From the moment I turned the last page of Talk Before Sleep in 1994, I was hooked on the work of Elizabeth Berg and have made it a point not to miss any of her novels. Reading The Story of Arthur Truluv has only reaffirmed my belief that Berg is one of our great storytellers. At once poignant and amusing, this is a story about love and friendship, loneliness and loss, but, above all, about finding the strength to carry on in the face of it all. Berg successfully integrates the issues of the eighty-somethings, Arthur and Lucille, with the issues of an eighteen year old, Maddy, and makes all of them endearing.

I will recommend this book to many of my reading friends, young and old, but especially to those who enjoyed Fredrik Backman's A Man Called Ove and Anne Tyler's Breathing Lessons.

Readers who enjoy novels about strong female protagonists will rejoice as they watch Grace Holland grow into a strong, independent woman after her repressive, unfeeling husband fails to return to her after going to fight a fire that threatens their community. Add to that the post-World War II time period and the backdrop of the Great Fire of 1947 that ravaged the coast of Maine from Bar Harbor to Kittery, and there is the making of a compelling read. I had to stop in the middle of my reading to google the Great Fire and then found myself that much more engaged in the story, knowing the fire had actually occurred. This was a quick read that stayed with me for several days after I finished it. I recommend it to fans of women's fiction and historical fiction. And, if you vacation on the Maine coast, as my family does - or if you long to - this is a must read.

April Smith's Home Sweet Home is one of the most enjoyable novels I've read in a long time. As a fan of historical fiction, I especially enjoyed reading about the damage wreaked by the McCarthy Era, the John Birch Society and other extreme movements of the 1950s and 1960s. In addition to the history lesson, I became invested in the Kusek family and all they endured over the years. The changes in time periods helped paint a full picture of a Midwest family in the twentieth century. I have already given the book to my husband and will recommend it to members of my book group and to a group for whom I'm doing a book talk in February.

I enjoyed Lillian Boxfish Takes a Walk every step of the way! Her New Year's Eve walk through Manhattan becomes a metaphor for her life's journey, and I found her story compelling. Lillian is sensible, practical and sophisticated, but she is also vulnerable, a sympathetic combination for me.

Kathleen Rooney gives Lillian a powerful voice, heartening in these times when we sometimes treat our older citizens, especially women, with little respect. This novel evoked in me a nostalgia for times past. I will recommend it to all of the strong women I know.

Ann Hood fans and others looking for a good read will not be disappointed with her newest novel, The Book That Matters Most. It tells the stories of broken hearts, broken families, broken relationships ... and the healing balm of books. Told from multiple points of view, it is, at different times, heartbreaking, poignant and uplifting. I found this to be a compelling read - and a delicious little twist at the end was the frosting on the cake.

Pick up this novel if you are looking for an emotion- packed story with a satisfying conclusion. You won't be disappointed!