I am sure many of you, like me, were eagerly anticipating the arrival of spring. Well, officially it's spring, but the weather is NOT following the calendar. I’m looking forward to hanging up my down vest (even though it's my favorite turquoise color) and watching the color return to the gray landscape outside my window. It has been a very bland winter here in the Northeast.

Okay, get out your "to be read list" and grab a pen since there are some real winners to share this week...

For weeks now at the office we all have been looking forward to sharing Paul Levine's latest book, ILLEGAL, with you. It's a complete departure for readers who know Levine from his Solomon vs. Lord series. Here he takes on the subject of illegal immigration in a thriller that packs a punch. It reads authentically, which is a true testimony to the meticulous research that Levine did, and you can read more about in our interview with him. It was a house favorite for a while now, so we are glad it's now in stores for you to enjoy!

I write this from Charlottesville, where I am in town for the Virginia Festival of the Book. I drove down yesterday (long ago I decided that any trip six hours or less was a driving trip, not a flying trip, with the interminable airline delays, etc.). The first event, Wine and Words, was held at Enoteca Wine & Panini Bar and featured David Baldacci and Adriana Trigiani. David has made appearances at the Festival since its inception 15 years ago. He was there with his beaming smile talking about his latest project, Feeding Body & Mind, which collects new and used books to be distributed to the recipients of Feeding America™ emergency food assistance through their nationwide network of Food Banks, thus helping feed both the body and the mind.

My younger son has always wanted a dog. I, who read/saw MARLEY & ME, am a lot less sure about this concept. A few weeks ago, a teacher at his school told us about the Seeing Eye Dog program where people raise and nurture puppies from the time they are weaned until they are old enough to train. Thus our time with the dog would have a definitive start/stop date. This sounded reasonable --- and altruistic --- so I started to explore it.