Dining: Dec. 21 marked the first official day of winter, the season of snowball fights, roaring fires and wooly sweaters. There’s one beverage that celebrates the feelings that this time of year provokes: hot chocolate. Comments (1).

Where to GO: Editors’ Picks

Dance party

Saturday, January 12: At over 70 years old, the 200-member Moiseyev Dance Company has performed its gravity-defying, traditional Russian dances in over 60 countries. Tonight, it’s coming to Midwood.

8 pm at Brooklyn College’s Walt Whitman Theatre (one block from the junction of Flatbush and Nostrand avenues in Midwood). $30-$45. For information, call (718) 951-4500 or visit www.brooklyncenteronline.com.

What a ‘Peach’

Tuesday, January 15: Singer-songwriter Kimya Dawson — formerly one-half of indie pop darlings The Moldy Peaches — is currently enjoying the success of having her songs used in hit films like “Juno” and “The Savages.” Tonight, she will play a free show at Sound Fix Lounge in Williamsburg.

8 pm at Sound Fix Lounge (110 Bedford Ave. at North 11th Street in Williamsburg). Free. For information, call (718) 388-8090 or visit www.soundfixrecords.com.

Check book

Wednesday, January 16: Alan Corey’s book, “A Million Bucks by 30,” chronicles the Clinton Hill resident’s journey from being a poor recent graduate to being a millionaire by age 28. At Park Slope’s Barnes and Noble, Corey will share his thrifty wisdom; but not so much that it will discourage you from dropping $13.95 on his book.

7:30 pm at Barnes and Noble (267 Seventh Ave. at Sixth Street in Park Slope). Free. For information, call (718) 832-9066 or visit www.alancorey.com.

By George!

Thursday, January 17: All the reading you’ve been doing during the television writer’s strike hasn’t been for naught: Tonight the Brooklyn Academy of Music’s “Eat, Drink and Be Literary” series kicks off with brainy author George Saunders, where discussing books will be very much en vogue. Paired with a fancy dinner and wine, you might forget about TV altogether.

6:30 pm at the Brooklyn Academy of Music (30 Lafayette Ave. at Ashland Place in Fort Greene). $48, all-inclusive. For information, call (718) 636-4100 or visit www.bam.org.

Full ‘Mooney’

Friday, January 18: Before garage bands were a dime a dozen and nobody had heard of the Strokes, there was Mooney Suzuki. Formed in 1996, the band has gained a national following for its mod-influenced sound and retro stage outfits. Tonight, the band is playing at 11:30 pm, after DJs spin ’60s soul and garage rock.

7 pm at Luna Lounge (361 Metropolitan Ave. at Havemeyer Street in Williamsburg). $5 in advance, $8 day of. For information, visit www.lunalounge.com.

View the full nightlife and events calendars.

Writing on the wall

By Adam Rathe

Books: Subway readers, prepare for a new accessory. Last week, “Brooklyn Was Mine,” a collection of essays by local literati — including Jonathan Lethem, Phillip Lopate, Emily Barton and Jennifer Egan — was released and, from what we can tell, it will soon replace paperback copies of “Everything is Illuminated” and rumpled Dawn Powell novels as prime F train literature. Comment.

Russian feet

By Adam Rathe

Dance: Famed Russian hoofers the Moiseyev Dance company are coming to Brooklyn College and won’t settle for less than folk-ing perfection. Comment.

New brew

By Sarah McCormick

Nightlife: In the eastern stretch of Williamsburg, the Pour House was known as a reliable — if seedy — spot to grab a drink. Now that the Pour House has been transformed into Legion Bar by the team behind Williamsburg’s popular K&M Bar, what was “Pour” is now a whole lot richer. Comment.

Hot salsa

By Adam Rathe

Music: Park Sloper Jose Conde brings his Latin-tinged music to the Mondo Music Festival — and we have the dogs of Prospect Park to thank. Comment.

Tasty restaurant gossip

By Adam Rathe and Lisa J. Curtis

Breaking Chews: We’re dishing up Brooklyn’s latest food news! Comment.

Boro as muse

By Lisa J. Curtis

Books: Ever wondered what it is about Brooklyn that spawns so many talented authors or entices scribes to come from far and wide to set up their homes here? Sheepshead Bay native Bill Goldstein, a New York Times books editor, promises to get to the bottom of that question with his star-studded panel discussion, “Literary Brooklyn.” Comment.

No buffalos were harmed

By Chris Varmus

Dining: In an event that can only be called revolutionary, timid, tree-hugging, animal-loving vegans are being invited to take off their gloves (organic cotton, of course) and get up to their elbows in spicy wings for a “Vegan Buffalo Wing Eating Contest.” Comment.