In 1949, Helene Hanff of New York City writes to Marks & Co., a London bookstore, after seeing the shop’s ad for out-of-print books. A devoted reader frustrated by the poor quality of American editions, she is seeking clean, inexpensive secondhand copies and includes a few specific requests.

Twenty days later, Marks & Co. responds. It sends three volumes of Hazlitt essays but has not yet located a suitable copy of the Leigh Hunt essays Hanff requested, and the shop asks for clarification on her request for a Latin Bible. Hanff replies with thanks for the books, offers payment, and asks for prices translated from pounds into dollars. She also notes the cultural differences between London and New York: “I hope ‘madam’ doesn’t mean over there what it does here” (3). Marks & Co. confirms that her money arrived safely and requests that she use a postal money order in the future, adding that the shop has sent off the New Testaments she requested.

On November 18, 1949, Hanff complains that the Anglican Bible has ruined the beauty of the Latin Vulgate. She prefers the original and jokes about religious differences without taking them too seriously. She casually encloses $4, tells Marks & Co. to keep the change, and requests another book: Landor’s Imaginary Conversations, specifically the volume containing the Greek dialogues. Marks & Co. locates the Walter Savage Landor and sends it off, assuring Hanff that the staff has not forgotten the Leigh Hunt and apologizing again about the Latin Bible, always closing with “yours faithfully.”

On December 8, 1949, Hanff switches her salutation from “Gentlemen” to “Sir,” acknowledging one main correspondent with whom her letters have grown increasingly personal. She enjoys the book but comments on its dark content, professes her love of secondhand volumes (especially those bearing traces of past readers), and encloses $1 for what she owes. When she learns about food rationing in England, she is shocked and sends a Christmas package to the bookstore staff: a six-pound ham. Marks & Co. responds with a thank-you note and wishes her a happy 1950.

On March 25, 1950, Hanff writes again, sarcastically asking where the Leigh Hunt and the Vulgate are. The letter is addressed to Frank Doel. She jokes about Easter and the bookstore’s inertia and requests love poems for spring, telling the shop to use its own judgment. On April 7, 1950, Frank thanks her for the Easter parcel and explains that the store does not have the love poems in stock but will keep an eye out. That same day, Cecily Farr of Marks & Co. writes to Hanff without Frank’s knowledge. She says everyone at the shop loves Hanff’s letters and tries to imagine what she looks like, asking for a photograph. She shares a few personal details about Frank (he is friendly and married) and offers warm thanks for the food parcel, which helped her family. On April 10, 1950, Hanff responds to Cecily, explaining that she is neither educated nor glamorous but lives modestly. She asks Cecily to tell her about London and expresses her dream of visiting England and its literary landmarks.

On September 20, 1950, Frank writes to Hanff, apologizing for the delay and assuring her that the staff has not forgotten her. They have found the Newman titles that she wanted and offer to hold or ship them. On September 25, 1950, Hanff replies, excited about the rare first edition but joking that she cannot afford to keep it. She tells the shop to send a cheaper edition instead and mentions a friend who is helping with the book search and payment. Around this time, Cecily invites Hanff to England and proposes a trip to Jersey in 1951.

On October 15, 1950, Hanff mock-rages at bookstores that tear up old books for wrapping paper. She has received the Newman and loves it, finding it beautiful and feeling it “belongs” in a grand English library rather than her small apartment. She encloses money for another book (the Q anthology) and asks for specific pages to help her make sense of a damaged volume. She also requests The Diary of Samuel Pepys. On November 1, 1950, Frank apologizes for the late reply, explaining that the damaged books used for wrapping were not valuable. He sends Hanff The Pilgrim’s Way, mentions a balance owed, and notes that the store does not yet have the Pepys but will keep looking.

On February 2, 1951, Frank writes to say that he is glad that Hanff liked the Q Anthology. They do not yet have the Oxford Book of English Prose, but he sends Sir Roger de Coverley Papers in a cheap but good edition, offering to find a more complete one if she prefers. Around the same time, Cecily writes to Hanff, sharing a Yorkshire pudding recipe. On February 25, 1951, Hanff replies to Cecily, discussing the food parcels and explaining that such items are inexpensive in the United States. She wishes that she could send better food and jokes about egg parcels and powdered eggs. On April 4, 1951, Cecily thanks her for the Easter parcels, saying everyone loved them (especially the meat) and telling her not to spend so much money. The next day, another Marks & Co. employee, Megan Wells, writes to Hanff confirming that the parcels arrived safely and conveying the staff’s gratitude; everyone hopes that Hanff will visit England someday. That same day, Bill Humphries, another staff member, writes to thank her as well, explaining that he shares the parcels with his elderly aunt and is moved by such kindness from someone so far away. He offers to help her find anything she wants from London.

On April 9, 1951, Frank writes to explain the delay in his responses: He has been traveling in search of books. He also expresses gratitude for the parcels, especially the meat. As thanks, he sends her a volume of Elizabethan love poems, inside which Hanff finds a note from the Marks & Co. staff thanking her for her generosity.