Ursina's Shelf - The London Edit (+ Gift Ideas)
Issue 92
Dear readers,
I hope all American readers have had a wonderful Thanksgiving and are reading this edition with full bellies and hearts.
Two weekends ago, my mom and I enjoyed a wonderful visit to London. “Delightful” became our favorite word, as we explored sights, streets, restaurants, and book stores, or shops, as the locals say.
Day 1: Favorite first
Maybe it was a bit daring, but after an initial walk along the Thames we started with my favorite: Daunt Books in Marylebone, grabbed a drink at a pub, and had dinner at Trishna.
Bought at Daunt: Bernardine Evaristo’s new novel Mr Loverman (buy here). Her Girl, Woman, Other was a prior favorite (see my 2021 Review).
Day 2: Books & Walks
After a morning board meeting & fueling up on coffee, we were ready to head out and explore. First up, Stanfords Travel, where my mom bought not one, but two books, and was enamored by the two stories full of travel books and fiction.
Bought at Stanfords: A Dubrovnik travel guide and Rosarita by Anita Desai (buy here).
From there it was a short walk over to Foyles, where I perused the French and German sections, as well as the music books, before coming back downstairs where my mom was reading the jacket cover of The Restaurant of Lost Recipes, which Aishwarya recommended to me during our Copenhagen trip earlier this year.
Bought at Stanfords: The Restaurant of Lost Recipes (buy here).
Next up was a self-guided sculpture walk for the Sculpture in the City exhibit, before heading to the Ned, a converted bank housing a hotel and several restaurants, for lunch. Later in the day, on the way to shopping in Regent Street, we stopped in at Hatchards, and I have to admit I had never even made it to the upper levels before, and was excited to find an entire shelf dedicated to Agatha Christie, an author whom I read voraciously as a teenager. Another entire shelf was for Paddington Bear.
Bought at Hatchards: Books and Islands in Ojibwe Country by Louise Erdrich (buy here), a book published by Daunt for the UK market. Erdrich has quickly become one of my top repeat authors.
Day 3: Literary shops
Day 3 started at the Natural History Museum, though we were rather disappointed by both the museum’s signage and the Thames exhibit. A stop by the earthquake and volcano section did raise our spirits. We walked through Hyde Park to Kensington, where we had a delicious meal at Dishoom and some quick stops into the shops.
I also visited Cecil Court, a street of book shops and antiques dealers, where many a famous author and poet spent their time, as well as W. A. Mozart’s first address in London, where it is believed he wrote his first symphony. Number 16 is also the site of the original Foyles, before it moved to its current location. I got talking with one of the antiques shop keepers and found a humorous sign about the street’s association with Harry Potter lore (see below).
An early dinner was followed by a stunning performance of Vivaldi’s Four Seasons at St Martin in the Fields. I look forward to returning and hearing more music there. We ended the day with a drink at Mr Fogg’s tavern up the road.
Day 4: A final hurrah
The last day started with another self-guided walk, this time exploring Covent Garden, with the help of the amazing tour guide behind Living London. We spotted new details, learned the area’s history, and stepped into the tiny street Goodwins Court, which inspired Diagon Alley.
On the way to lunch, we stopped by Gosh! Comics before some ramen at Shoryu Carnaby. And that was a wrap on our “delightful” mother-daughter trip.
This wrap-up doesn’t quite end there, as I was back in London for 36 hours for business earlier this week. When one of my meetings near Kings Cross was canceled, I set out to visit a few bookstores that have been on my list for a long while: Gay’s the Word and the London Review Bookshop. Gay’s the Word felt so cozy and welcoming, and the staff member working at the check-out desk was reading the book I picked up. I could have spent hours here.
Bought at Gay’s the Word: Hijab Butch Blues by Lamya H (buy here).
London Review has a stylish, intellectual atmosphere and informative staff.
Bought at the London Review Bookshop: The Vegetarian by this year’s Nobel Prize Winner Han Kang (buy here).
And good news, after several tries, I have found my bubble tea fix in London: Whale Tea (not far from Foyles, Stanfords, and Gosh!). Thanks for the recommendation, Kylie!
Tips on my favorite London bookshops and stops
Gift ideas for kids:
Gift ideas for adults:
Currently reading: Mr Loverman by Bernardine Evaristo (buy here).
I hope you have a great weekend. Happy first advent weekend!
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