Book recommendation — Helene Hanff

84, Charing Cross Road and The Duchess of Bloomsbury Street [an inseparable pair]

By Helene Hanff

The power of books lies not just in their ability to entertain and inform, but in how they make us consider or reconsider the world. 

In a previous post, I wrote about the charming novel, The Readers of Broken Wheel Recommend, by Katarina Bivald. The main character in the book opens a bookstore, and suggests actual titles throughout the story, one of which is 84, Charing Cross Road, by Helene Hanff.

So one book led to another.

84, Charing Cross Road is a delightful, true story. It’s a collection of letters between Helene Hanff, a bookloving New Yorker, and Frank Doel, the manager of Marks & Co, a specialty bookstore in London located at 84, Charing Cross Road. 

Helene’s first letter arrives at the bookstore in 1949, asking for a specific, rare title. 

Frank is able to obtain it and becomes her go-to source for hard-to-find books. 

The letters fuel a friendship and Helene soon comes to understand the hardship of daily life in post-War England. She sends ‘care packages’ of food to ease the burden of rationing, which endears her to the staff of Marks & Co. She also expresses her deep desire to visit London. Yet life is also difficult in post-war New York. Helene strives to save enough money to travel, however unexpected events keep getting in the way.  

Helene’s struggle to afford her hoped-for trip to London made me consider how different women’s lives were back then. Credit cards weren’t common and as late as the early 1970s, loans for women required the co-signature of a man. So with no access to VISA or MasterCard, Helene has to budget for everything she purchases. Travel being just outside her grasp infuses her writing.  

If you love books about books, this short collection of letters may warm your heart.

The companion book is The Duchess of Bloomsbury Street. This title is a collection of Helene’s diary entries when she finally makes her longed-for trip to London in 1971 — 32 years after writing her first letter to Marks & Co. The short book records the adventures of her 6-week stay at a hotel located on Bloomsbury Street, where she feels treated like a Duchess. 

Like Helene, I have an oversized love of London, so reading about the city through the eyes of a first-time visitor and book lover was captivating. I walked with Helene along the streets, saw Harrods from her perspective, and revelled in her efforts to extend her stay. I loved every page. 

Part memoir, part travel guide, part time capsule, this book is a love letter to London, and allows readers to experience the city from the viewpoint of a funny, vibrant, literary woman. 

Thanks for reading.

Books are my Happy Place tote bag available at forbooklovers.shop.