84, Charing Cross Road by Helene Hanff

 

Part memoir, part ode to the written word, 84, Charing Cross Road by Helene Hanff is a charming book of 1950s letters from Hanff, a screenwriter in New York, to Frank Doel of Marks & Co, an antiquarian bookshop in London. Hanff finds an advertisement for them in the Saturday Review of Literature, and as she wants books that are either out of print or that she can't find in New York in affordable, satisfactory editions, she makes Marks & Co. her personal book source. The trans-Atlantic correspondence between Hanff & Doel (and others associated with Marks & Co.) evolves from business to the personal as they become friends. You not only get to explore their deepening relationships but you also get book recommendations, a window into the English antiquarian book trade, and a glimpse of an early 1950s Britain still recovering from WWII.

 

I have a weakness for both epistolary stories and books on books, so this one brings delight both ways. We don’t get all the letters, only the ones (I'm guessing) that go beyond business and offer some insight into the characters, their settings and relationships. Helene Hanff is a lively writer with a wonderful sense of humor, who's not afraid to express herself, and the sense of distance provided by the nature of writing to somebody means she's far less restrained than she (or most anyone) would be in person, which only makes it funnier. The tonal contrast between her letters and Frank's, who comes across mostly as a proper Englishman, may be due to differences in American and British culture or the fact that he is representing a business, but you can tell it's not due to a lack of affection.

 

I recommend this book as a heart-warming, quick read (my Penguin edition is 97 partially-filled pages) that pulls you into a world of books and unexpected yet fulfilling relationships. Every time I read it I come away with a smile on my face and a renewed appreciation of the importance of embracing the small joys that leaven the lumps of everyday life.

To Say Nothing of the Dog by Connie Willis

 To Say Nothing of the Dog is a wonderfully irreverent time travel science fiction novel replete with absurdist humor and appealing characters. A stand-alone entry in Wills’ Oxford Time Travel series, this story takes the reader to Victorian England by way of World War II, looking for the bishop’s bird stump to complete the restoration of Coventry Cathedral. This is more difficult than one might think, given the iron whims of Lady Schrapnell, who co-opts the entire time travel department to complete her pet project. Unfortunately, time itself is threatened when something unauthorized is brought forward in time, and it’s up to our heroes , Ned Henry and Verity Kindle, to overcome advanced time-lag and put everything right.

 The author, Connie Willis, has been named a Grand Master by the Science Fiction Writers of America and this novel lives up to her reputation. She was inspired by Three Men in a Boat by Jerome K. Jerome, a Victorian comic novel detailing the small adventures of three gentlemen boating to while away the summer. She translated the river into a Victorian country summer idyll filled with all the small pleasures of lawn parties, croquet, and church fetes, while reveling in the folly and fecklessness of the upper class. She then adds depth and plot by peopling it with professional time-travelers from the future who are forced to reconcile living a life of leisure with preventing a potentially serious catastrophe, while facing personal difficulties of their own. Throughout Willis maintains a light touch, riddled with humor and charm.

 I really enjoyed this read. I appreciate Willis deft touch with combining the serious and the absurd, and the story is laugh-out-loud funny. Her plotting is clever and her timing is right on. Her characters, including their faults, are relatable and lovable, and just a bit hapless, subject to the whims of the story. This is not a serious, in-depth time travel novel; if you’re looking for that try Willis’ Domesday Book. This is a book that uses time travel as almost a McGuffin frame for a confection of a farce.