CONTACT CAROLINE
facebook
rss
tumblr
twitter
goodreads
youtube

  • Home
  • Write Away Blog
  • Books
    • Books
    • Trompe l’Oeil
    • Heart Land
    • Gothic Spring
    • Ballet Noir
    • Book Excerpts
  • Video Interviews
  • Press
    • News
    • Print Interviews
    • Plays
    • Ballet Noir in the Press
    • Trompe l’Oeil In The Press
    • Gothic Spring In The Press
    • Heart Land Reviews
  • Contact
  • About
  • Resources
    • Writer Resources
    • Favorite Blogs
    • Favorite Artists



Quiet Corners, Hidden Adventures And A Bucket List

Feb 09, 2017
by Caroline Miller
84 Charing Cross Road, Anne Bancroft, Anthony Hopkins, Francis Wheen, Hayward Hill book shop, Little Shop of Hoarders, Shakespeare and Company
0 Comment

Courtesy of google.com

One of my favorite movies is the 1986 film, 84 Charing Cross Road starring Anne Bancroft and Anthony Hopkins. The story is based on real events and is a simple one.  Bancroft’s character is a writer who lives in New York as World War II looms on the horizon.  Unable to find some rare English classics, she contacts a London bookstore and strikes up  an acquaintance with the amiable proprietor, played by Hopkins.  He sends her the books she requires and inserts a list of further suggestions.  Delighted by his note, they strike up a pen pal relationship which takes them through the devastating war years.  Despite the blitz, Hopkins’ character manages to send rare editions to his client in New York, and she manages to smuggle foodstuffs, ham and cheese and butter, to his family and his brave band of employees.

I’ll say nothing about the ending of 84 Charing Cross Road in the hope some of you may care to see it.  Anyone who adores books will adore this film though it is little more than an extended correspondence between the two main characters. Still, bibliophiles will understand its charm.  They know the simple pleasure of wandering through book stacks, fondling well-worn pages or rejoicing to find the virginal stiffness of a new edition. Book lovers sit among literary piles with the ease of settling  among friends.  No need to worry about the impression they are making.  People may arrive draped in mink or stuffed into a pair of jeans, the books will accept them. All the tomes require is a little attention, in return for which readers will be swept away on a myriad of adventures.

Like most book lovers, I’m delighted technology has failed to banish bookstores to a footnote in history.   The cozy corners still exist.  I’ve written about a few in my neighborhood and  mentioned the Paris establishment, Shakespeare and Company which piques my traveler’s lust  (Blog 12/30/14)  I imagine going there one day of enjoy a slice of lemon meringue pie at the pastry shop next door, cognizant that Hemingway would sometimes picnic on the grass nearby. (Blog 12/21/2015) 

Recently, I’ve discovered another world-famous bookstore, London’s Hayward Hill’s shop on Curzon street.  Located in a town house with chandelier sitting rooms, the establishment was the inspiration of an aristocrat a few generations ago and is still in the family. Hayward Hill doesn’t offer discounts or sales. It provides  personal service, like the kind to be found at 84 Charing Cross Road.  Not only will it acquire a rare book on a customer’s behalf,  but, if requested,  it will curate an entire library. One woman commissioned 4,000 volumes on 20th-century art for her Swiss chalet.  Another ordered 300 books “that every intelligent teenager should read.” (“Little Shop of Hoarders,” by Francis Wheen, Vanity Fair, 2/2017 pg. 105.)

I can’t afford a bucket, much less a bucket list, but if I could, my list would be a short one.  I’d wish to spend hours and hours browsing through the privately owned  bookstores of the world that wait to be discovered.  Amazon be damned.

 

Image: amazon.com

Social Share

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

*
*

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

Contact Caroline at

carolinemiller11@yahoo.com

Portland, Oregon author Caroline Miller had distinguished careers as an educator, union president, elected official and artist/advocate.

Her play, Woman on the Scarlet Beast, was performed at the Post5 Theatre, Portland, OR, January/February 2015

Caroline published a serialized novelette, Marie Eau-Claire, on the website, The Colored Lens.  She also published the story Gustav Pavel,  a parable about ordinary lives, choice and alternate potential, on the website Fixional.co.

Caroline has published four novels

  • Ballet Noir
  • Trompe l’Oeil
  • Gothic Spring
  • Heart Land

Subscribe to Caroline’s Blog


 

Archives

Categories

YouTube-logo-inline2 To access and subscribe to my videos on YouTube, Click Here and click the Subscribe button.

Banner art “The Receptive” by Charlie White of Charlie White Studio

Web Admin: ThinPATH Systems, Inc
support@tp-sys.com

Subscribe to Caroline's Blog


 

Contact Caroline at

carolinemiller11@yahoo.com

Sitemap | Privacy Notice

AUDIO & VIDEO VAULT

View archives of Caroline’s audio and videos interviews.


Copyright © Books by Caroline Miller
Posting....