Miss Nelson is Missing Movie, Twice Movie, ABA Names LeVar Burton Bookstore Ambassador, Shady Hollow by Juneau Black, Hopelessly Teavoted by Audrey Goldberg Ruoff, The Secret Book Society by Madeline Martin and The View From Lake Como by Adriana Trigiani

The final week of September is here! Hurrah! I love October and November and December because of all the birthdays and holiday celebrations! My book-loving mom turns 88 on October 5, and I'm hoping to send her some chocolate and a couple of books, if I can find any that she hasn't read. Anyway, here are some tidbits and four reviews, though I'm already one book into my next stack for early October! Keep warm and toasty and keep reading, fellow book dragons.

 

This looks like another fun and funny movie starring the hilarious Melissa McCarthy. I hope that I get the chance to see it.

 

Movies: Miss Nelson Is Missing

Netflix is in early development on a movie adaptation of the children's

book Miss Nelson Is Missing by Harry Allard, illustrated by James Marshall. Deadline reported that Melissa McCarthy is starring in the project, which will be written by Brad Copeland (Ferdinand, Spies in Disguise, Jerry and Marge Go Large).

The classic book series is about "a misbehaving class whose teacher is

mysteriously absent from school one day. But after a week with their

strict substitute, Viola Swamp, the kids can't wait for Miss Nelson to

come back. Sources say McCarthy would play both Nelson and Swamp in the film," Deadline noted.

This sounds fantastic, kind of like The Midnight Library by Matt Haig. Something to look forward to streaming this fall.

 Movies: Twice

Netflix has acquired Mitch Albom's upcoming novel Twice

"in a competitive situation," Variety reported. Paul Weitz (Fatherhood,

Murderbot, About a Boy) will adapt and direct the film. He is also

producing with Andrew Miano through their company, Depth of Field. The

book will be be published on October 7 by Harper.

Twice "is a love story about magical second chances, Variety noted. "The

novel asks: 'What if you got to do everything in your life--again?'

That's the reality for Alfie Logan, who discovers the magical ability to

undo any moment and live it again. The one catch... is that he must

accept the consequences of his second try, for better or worse."

I've always loved LeVar B, and I'm chuffed that he's been named a book ambassador...a title he's definitely earned!

 

ABA Names LeVar Burton Indie Bookstore Ambassador

LeVar Burton has been named the American Booksellers Association's Indie

Bookstore Ambassador for 2025-2026. From Indies First Day/Small Business Saturday on November 29 to Independent Bookstore Day on April 25, 2026, Burton will serve as a champion for independent bookstores.

Burton is an actor, director, producer, and podcaster whose work

includes Roots, Star Trek: The Next Generation, and Reading Rainbow. He

is the recipient of seven NAACP Awards, a Peabody, a Grammy, and 15

Emmys, including a Lifetime Achievement Award at the Inaugural

Children's & Family Emmys. He is also a lifelong literacy advocate and

has dedicated decades to encouraging children to read.

In 2023, Burton premiered his first documentary, The Right to Read, a

film that considers the literacy crisis in the U.S. as a civil rights

issue. The Right to Read was an official selection at the Santa Barbara

International Film Festival and SXSW EDU.

He is also the award-winning author of Aftermath, The Rhino Who

Swallowed a Storm, and A Kids Book About Imagination. He launched his

first book club with Fable, a digital book club community, and partnered

with Masterclass to share the power of storytelling.

His production company, LeVar Burton Entertainment (LBE), develops film, television, podcasting, and publishing projects with the mission to

share stories that foster empathy, champion diversity, and build

community. The LeVar Burton Reads podcast has more than 175 episodes in

its catalog, with 25 million downloads. LBE's first Kids & Family

podcast, Sound Detectives, made its debut on Stitcher in 2023.

Burton called it "an extraordinary honor to be chosen as ABA's Indie

Bookstore Ambassador. From my earliest memories, books carried me beyond the world I knew. They let me explore distant planets, ancient kingdoms, and lives very different from my own. Independent bookstores are where those explorations began. They are sanctuaries of possibility where a single story can change a life. In my forthcoming book, I reflect on discovering and embracing one's authentic self. Bookstores offer that same opportunity to every reader. Step inside, wander the shelves, ask questions, and follow your curiosity. Every book you open is an

invitation to imagine, to learn, and to see the world anew. But, you

don't have to take my word for it!"

 

Shady Hollow by Juneau Black is a unique fantasy mystery about a town populated by walking, talking animals...anthropomorphized to seem like a human community. The town of Shady Hollow is sleepy and lovely until two of the town's denizens are murdered, and its up to an intrepid fox reporter to solve the case. Here's the blurb: The first book in the Shady Hollow series, in which we are introduced to the village of Shady Hollow, a place where woodland creatures live together in harmony—until a curmudgeonly toad turns up dead and the local reporter has to solve the case.

Reporter Vera Vixen is a relative newcomer to Shady Hollow. The fox has a nose for news, so when she catches wind that the death might be a murder, she resolves to get to the bottom of the case, no matter where it leads. As she stirs up still waters, the fox exposes more than one mystery, and discovers that additional lives are in jeopardy.

Vera finds more to this town than she ever suspected. It seems someone in the Hollow will do anything to keep her from solving the murder, and soon it will take all of Vera’s cunning and quickness to crack the case.
This sweet cozy mystery, told from the perspective of a smart fox is short (not even 300 pages!) but full of charming characters, like the moose who runs the local coffee shop and the beaver family who are the rich town industrialists. I loved the concise and elegant prose which propelled the no-nonsense plot along at record speed. There was a sense of melancholy about the book, but it didn't interfere with the story arc at all. I'd give this slender volume an A, and recommend it to anyone looking for a comfort read for the fall.

 

Hopelessly Teavoted by Audrey Goldberg Ruoff is a magical romantic fantasy with comedic undertones that keep the book from being too grim or weird. It's an Addams-family-esque fall read that is spicy but engrossing. Here's the blurb: 

After the deaths of his parents, a witch returns to his spooky family manor and joins forces with his former crush when his parents’ spirits warn them of a sinister threat in this witty and lyrically unique rom-com in the vein of The Crescent Moon Tearoom and The Ex Hex.

Azrael Ashmedai Hart must be cursed. He’s a witch twice named for the devil. He’s making his way back to his family manor in Hallowcross after a failed screenwriting career. He’s adopted a cat he’s allergic to, and if all of that is not enough, he’s also forced to come face-to-face with his childhood best friend and former crush.

Victoria Starnberger, the bubbly girl-next-door Az lost touch with after an awkward incident in college, has just been disowned by her parents for quitting business school and buying Azrael’s late parents’ Hopelessly Teavoted tea shop against their wishes. Being cut off financially is one thing. But, now Vickie also owes a lesser devil for the souls her parents promised him in exchange for her gift to summon the dead by touching something they treasured in life, destroying the object in the process.

When spirits all over town, including Az’s parents, keeping warning her about a sinister threat, Vickie and Az are forced to combine their powers to save the Hallowcross. But to do so, they must prevent her magic from immolating him after Vickie’s devil places a curse on them to keep them from touching until she repays her debt. As they race against the clock to find clever ways around their curse, they find it increasingly harder to deny that they’ve been hopelessly devoted to each other all along.

This odd but rather too spicy romantasy was a decent read, but I was shocked by the number of typos in every chapter that pulled me out of the story. I felt as if the prose was badly translated from some other language (it wasn't, but it reads like it was). The prose was also very gothic and overwritten, and though the plot was dtermined and marched along, it fell afoul of too much description that slowed things down considerably. I did like Vickies magic but found Az's worshipping of her unrealistic. Still, I was able to finish it, though I hope that whatever editor worked on this book was fired for being incompetent. I'd give it a B-, and recommend it to those who love the campy, cartoon aspect of the Addam's Family love story. 

 

The Secret Book Society by Madeline Martin is a historical women's fiction novel that was beautifully rendered inside and out, with a beautiful blue gilded cover and lush prose. Here's the blurb: 

A captivating new historical novel from Madeline Martin, set in Victorian London about a forbidden book club, dangerous secrets, and the women who dare to break free.

You are cordially invited to the Secret Book Society…
London, 1895: Trapped by oppressive marriages and societal expectations, three women receive a mysterious invitation to an afternoon tea at the home of the reclusive Lady Duxbury. Beneath the genteel facade of the gathering lies a secret book club—a sanctuary where they can discover freedom, sisterhood, and the courage to rewrite their stories.

Eleanor Clarke, a devoted mother suffocating under the tyranny of her husband. Rose Wharton, a transplanted American dollar princess struggling to fit the mold of an aristocratic wife. Lavinia Cavendish, an artistic young woman haunted by a dangerous family secret. All are drawn to the enigmatic Lady Duxbury, a thrice-widowed countess whose husbands’ untimely deaths have sparked whispers of murder.

As the women form deep, heartwarming friendships, they uncover secrets about their marriages, their pasts, and the risks they face. Their courage is their only weapon in the oppressive world that has kept them silent, but when secrets are deadly, one misstep could cost them everything.

I loved this book, though it was hard to read about the intense misogyny of the Gilded Age/Belle Epoque of the late 19th/early 20th century Victorian England. Women's struggles for freedom, autonomy and agency for not just themselves but their children is detailed here in stark but silken prose that keeps the swift and thrilling plot rumbling along at breakneck speed. The birth of feminism from a bibliophiles perspective is refreshing and engrossing...I couldn't put it down! I sincerely hope that there were secret societies that saved women back in the day, but if not, this book gives one hope for a brighter future. I'd give it an A, and recommend it to anyone interested in women's history.

 

The View From Lake Como by Adriana Trigiani is a contemporary women's romance that has its roots in historic Italy and New York. I've read all of Adriana's novels, and this one was more serious and religious than most of her previous novels, but I was still engrossed by the family story as it unfolded. Here's the blurb: Jess Capodimonte Baratta is not living the life of her dreams. Not even close.

In blue-collar Lake Como, New Jersey, family comes first. Recently divorced from Bobby Bilancia, “the perfect husband," Jess moves into her parents’ basement to hide and heal. Jess is the overlooked daughter, who dutifully takes care of her parents, cooks Sunday dinner, and puts herself last. Despite her role as the family handmaiden, Jess is also a talented draftswoman in the marble business run by her dapper uncle Louie, who believes she can do anything (once she invests in a better wardrobe).

When the Capodimonte and Baratta families endure an unexpected loss, the shock unearths long-buried secrets that will force Jess to question her loyalty to those she trusted. Fueled by her lost dreams, Jess takes fate into her own hands and escapes to her ancestral home, Carrara, Italy.

From the shadows of the majestic marble-capped mountains of Tuscany, to the glittering streets of Milan, and on the shores of enchanting Lake Como (the other one), Jess begins to carve a place in this new/old world. When she meets Angelo Strazza, a passionate artist who works in gold, she discovers her own skills are priceless. But as Jess uncovers the truth about her family history, it will change the course of her life and those she loves the most forever. In love and work, in art and soul, Jess will need every tool she has mastered to reinvent her life.

Fed by the author’s cherished Italian roots comes a bighearted, hilarious novel of the moment: the story of one woman’s determination to live a creative life that matters, with enough room left over for love. With a one-way ticket to Italy, Jess is determined to write a new story on her own terms--this time, in stone. 

The focus in the book of two Italian American families living in New Jersey (like the Sopranos) with all the Jersey Shore cliches, was a bit off putting, especially as the women were all seen as house-slaves who were only allowed to cook,clean care for their parents and raise children, without any consideration for their own needs or desires...such staggering misogyny! Throughout the book, the cliches about Italian Americans are trotted out, including the older generation making money illegally and hiding it from the IRS and getting brought up on RICO charges by the infamous "Feds". I gather we're supposed to find all these men, who are sexist, immature and aggressive bastards, charming,but I didn't find them charming at all. They used the women around them constantly for their own selfish reasons. It took the main character going into therapy to find her spine, grow up and move to Italy, where she's expected to fall in love with an Italian man just when she's finally found some peace and freedom in her life. I felt sorry for her, but she was apparently happy at the end. I didn't find a lot of humor in the book, either, but I'd give it a B+ and recommend it to anyone of Italian American heritage.