Honora Beecher collects sea glass off the coast of New Hampshire. Fragments of clear, blue and green bottles boat trash, she thinks to herself find their way to the sandy beach where Honora is making a life with her new husband Sexton Beecher. It’s the late 1920s, and they are buying into the American dream as deeply as they know how. He is a typewriter salesman. She works full-time to make their scruffy fixer-upper a home, while waiting, hopefully, to get pregnant.

Anita Shreve’s latest novel, Sea Glass, starts out in these idyllic terms. Loving husband, hard-working couple, a first home, a satisfying hobby. It’s a world infused with gadgets from the past, like a copiograph machine, the precursor of the photocopier, and with the habits of the past like making all your own dresses.

Sea Glass might, on the most superficial inspection, seem to be another one of those historical romances that view the past, especially the ’20s and ’50s, as the “wonder years,” a safer and more innocent time than the one we live in now. But Shreve’s novel steers well clear of that shoal. Instead, this intriguing novelist seems bent on showing us that the 1920s were just as scary and unpredictable as our own times. The headlines Honora reads every morning suggest a world just as close to spinning out of control as the one most readers are familiar with today. Dozens die over the Fourth of July weekend, many in fireworks accidents. Others drown or crash their cars. With no warning, a ship explodes in the harbor, killing half a town. Soon the fragile harmony of the Beechers’ perfect lives, seemingly unflawed by the kind of moral turbulence we experience in the 21st century, is blown apart by the stock market crash and a subsequent union strike.

The singular accomplishment of Shreve’s book is that she is able to capture a time gone by in authentic and believable detail without making her characters cute, quaint or unrealistically virtuous the hubris of the average historical romance writer. In the world of Sea Glass, people live together without getting married, cheat on their employers and think about having extramarital affairs, just as characters in a contemporary novel would.

Some readers may find the character of Sexton Beecher the most believable. Just as Shreve refuses to romanticize the past, she also refuses to put the 1920s American family man on a pedestal. Beecher is driven by a vast, unfocused hunger which, if viewed from the right angle, might appear to be the dark side of that American dream we talk so much about. Sexton is good with people, a look-you-straight-in-the-eye kind of guy, and he has no problem doling out the little lies that make up business relationships. He longs for his own home, and he’ll do some creative financing to get it. He loves his wife, but when they’re apart and he’s lonely, he’s not opposed to a little recreation with another woman. And yet, I’m going to go out on a limb and say that many readers will not despise Sexton; they will understand his hunger. Like that other famous traveling salesman, Willie Loman, Sexton makes the reader ache for his failure at the same time that he (the reader) clearly perceives the character’s many errors of judgment.

Just as sea glass offers hints of a lost era, so Shreve’s new novel is a perfect fragment of our past a fictional story, but one so true to human psychology and the mores of the times, the reader may feel it contains more truth than a diary or a newspaper archive.

Child abuse and its aftermath permeated Trezza Azzopardi’s debut novel, The Hiding Place, which was a finalist for the Booker Prize. In her disturbing and mesmerizing second novel, Remember Me, she utilizes the sad, lonely life of one woman to explore some of the underlying causes of homelessness.

The novel’s opening finds 72-year-old Winnie Foy living in an abandoned shoe repair shop in a small English village. She has just been burglarized her wig and her satchel with all her belongings stolen by a young girl who vanishes into the night. As Winnie recalls what keepsakes are now lost to her, perhaps forever, she steps back in time, forced to remember years of long-buried hardship and mistreatment beginning in the 1930s, when Winnie grew up as Patsy Richards, a girl called “simple” by the townsfolk. Her mentally ill mother dies when Patsy is seven; she goes to live with her grandfather, who calls her Lillian, and her father visits once a week. With the approach of war, many children are removed to the country for safety, and young Lillian is sent to live with her aunt. Her father doesn’t come to say goodbye, but Lillian sees his suit hanging in the pawnbroker’s window, so she waves goodbye to that instead.

After several years of living with her aunt and “not a single other person . . . no one to call me by name,” Lillian falls in love at 15 with a local boy, who calls her Beauty. They plan to run away together, but when she becomes pregnant, he disappears, and her aunt sends her away. Lillian is taken in by Bernard and Jean Foy, a clairvoyant and his sister, who find commercial potential in Lillian’s ability to “see things.” She remembers being afraid. “I had no money, I was pregnant. All I had was a head full of buzzing sounds I couldn’t make sense of. No one wanted me, my father never came.” But the Foys wanted her; this is why she thinks she became so “bendable,” allowing them to do whatever they wanted, including changing her name to Winnifred and tricking her into having an abortion.

Winnie decides to leave the Foys, then learns that her grandfather has died in the war. She finds lodging in a boarding house, but is soon discovered there by Jean Foy, who accuses Winnie of stealing from her, and drops her off at a home for thieves, the mentally ill, and women of “ill repute.” There, Winnie has no visitors and is treated as an object, not a person, for more than 20 years; she is finally released when she is forty. In her search for the few items providing links to her past, Winnie remembers more and more of the intervening years, including her attempt at kidnapping a child to replace the one removed from her against her will. Memories of being alone, used and rejected slowly pour around her. Azzopardi reveals her poignant litany of rejection a little at a time, like a time-release capsule, until the portrait of Winnie’s life gradually comes into focus. Her style of writing in erratically juxtaposed blocks of time can be a challenge, but the compassionate character study which emerges is well worth the effort. Deborah Donovan writes from Cincinnati and La Veta, Colorado.

Cecelia Ahern, the 22-year-old daughter of Irish Prime Minister Bertie Ahern, writes with insight beyond her years in her debut novel, P.S. I Love You, a book at once poignant and comical, introspective and farcical.

Holly Kennedy, 29, has just become a widow when the novel opens, her husband Gerry her best friend, lover and soul mate having succumbed to a brain tumor. Holly slogs through aimless days and nights with only memories to keep her afloat until her mother reminds her of an envelope she received in the mail just before Gerry’s death. The notes inside are labeled with the remaining months of the year, March through December, and each one contains a tip, written by Gerry as he was dying, to help Holly get on with her life. The first instructs her to go shopping for a new outfit, which gets her out of her dirty jeans and Gerry’s T-shirts; July’s note sends her on a vacation to Spain for a week with her two best friends, September pushes her to get out and look for her "best job ever," and December, the last note, encourages Holly not to be afraid to love again.

Gradually, Holly emerges from her cocoon. Armed with a new job in charge of advertising for a trendy magazine, she is constantly buoyed by her long-time friends, who serve as the vehicles for Ahern’s comic side. They drag Holly along to "hen parties," shopping trips and balls against her wishes. Side plots focus on Holly’s family, who include her doting parents, a stodgy older brother who emerges as one of her staunchest supporters, and her younger sister, pink-haired and flaky, who can always make Holly laugh.

Ahern weaves just the right amount of humor into her tale of Holly’s struggle with grief and its aftermath, resulting in a highly engaging addition (for which the movie rights have already been sold) to the "plight of the suddenly single" genre.

Deborah Donovan writes from Cincinnati and La Veta, Colorado.

Some authors seem to click with moviemakers, and writer Nicholas Sparks is one of the lucky few making his way to the top of Holly- wood’s A-list. First came Message in a Bottle, Sparks’ novel about a tragic love letter which was turned into a hit movie starring Kevin Costner, Robin Wright and Paul Newman. Next comes the film version of A Walk to Remember, which opens in theaters January 25.

In fact, all five of Sparks’ best-selling romantic novels appear headed for the screen. His first book, the multi-million-seller The Notebook, is now in the screenwriting stage, and negotiations are under way to sell film and television rights to his other two novels, A Bend in the Road and The Rescue.

The boyish author and father of five, who just a few years ago was making a living as a pharmaceutical salesman, says his success in the jaded world of Tinseltown hasn’t really changed the way he writes or the way he lives.

"You just set out to write the best book you possibly can, and if you’re lucky Hollywood will make a film of it. The odds are very small. They just don’t make that many films based on books," Sparks said from his home in North Carolina, where he was recuperating from the rigors of a European book tour.

"Movies are a nice way to introduce people to your work, especially if the film is done well, and I’ve been fortunate in that both these films have been done very well." A Walk to Remember, which should have special appeal to the teen audience, stars pop singer and MTV regular Mandy Moore as a small-town preacher’s daughter who wins the heart of a skeptical rich kid. Much of the filming took place in Wilmington, North Carolina, not far from Sparks’ home in New Bern.

"My oldest son and I went to the set twice, and I went down with my editor a third time," Sparks said, noting that he enjoyed his trips to the set but didn’t write the screenplay or take an active role in making the film.

It might be understandable if Sparks took a special interest in the casting of Mandy Moore as Jamie, since the character was inspired in part by his own sister, Danielle, who died in May after battling cancer.

"Mandy Moore was great on both a personal and professional level. She’s a very charming and intelligent young lady, and she did a fabulous job in front of the camera. She really gave a superb performance, especially considering this was her first major film role," Sparks said. Also appearing in the film are Shane West as the male lead (Landon Carter), and Peter Coyote and Daryl Hannah as parents of the teens. Sparks’ publisher, Warner Books, is releasing a special movie tie-in version of A Walk to Remember to coincide with the film’s release.

A disciplined writer who isn’t content to rest on his laurels, Sparks has already completed his sixth novel, The Guardian, a tale of "love and danger" to be published next fall. He is also finishing a screenplay of The Guardian, outlining his seventh and eighth books and helping to design a new Web site.

Sparks does all his work in a home office "right off the living room with five kids running around." His children range in age from 10-year-old Miles to five-month-old twin daughters, and this busy father admits to shutting his office door "at times when it gets tough."

In her engaging second novel, Lauren Weisberger (The Devil Wears Prada) follows the trials and tribulations of another young woman who secures a dream job, only to find that it’s not what she was expecting. New Yorker Bette Robinson’s relatively staid life working in banking changes drastically when she gets a new job at a PR firm. Soon, she is frequenting Manhattan’s hottest clubs and making the acquaintances of pop culture’s finest. When one night of revelry results in a chance meeting with British hottie Philip Weston, Bette becomes the most popular employee at her firm. Gossip columnists and paparazzi follow every move Bette and Philip make, and Bette’s boss is thrilled at the resulting publicity. But Bette isn’t so sure that her relationship with Philip is any more substantial than their nights of photo ops. Bette’s chance meeting with bouncer and up-and-coming chef Sammy Stevens results in a budding romance, though Bette isn’t quite sure that Sammy measures up to her ideal man, the hero of her favorite romance novel. Despite Bette’s relationship woes, the most captivating aspect of her character is her warring conscience, which wonders whether catering to the rich and famous is a particularly worthy life goal. On top of that, Bette must cope with the fractured relationship with best friend Penelope and frequent arguments with her parents, aging hippies who believe that Bette should be employed in a more productive venue. Much as she did in The Devil Wears Prada, Weisberger provides a bird’s-eye view of a world few inhabit while poking fun at the ridiculous behavior of some of the celebrities and their associates. Readers will likely be both intrigued and appalled by this humorous look into the lives of the rich and famous.

Daphne du Maurier’s Rebecca is one of the best loved, most widely read novels of the 20th century. The book has remained in print continuously since its publication in 1938, and the film adaptation, directed by Alfred Hitchcock, won an Oscar for best picture.

Rebecca is the story of a beautiful, enigmatic woman who married a wealthy man, Maxim de Winter, and died under mysterious circumstances, leaving behind memories that haunted the lives of everyone who knew her. The novel is narrated by the second Mrs. de Winter, a character who plays second fiddle to the memory of Rebecca, and all we know of Rebecca’s story is told through her.

Rebecca’s Tale, a new sequel by Sally Beauman, takes up the story 20 years after the death of Rebecca de Winter and tells it through the words of four characters, not the least of whom is Rebecca herself. The book is divided into four chapters, each one giving voice to a person who holds a piece of the puzzle: Colonel Julyan, a gentleman now old and feeble but still devoted to Rebecca’s memory; Terence Gray, a likeable young man with his own secret agenda and connections to the de Winter legend; Rebecca, who appears from beyond the grave to speak for herself when her secret journals come to light; and Ellie, Colonel Julyan’s daughter, whose young dreams must coexist with her aging father’s obsession with Manderley and the de Winters.

Each of these characters stands out as an individual, yet their narratives are remarkably true to the tone of the original novel, a seamless extension of a story that begs to be continued. This sequel stands strongly on its own and though its publication will likely prompt a renewed interest in the original novel, having read the first book is not a prerequisite for enjoying the sequel.

There’s also a delicious irony in the authorship of Rebecca’s Tale. Sally Beauman, a respected novelist, was handpicked by the du Maurier estate to write the book after she wrote a 1993 New Yorker article blasting the quality of a previous, unauthorized sequel. The estate made a wise choice. Beauman has produced a supremely stylish mystery that offers ingenious solutions to the enigmas posed by the original novel and a beautifully crafted sequel that is magical in its own right as well as by association.

Mary Garrett reads and writes in Middle Tennessee.

In an increasingly interconnected world, the mixing of cultures should no longer come as a surprise. So it is refreshing when an author comes along who can showcase an intriguing new combination. Writer Marsha Mehran escaped the religious revolution in Iran as a child and traveled with her family to Argentina, Florida and Australia before following her heart to New York and Ireland. She underpinned this dizzying array of cultural experiences with a love of her native Persian cuisine. The first literary result of her wanderings is an enchanting tale of three sisters struggling to make a new life for themselves in the Emerald Isle.

Pomegranate Soup is a wonderful treat, a flavorful, rich little dish that does not weigh one down. Touches of magical realism abound: people exude scents of cinnamon and rosewater, onions cook in tightly clenched fists and drops of blood bloom into full-blown roses. Mehran has an unerring eye for detail, and she applies it well to her description of the three sisters: Marjan, the eldest, nurturing and responsible; Bahar, the middle sister, nervous and tortured with memories of the past; and Layla, the youngest, a luminously beautiful teenager who transcends the narrow confines of both cultures. Fortune lands them in the village of Ballinacroagh which, sheltered in the lea of a holy mountain regularly visited by pious pilgrims, is unprepared for the exotic aromas wafting out of the newly opened Babylon CafŽ. But the villagers’ initial mistrust is soon overcome; the vicious gossip, if not silenced, is ignored; and the sisters find allies among the town’s colorful residents. Their success, however, is soon threatened by a shadow from the past and a threat from the present, driving them to desperation. Cruelty and greed do not recognize national borders. But luckily, neither does love.

As a beguiling extra, recipes for such delicacies as lavash bread, chelow rice, and fesenjoon, a chicken dish made with walnuts and pomegranate paste, are scattered throughout the book, tempting the adventurous to try their hand. Even non-cooks, though, will be beguiled by Pomegranate Soup‘s zest for life. Jehanne Moharram grew up in the Middle East and now writes from Virginia.

Though not a sequel, Diane Johnson’s witty comedy of manners, L’Affaire, continues in the vein of her previous best-selling novels, Le Divorce and Le Mariage, and offers up an engaging story of Americans abroad and the cultural mayhem that follows in their wake.

In L’Affaire, an inharmonious contingent of French, British and American family members are brought together at a glamorous French ski resort in the aftermath of a devastating avalanche that leaves the family’s patriarch comatose. With an inheritance hanging in the balance, each faction jockeys for position with Machiavellian savoir faire. Alliances are forged and then broken, romances are ignited and extinguished, and a chain of events is set in motion by the well-meaning but misguided actions of the unwitting young American heroine, Amy Hawkins.

Amy is a charmingly na•ve former dot-com executive who has come to France to embark on a program of cultural self-improvement. Her attempt at benevolence backfires and lands her in the eye of the storm over the inheritance. As tempers flare among the group, the thin veneer of politesse is stripped away and replaced with a divisive provincialism fueled by the quirky conventions of each nationality.

Johnson’s trademark ability to deliver insightful observations on cultural stereotypes makes the novel delightfully entertaining. This fresh and sophisticated satire brings each character’s motivations and prejudices sharply into focus, making the reader aware that perhaps we are all more alike than we care to think. Joni Rendon works in publishing in New York City.