Kaplan, Ilana. Nora Ephron at the Movies: A Visual Celebration of the Writer and Director Behind When Harry Met Sally, You’ve Got Mail, Sleepless in Seattle, and More. Abrams. Oct. 2024. 224p. ISBN 9781419763632. $50. FILM

Though Nora Ephron’s crown, as “queen of romantic comedy,” is permanently affixed, culture writer Kaplan contends in her first book that comforting romances and witty quips are just the surface of the appeal of Ephron’s movies and that her cinematic legacy encompasses more than her famous rom-coms. In lavishly illustrated chapters, Kaplan probes into the stories behind and within each of Ephron’s films—including early scripts for Silkwood and Heartburn; big hits, such as When Harry Met Sally and Sleepless in Seattle; and lesser-known efforts like My Blue Heaven and Cookie—as well as touching on her plays and books. She even examines Ephron’s posthumous popularity on social media, where quotes and clips from her films are regularly reposted. This book is an astute look at Ephron’s successes and failures throughout her career and the themes and issues that reverberate throughout her work. VERDICT A solid pick for public libraries. Devotees of Ephron will find this volume delightful to delve into, while casual cinephiles will enjoy it as a thoughtful analysis of an influential writer-director and her various legacies.—Kathleen McCallister

Seros, Alexandra. Ida Lupino, Forgotten Auteur: From Film Noir to the Director’s Chair. Univ. of Texas. Dec. 2024. 240p. ISBN 9781477330654. $45. FILM

Screenwriter Seros focuses on the directorial career of actor Lupino (1918–95), whose output was too frequently overlooked in an industry dominated by men in the postwar U.S. Using themes that combatted stereotypes and anticipated feminism (and also concerned with the parallel plights of marginalized men and women), Lupino’s own company produced films with ambiguous rather than uplifting conclusions. A self-reliant, pioneering director, writer, and producer, the estimable Lupino chose to work on socially conscious topics within the confines of the Production Code Administration, often using low-budget Hollywood “Poverty Row” films to do so. Among the movies she directed are Unwanted (1949), about unwed pregnancy; Never Fear (1950), about polio; Outrage (1950), about rape; and the noirish The Hitch-Hiker (1953), her most successful and her personal favorite. Lupino also directed TV, which allowed the mother and wife a better work-home balance. She produced episodes of Western, comedy, mystery, suspense, and gangster series (including the only woman-directed episode of The Twilight Zone). She was quick to acknowledge the directors who influenced her, like Hitchcock, and she influenced others in turn: Clint Eastwood said it was Lupino who showed him that an actor could also direct. VERDICT This academically written and accessible contribution to film history should please a wide range of readers.—Frederick J. Augustyn Jr.