Often a Christmas choral concert contains certain standards: the Vivaldi Gloria, the biblical narratives of Bach’s Christmas Oratorio, a few nostalgic English carols, and in conclusion an “all stand” for Handel’s Hallelujah Chorus. This was something different.

From Mary Gaitskill’s novelistic reconsideration of the #MeToo movement to Elton John’s hilarious self-mockery, our man in letters picks ’em . . .

The incredible journey of a refugee Iraqi cat is out in a $7.99 paperback edition, and a Star “Guestwords” and book review contributor makes good with a collection of his own.

Keyes Art stays home and travels, Hanukkah at Ezra Gallery, and Lee Freeman at Rental Gallery

"A Gilbert and Sullivan Christmas Carol" and East Hampton's Big Karma in Sag Harbor

The holidays are coming up — Hanukkah, Christmas, Kwanzaa, New Year’s. This means shopping, parties galore, and possibly travel. Don’t go broke; make some original and creative food gifts or go out and buy some local ones.

Whether you prefer to celebrate New Year’s Eve by dancing or indulging in a gourmet meal, local venues are offering plenty of festive ways to ring in 2020. Reservations are recommended in all cases.

Penn’s Pecans

I got this recipe from my friend Marsha, who got it from her friend Penn. So they are called Penn’s pecans. They are a bit of work, but easy and so good!

Makes one pound.

Holiday catering menus and Christmas Eve and Hanukkah specials, Christmas dinner at Baron's Cove and The Maidstone, and more

A menorah lighting will take place in Herrick Park in East Hampton Village on Friday at 4:30 p.m., organized by Chabad of the Hamptons with cocoa, chocolate coins, and raffle prizes.

Shakespeare and Co.'s three-week residency at the school culminates in performances of "A Midsummer Night's Dream" on Thursday. All 78 students, ages 3 to 13, have had a hand in this year's production.

Ask Dave Falkowski about hemp and chances are good that you’ll find yourself in a long and engrossing conversation. The discussion may range to unexpectedly diverse topics, from nutrition to organic farming to the opioid epidemic and even politics, but it will always come back to hemp. In Dave’s world, it’s all connected.

The holiday festivities are in full swing with Santa likely showing up in your hamlet sometime over the weekend and plenty of places to find the perfect gift for everyone on your list, such as the annual Artisans Gift Show in Springs. In between all of that, catch a "Mixed Nuts" performance at Bay Street or take a dip in the ocean during the Polar Bear Plunge at Cooper's Beach in Sout

The owner of Petit Bleu, a children’s store in East Hampton Village, who was cited by code enforcement last month for placing two stuffed golden retrievers, one adorned with a “welcome” sign, at the entrance to her shop, contested the summons in East Hampton Town Justice Court on Monday. 

The “four horsemen of the ocean climate change apocalypse” have arrived, a scientist told those attending a symposium Friday on the bay scallop die-off of 2019, and they pose a serious threat to the embattled species. 

Meeting at the Montauk Firehouse, the board and the consultant Lisa Liquori of Fine Arts and Sciences, a former town planning director, honed language in a draft plan, which was not accessible to those attending the meeting, prompting one to complain that it was difficult to follow the deliberations.

Mold was discovered in several places at the John M. Marshall Elementary School in late August, and the East Hampton School District is almost done remediating the problem, a senior school official said this week.

The plan, which moves the tennis courts and softball field around to make room for a regulation-size football field, was also a hit with almost everyone who heard about it at a public meeting of the board in the East Hampton Middle School auditorium last Thursday.

Suffolk Legislator Bridget Fleming, who recently announced her intention to seek the Democratic Party’s nomination to challenge Representative Lee Zeldin in New York’s First Congressional District, rebuked President Trump for his criticism of F.B.I. agents yesterday.

Following last month’s vote to increase incentives for property owners to replace conventional septic systems with new low-nitrogen systems approved by the Suffolk County Health Department, the East Hampton Town Board voted on Tuesday to streamline the process, further encouraging replacement of the old systems.