Product Description

'This book is the very simple story of the love affair between Miss Helene Hanff of New York and Messrs Marks and Co, sellers of rare and secondhand books, at 84 Charing Cross Road, London'. DAILY TELEGRAPH Told in a series of letters in 84 CHARING CROSS ROAD and then in diary form in the second part THE DUCHESS OF BLOOMSBURY STREET, this true story has touched the hearts of thousands.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #108317 in Books
• Published on: 2002-10-03
• Original language: English
• Binding: Paperback
• 224 pages

Review
'A lovely new edition of this classic title' Good Book Guide 'A must for anyone who reads - the correspondence between book lover Helen Hanff and Messers Marks & Cross of Charing Cross Road has been reissued.' Daily Express 'Unmitigated delight from cover to cover' DAILY TELEGRAPH 'A real-life love story . . . A timeless period piece. Do read it' WALL STREET JOURNAL 'A Charmer. Will beguile an hour of your time and put you in tune with mankind' NEW YORK TIMES 'It is difficult, if not impossible, to start this book without finishing it ... this lovely volume reveals an awful lot about what books provide: a way of reaching out across time and space to friends and strangers' Anne Bancroft

Daily Express
‘A must for anyone who reads – the correspondence between book lover Helen Hanff and Messers Marks & Cross of Charing Cross Road has been reissued.’

Bournemouth Daily Echo
‘Two books in one … both showcase Helene’s biting wit, loving nature and her keen eye for the eccentricities of English life we residents take for granted.’

Customer Reviews

Heart-warming cult classic
"84 Charing Cross Road" is a series of letters charting the twenty-year correspondence between a would-be playwright in NY and Frank Doel, a London antiquarian bookseller. From such a modest premise, Helene Hanff has created something with an almost unique charm which continues to endure as a successful book, play and film.

To me the great joy of Hanff is her style. She is wonderfully conversational, humorous and self-depreciating. She describes her life - learning ancient Greek or watching endless English films - with panache. However, in truth very little happens in these pages. Rather, it is the gently teasing nature of her relationship with Doel which shines out, the feistiness of the young American lady chaffing against the more reserved nature of the quiet, polite English gent, as they read their way through the 1940s, 50s and 60s.

On her death, the Times said tartly, "Seldom has a writer sailed to literary fame in so slender a craft." It is true that 84 CXR is a very slim tome. Yet it is one that bears much re-reading, as it seems that somewhere between the lines there lie more than a few life-lessons for us all.

Pilgrims to the real-life 84 Charing Cross Road will be sad to find that it no longer exists as such. Look out for an "All Bar One" however and a dull, bronze plaque commemorating the bookstore.

A book to re-read and re-discover
I continually find myself surprised by the depth of emotion that I experience on re-reading this great work. I went to buy a copy just after seeing the film on late night television and some one bought the last copy just before me. Waiting the week for the special order whetted my appetite for it all the more. I must say that I highly recommend all of her works, "The Apple of My Eye," and "Q's Legacy" come to mind immediately.

Perfectly charming and heartwarming.
My English friend loaned this book to me and I had to get a copy for myself--from England. Thank you Amazon.co.uk!! I loved The Duchess of Bloomsbury Street because I felt the same way when I visited England--it really touched my heart.