As everyone knows, Valentines’ Day is two weeks away and our beloved bookstore, Chevalier’s Books, is celebrating early with a newly released literary rom-com, “Almost Romance” by actress and writer, Nancy Balbirer.
From the moment they met at NYU in 1983, Nancy and Howie (Howard J. Morris, the co-creator and showrunner of Netflix’s “Grace and Frankie”) adored each other. And though they had great chemistry and flirted outrageously, they never dated. Theirs, like the title of the career-launching play Howie wrote for them to star in, was an “Almost Romance.”
Balbirer’s book starts when a mysterious woman summons her to a Russian restaurant in New York City, and the near stranger’s shocking purple hair and even more shocking news send her simultaneously reeling back to her past and hurtling toward a future that, at almost fifty years old, she never dreamed possible. This romantic-comedy memoir tells the true story of how a pack of Hollywood television writers and the denizens of a fabled-but-cursed Manhattan apartment building helped the author and one of her best friends turn a thirty-two-year almost-romance into a real one.
Now that she and Morris are residents of LA’s westside, Balbirer told the Buzz she’s thrilled to be launching her book at Chevalier’s Books with a talk on February 1 at 7 p.m..
“Hancock Park/Larchmont is our dream nabe; I lived there for a few years in the early aughts and as soon as my daughter graduates high school next year, Howie and I will be hightailing it back!” wrote Balbirer. “Lunches at Le Petit Greek; fettuccine at the fantabulous Vernetti’s and perusing Chevalier’s Books, my favorite bookstore, where I used to dream of having a book on their shelves and (pinch me) now I do!”
Balbirer was inspired to write the book after a story on her wedding to Morris, published in the New York Times in 2016, generated so much reaction. So grab a glass of red wine, your favorite chocolates and tune into Balbirer’s conversation with Morris to kick off your Valentine’s celebrations. We heard Balbirer and Morris have created a special video surprise introduction to the talk.
Click here to register for the talk and pre-order a signed copy. It might be a nice Valentine’s Day present for a special someone waiting to reconnect.