84, Charing Cross Road by Helene Hanff

[katekintailbc]

84, Charing Cross Road
by Helene Hanff

This is a book I've wanted to read for years now, but only just got around to doing so because one of my things is to read books and watch movies based on them. I've had the DVD out from Netflix for ages, so I finally got around to reading it. I wasn't expecting to fall in love the way I did. I was expecting some charming letter-writing and maybe two characters falling in love. I'd forgotten this was the true story of a woman in the US writing to a bookshop in London. I'd forgotten that in real life, things are often more complicated and more heartbreaking than they are in fiction.

I fell in love with the people and the bookshop almost at once. Something about the tone--proper but with an unexpected humor--made me care about these people. Their love of books certainly did not hurt. Helene seemed amazingly generous, sending food parcels during tough times, instructing a friend to sneak some extra nylons onto a desk, and asking after so many of the employees who had touched her heart through books and letters though they had never met. Her image of England--the one of literature--endured through the whole book, and I cried at the end for how it all played out. This book a beautiful and lasting tribute to Frank's humor, Helene's quirkiness and kindness, and the passion for books everyone at 84, Charing Cross Road had. It's amazing what effects these people had on each other from across the sea. And it's amazing the effect they had on me across the decades.

Comments

[discoverylover.livejournal.com]

I really want to re-read this now! Also I had no idea it had been made into a film, I shall have to see if work have it :D