Category: Bookshops

Bath is pleasant enough …

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said Jane Austen, adding that after six weeks, she’d had enough. We were there fewer than six days but found it more than pleasant and can fully understand why it is regarded by some as the most beautiful city in England. The rows of Georgian terraced houses made from Bath stone, the wide pavements along the grander streets (called parades) and the narrow cobbled lanes, the Avon River and the shady parks make it a desirable destination.

Bath glories in its Jane Austen connections. Although she only lived there from 1801 to 1806, she set two of her novels in the city – Persuasion and Northanger Abbey. 2025 is the 250th anniversary of her birth and Bath is celebrating, no more so than at the Jane Austen House, where one is met by people in Regency clothing and can get an idea of what a house was like in the Regency period. One can even view a life-size wax model of the author. But it is in walking along streets and through parks she mentions in her novels and letters, that you really get a feel for what it was like when she visited and conjured characters like Catherine Morland and Anne Elliott.

Bath is also ancient. The Romans established the settlement of Aquae Sulis and had an extensive network of publics baths using the hot water springs that still bubble up. They also built a temple dedicated to the goddess Minerva and the owl associated with her proliferates in tourist shops in the form of soft toys or cast statuettes. The oldest house in Bath, dating back to Roman times, is where the Sally Lunn’s bakery and shop is now. We bought a Bath bun there and enjoyed it toasted for breakfast in our attic apartment, which we walked up four flights to access. Getting our bags up there when we first arrived was a mission!

Another treat for this bibliophile was a long browse in the small but excellent Persephone Books. Having for many years subscribed to their newsletters and been gifted some of their beautiful books, it was a thrill to be there in person. Yes, Bath is indeed pleasant enough!

This is London

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From the glory of the Victorian age and empire, to the teeming streets, train and tube stations, to the art, architecture, theatres and museums, to the river, the stately homes and the picturesque pubs, London is endlessly interesting. We’ve visited Ham House, crossed the Thames in a little ferry and caught a much larger ferry down the river to Greenwich, marvelled at the V & A collections, ridden the tube multiple times, taking the opportunity to observe Londoners in their natural habitat, and taken in a riveting theatre production (Giant at the Harold Pinter Theatre starring the wonderful John Lithgow).

London is also literary. There are blue plaques commemorating when and where a writer lived, bookshops everywhere and the newspapers and magazines available in news agents are numerous – from the frivolous (Hello! OK!) to the serious (London Review of Books, The Economist). It’s a good place to be a bibliophile and I have enjoyed reading hard copies of publications I usually read online. Though most commuters on the tubes seem mesmerised by their phones, there are plenty who read actual books. I sat beside one who carefully placed her bookmark, then wrapped the book in a fabric envelope, which she stowed in her briefcase before alighting.

A poignant sculpture in the forecourt of the Liverpool Street Station commemorates the Kindertransport. It immediately made me think of the marvellous Judith Kerr, who came to England via the Kinderstransport, and went on to write When Hitler Stole Pink Rabbit, The Tiger Who Came to Tea and the Mog series. How much the poorer we would have been if she had not survived the Holocaust.

Apple of my eye

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What is there to say about New York City that hasn’t already been said? Probably nothing. So I’ll just say that I’ve always wanted to visit. Now I have and I was not disappointed.

The landmarks

The green spaces – Central Park, Bryant Park, the High Line, the trees and planters that line the streets

The Met – in all its wondrous abundance and beauty

The arts – Broadway, Birdland, NY Public Library, Strand Books

There is also the atmosphere of the city as one walks the streets and avenues, which make Manhattan so easy to navigate. The teeming crowds on the sidewalks who follow no discernable rules, try as you might to keep to the right. The snippets of conversation one hears while walking – New York accents and people speaking in languages from all around the world. The myriad street vendors and panhandlers, who will sell you a hotdog, an NYC cap or a bus tour. The outfits, which run the whole gamut from tourists in ‘I heart NYC’ T-shirts to the sartorially exquisite in designer dresses and high heels or suits, ties and hats. It is endlessly fascinating, though one is relieved to get back into one’s air-conditioned hotel room at the end of the afternoon, before going out again in the balmy evening to go to a show, walk along the East River or watch an Amazon zero-hours contractor make a night-time delivery from an e-cycle vehicle. Another striking feature of this magical city is its clear air and clean streets. I loved it!