penguin Classics book is THE AGE OF INNOCENCE, by Edith Wharton. I have a copy of the book to share with a lucky reader, so start reading today and enter for your chance to win.

Dear Reader Column 01-27-2020

Dear Reader,

Reading your emails is the best part of my day. Thank you kindly.

Emails from Readers:

"Thank you so much for your most insightful and thoughtful columns. Even if I have no particular interest in reading one of the titles featured [for the week], I wouldn't think to miss your often funny and always heartwarming insights. (The recipes are a big plus, too.) Your columns nudge me to emulate you by going the extra mile, to be my best self when dealing with others. As a librarian in a public library, I know this is our stock in trade, but, every once in a while, we could all use a reminder of the high ideals we entered the profession for in the first place.

I wish you a very happy and healthy New Year, and I wish you no end of good reading throughout! Best regards," -- Sue B.

(In response to my recent column, where I wrote about keeping track of my grocery list, numerous readers wrote in about an app they use...

"Suzanne, I have an app on my iPhone called 'Any List.' It has Publix, Walmart, Dollar Tree, etc. You can make a list for whatever you want. During the week when I'm cooking and baking and some ingredient runs short, I add it to my list for the appropriate store. Or when I want to try a new recipe, I list the ingredients (type, number, etc) in my Any List, and when I get to the store (never without my phone!) my list is with me. I find this app very helpful and thought you might also." -- Rita M.

(It's the chocolate cake everyone in my family wants me to bake for their birthday. If you missed the recipe it was in my January 15th column).

Thank you for the chocolate cake recipe. I only have one problem, I can't stop eating them! They are delicious. I made the frosting recipe as well. Both recipes were very easy to make. They are going to be my go-to recipes for chocolate cake and frosting. I can't wait to share them. Thank you for always starting my day with humor and insight." -- Pat H.

"Dear Suzanne, I'm a teacher and love reading your column. I often read it in the AM when getting ready for my students to arrive. I just read your column on how hard it is for you to relax, and I just had to reply. I am the same way, and you put it so well. I laughed at how you call out to tell your husband you are taking a break--I do that same thing! I'll read this again to remind me it's ok to slow down! Thanks for inspiring words." -- Laurie S.

Thanks for reading with me. It's so good to read with friends.

Suzanne Beecher
[email protected]

AUTHORBUZZ: Click here to discover new books, "meet" the authors and enter to win.

TWIST OF FATE by Jill Shalvis

I love sexy second chance stories, and this one wouldn't leave me alone. Diego came to me in the middle of a nap--er, plotting
session, and demanded I write a story for him to win back his first and only love. Only problem, Daisy, hadn't been all the impressed by him the first time around. Which means Diego has a lot to make up for. When the one you want is the one you can't have--can love conquer all?

Go to: AUTHORBUZZ click on TWIST OF FATE to read more and to email author Jill Shalvis, you'll get a reply.

This month's Penguin Classics book is THE AGE OF INNOCENCE, by Edith Wharton. I have a copy of the book to share with a lucky reader, so start reading today and enter for your chance to win.

Dear Reader Column 01-24-2020

Dear Reader,

"Don't peek!" is an invitation that something wonderful is waiting. But those two words can also drive me crazy. Tell me not to peek, and then peeking is all I can think about. I can hardly stand waiting. "Patience Suzanne, patience."

One of my favorite recipes for a "foolproof" standing rib roast (which is an expensive cut of meat), requires "no peeking." So the first time I made the recipe and the instructions said to roast the meat for one hour, then turn off the oven and do NOT open the oven door for three hours--it was three hours of torture. Looking through the oven glass door, I had numerous conversations with the meat. "Are you sure you're okay in there? Do you know how much I had to pay for you? I have company coming for dinner, and if you don't turn out, what am I going serve?"

Don't peek! You've got to be kidding. How could one little peek, one little stick of a meat thermometer ruin the roast? But each time I reached to open the oven door, the recipe crawler kept flashing through my mind, warning, "DO NOT OPEN THE OVEN DOOR FOR 3 HOURS. This means you Suzanne." So I waited. Pulled up a chair in front of the oven and kept an eye on the roast but without opening the door.

"Remember, I'm out here if you need anything," I reminded the roast.

Popping a standing rib roast into the oven, shutting the door and not opening it again until it's ready to serve, should be one of the easiest, foolproof recipes to make. And in a way it was, with the exception of being an emotional wreck at the end of three hours. (When you buy a standing rib roast, it should really include one 3-hour calm-you-down pill.)

Worked up from all the fussing and anxiety over not peeking, after the three hours by then I was afraid to even open the oven door. But it was wasted worry. Indeed, it was a foolproof recipe. The rib roast did very nicely on its own. It was delicious, company was impressed, and if you make the recipe (below), remember--"Don't peek!"

STANDING RIB ROAST

1 five pound standing rib roast
3/4 cup salt
1/4 pepper
1/4 cup garlic powder (or season to your taste)

Allow roast to stand at room temperature for at least 1 hour.

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Rub roast with garlic, pepper and salt, place roast on a rack in the pan with the rib side down and the fatty side up. Roast for 1 hour. Turn off oven. Leave roast in oven but do not open the oven door for 3 hours. About 30 to 40 minutes before serving time, turn oven to 375 degrees and reheat the roast. Important: Do not remove roast or re-open the oven door from time roast is put in until ready to serve. "Now you can peek!"

Thanks for reading with me. It's so good to read with friends.

Suzanne Beecher
[email protected]

AUTHORBUZZ: Click here to discover new books, "meet" the authors and enter to win.

This month's Penguin Classics book is THE AGE OF INNOCENCE, by Edith Wharton. I have a copy of the book to share with a lucky reader, so start reading today and enter for your chance to win.

Dear Reader Column 01-23-2020

Dear Reader,

My husband bought me a cow a few months ago. Not the mooing kind. It's a black and white, knickknack cow, and it opens up in the middle. It's very cute and it's an unusual conversation piece. But more importantly it's become my new "make-me-a-better-person" tool.

I'm constantly working on myself--not surprisingly it's a full time job. You'd think after 65 years of trying to come up with a new and improved version, I'd have found it by now, wouldn't you? But just when I start feeling pretty pleased with myself, I notice something else that needs fine tuning.

Sometimes I label people before I've had a chance to really get to know them. And it's a bad habit. I met a woman the other day, who from the start, didn't give off friendly vibes. So I figured I'd just write her off my "want-to-get-to-know-you" list and move on.

But we ended up having to spend a couple of hours together and before we said our good-byes, we exchanged phone numbers and set a date for lunch. She was really a warm and funny person once I looked inside.

And that's where my cow comes into the picture. I realize it's a bit simple-minded, but whenever I find myself thinking, 'I'm not going to bother getting to know someone, because of their chilly first impression,' I picture my cow. My curio cow looks like a lot of other cows, on the outside. But open it up, look inside, and you can imagine a lot of possibilities.

Thanks for reading with me. It's so good to read with friends.

Suzanne Beecher
[email protected]

AUTHORBUZZ: Click here to discover new books, "meet" the authors and enter to win.

With so many new books out every week, we promise these titles deserve your attention:

(Fiction)
TWIST OF FATE by Jill Shalvis

(Fiction)
CARTIER'S HOPE by M.J. Rose

Go to: http://authorbuzz.com/dearreader

This month's Penguin Classics book is THE AGE OF INNOCENCE, by Edith Wharton. I have a copy of the book to share with a lucky reader, so start reading today and enter for your chance to win.

Dear Reader Column 01-22-2020

Dear Reader,

Questions about writing? I'd be happy to reply. Email your writing questions to: [email protected]

From Tess, a reader at the book club.

"Suzanne, ...recently one of my friends told me I should be a writer. It got me thinking, how do you become a writer, where do you start? I have always kept journals and blogs. How did you become a writer?" -- Tess C.

(Suzanne replies:) Tess, writing in your journal and keeping a blog, it sounds like you're already a writer. So one of the questions I have for you is, "What could you picture yourself doing that would allow you to confidently tell people, I'm a writer?"

I think when most people picture themselves as a writer, they're romanticizing about it, seeing themselves on the NYT Bestseller list, and a limo is picking them up at their hotel and taking them to their book signing. That may happen in the movies, but most writers are keeping their day jobs and finding an outlet for their writing.

You might be working on a novel in the evening, or for instance, if you were a volunteer in your local theatre group, you could offer to interview one of the actors. How did Sally, who's an office administrator, during the day, decide to audition? Did she get a part her first time out? Stage fright, an embarrassing situation, did she ever forget a line? And how does her work in the theatre group enrich her life?

Sally's story would be an interesting read and would probably inspire other people in the community to get involved with the theatre group. A simple one page story could be a handout to patrons, and you could submit a copy to your local paper (suggesting a story idea), or an on-air person at a radio station might want Sally to tell her story.

Eventually you could turn your single page story into a newsletter in print, or an online blog for the group.

If you write what you know about and write what you love, folks will love to read it.

Thanks for reading with me. It's so good to read with friends.

Keep writing,
Suzanne Beecher
Questions about writing, email: [email protected]

Suzanne Beecher
[email protected]

AUTHORBUZZ: Click here to discover new books, "meet" the authors and enter to win.

This month's Penguin Classics book is THE AGE OF INNOCENCE, by Edith Wharton. I have a copy of the book to share with a lucky reader, so start reading today and enter for your chance to win.

Dear Reader Column 01-21-2020

Dear Reader,

Bestselling novelist David Mark, is today's guest author. A former crime reporter David has written eight novels in the McAvoy series, as well as two McAvoy novellas. His first historical thriller, The Zealot's Bones, was a Sunday Times Book of the Year. His latest book is, A Rush of Blood.

David told me he keeps very busy, "I have a lot on the boil. Books, plays, and film adaptations, but it's mealtimes with the kids in their ramshackle country house that is the real horror story."

Please welcome bestselling novelist David Mark. Contact at www.davidmarkwriter.co.uk

I'll have to make this quick as I've got potatoes roasting upstairs. That's not a euphemism. I live in a converted pub. It's centuries old, looks like something out of a Thomas Hardy, and has one or two architectural 'quirks'. It's the sort of place that you drive past and go 'ooh, I wonder what sort of peculiar person lives there'. So, now you have an answer. Me, my fiancee, our five children, two cats, one dog, and apparently, two rabbits, though much work was done to conceal this fact from 'Dad'.

If you're looking for my front door, head for the middle of nowhere and turn left. I can see the County Durham sign from one window and the Welcome to Northumberland one from another, which I play to my advantage on the council tax front. It's a big sturdy muddle of a place--something designed on Minecraft by a pre-teen high on Red Bull. The kitchen is on the first floor and the office is on the ground. The living room is upstairs, next to the two shower rooms, which don't work simultaneously. My bedroom is next to the office, which means I have less far to drag myself at the end of the day and am thus suffering far fewer carpet burns to the face, which is a major plus. There's a great old-fashioned kitchen with a built-in range on the ground floor, but previous owners blocked that up, so we now use it as a 'nothing whatsoever' room. I recently discovered that our 13-year-old has got pet rabbits in there. I think I was out when this discussion took place.

Sorry, yes, I was talking potatoes. That's not a euphemism, either. Tonight we're having those nice minted lamb burgers, with roasties, buttered greens and corn on the cob, which is well up the culinary ladder from the Findus Crispy Pancakes, Alphabetti Spaghetti and margarine on Milk Roll of my youth.

Still, apparently it's still a long way short of the pretentious middle class fare enjoyed by the sort of children who have a favourite type of pesto and who won't eat ice cream unless it's been organically farmed. I'm not a cruel man, but some of the kids who come for dinner bring their own hummus and carrot sticks and won't touch dairy products unless we can provide photographic evidence of the cow looking happy and having its back massaged during the milking process.

There are definitely more of these children in our lives than there used to be. I keep being introduced to kids whose names sound like Victorian illnesses. I confidently expect to meet a Rubella before the month is out. They're not backwards in coming forwards, these Hermiones and Willoughbys. Happy to tell you that it's rude to dip your sausage roll in your latte, and that leftover quarter-pounders shouldn't be re-heated in the microwave. But it's a changing world, I guess.

Oh damn it, that's the smoke alarm....

If you ever want to save me from myself, get in touch through my website at www.davidmarkwriter.co.uk or follow me at @davidmarkwriter

--David Mark

Thanks for reading with me. It's so good to read with friends.

Suzanne Beecher
[email protected]

AUTHORBUZZ: Click here to discover new books, "meet" the authors and enter to win.

THE SCHOOL CHOICE ROADMAP (NonFiction) by Andrew Campanella

Every child deserves a great education. But all kids are unique. Some students thrive in their local schools, while other children benefit from different environments. Parents today have more school choice options than ever before. But how can parents best navigate these choices and find a school that is truly the right fit for their kids? This jargon-free, practical guide, is filled with helpful worksheets and exercises to help parents identify schools where children can learn, succeed, and be happy.

Go to: AUTHORBUZZ click on THE SCHOOL CHOICE ROADMAP to read more and to email author Andrew Campanella, you'll get a reply.

This month's Penguin Classics book is THE AGE OF INNOCENCE, by Edith Wharton. I have a copy of the book to share with a lucky reader, so start reading today and enter for your chance to win.

Dear Reader Column 01-20-2020

Dear Reader,

It's the number one question people ask me at the book club.

"How do you become a writer?"

Marlene wrote, "Suzanne, I have set up the perfect place to write with a beautiful view, have all the tools ready, my favorite pens and writing pads, the computer and 'Roget's Thesaurus' at hand, a comfy pillow in the chair to ease the strain of weary bones, a cup of my favorite tea, dog and kitty treats nearby for the inevitable interruptions.

But every time I sit down to write, all the wonderful ideas I've been thinking about for days have somehow become not write-worthy. I've taken how-to classes and read how-to books. I feel over-prepared and under-able to write anything worth reading. So I go clean the kitchen or weed the garden, tasks that I know I'm good at and that give spectacular results with a small investment of time."

(Suzanne responds:)

Dear Marlene,

Sounds to me like "you're all dressed up with no place to go." I chuckle because I've been there. Way back when, I bought the fancy pen, picked out the "just write" notebook, created that romantic writing nook, poured coffee into my favorite mug, twisted up my hair, tucked a glittery pin in it, and finally--I was ready to write. But the moment had passed, so I took a nap instead.

Seriously, my best advice about how to become a writer is simply to show up. Everyday you show up for the job and you write. Even if it's only for 15 minutes. Your body's a quick study. So eventually when you sit down in front of your computer, and put your fingers on the keys, your mind will know what it's supposed to do, because it's been in training every single day. "Hey, this feels familiar, Marlene is ready to write, so I better do my part."

What do you write about? Don't give it a second thought. Don't edit yourself before you begin. Just start typing. It doesn't matter if you only type, "I don't know what to write about, but I'm going to keep on typing. I really want to become a writer, but I don't know where to begin. Why do I want to become a writer? I don't know what to type..." Remember, I can't stress enough, the important thing is to show up everyday, Marlene, because in the beginning it's all about developing a habit. Writing is like any other job, the more you write, the better you get, and the easier it is to get started.

I've been writing a daily column for 21 years and before that I wrote a monthly column for a business magazine for 11 years, and book reviews for a national magazine. You'd think after that many years the words would come easily every day, when I write my column, but that's not always the way it goes. When I'm stuck and can't figure out what it is I really want to say, pretty soon I'm yelling out loud at myself, "Just say it, Say it, SAY IT!!"

And that's when I start typing and the magic begins.

If you have a question about writing, please email, I'd be happy to share ideas. The next question is from Tess, a reader at the book club. Tess is already in the habit of journaling every day, but she'd like to do something more with her writing. Email your writing questions to: [email protected]

Thanks for reading with me. It's so good to read with friends.

Start writing,

Suzanne Beecher
[email protected]

AUTHORBUZZ: Click here to discover new books, "meet" the authors and enter to win.

BLOOD NIGHT (Fiction) by Heather Graham

We're stepping out of the center of London and heading for Highgate Cemetery. Now the Krewe, of course, are federal agents--and they can't operate on foreign soil. But they also can't turn down family and friends when a helping hand is needed.

Cheyenne and Andre Rousseau receive a call that a murder is happening in Highgate, and they just might fall under suspicion themselves. Naturally, they're on their way. I had a great deal of fun taking Cheyenne and Andre out of the States--and across the pond. I certainly hope that you enjoy their travel!

Go to AUTHORBUZZ click on BLOOD NIGHT to read more and to email author Heather Graham, you'll get a reply.

This month's Penguin Classics book is THE AGE OF INNOCENCE, by Edith Wharton. I have a copy of the book to share with a lucky reader, so start reading today and enter for your chance to win.