• The Hub

    News, Notes, Talk

    For $26K a month you can rent the hideously remodeled London house where Herman Melville once lived!

    Jonny Diamond

    November 1, 2021, 10:35am

    If you like wall-to-wall beige carpeting, recessed lighting, and sprawling, beautiful, half-mad epics of the human soul, do we have the real estate listing for you! Apparently Herman Melville stayed for a for weeks in 1849 at 25 Craven Street, Charing Cross, London (there’s a plaque there, and everything!).

    Article continues after advertisement
    Remove Ads

    If you’re interested (lol, why are you reading this blog), the Thames-adjacent, six-floor Georgian is a sprawling 4,400 square feet and is thoroughly charmless (see below).

    This looks like a hastily posted Airbnb listing thrown together by college kids who blew through the semester’s stipend WAY too soon.

    Article continues after advertisement
    Remove Ads

    The drapes do not, in fact, match the carpets.

    Not pictured: a fridge full of vodka coolers, takeout boxes, mustard, and one dried-out apple.

    This looks like they raided a senior center in Slough.

    Article continues after advertisement
    Remove Ads

    NB: Picture taken during that one sunny weekend last June.

  • Become a Lit Hub Supporting Member: Because Books Matter

    For the past decade, Literary Hub has brought you the best of the book world for free—no paywall. But our future relies on you. In return for a donation, you’ll get an ad-free reading experience, exclusive editors’ picks, book giveaways, and our coveted Joan Didion Lit Hub tote bag. Most importantly, you’ll keep independent book coverage alive and thriving on the internet.

    x