The Man Who Loved Books Too Much: The True Story of a Thief, a Detective, and a World of Literary Obsession
| Author | : | |
| Rating | : | 4.60 (840 Votes) |
| Asin | : | B0037B35QA |
| Format Type | : | |
| Number of Pages | : | 352 Pages |
| Publish Date | : | 2013-12-18 |
| Language | : | English |
DESCRIPTION:
Bartlett befriended both outlandish characters and found herself caught in the middle of efforts to recover hidden treasure. John Charles Gilkey steals purely for the love of books. Ken Sanders is the self-appointed ?bibliodick? (book dealer with a penchant for detective work) driven to catch him. With a mixture of suspense, insight, and humor, she has woven this entertaining cat-and-mouse chase into a narrative that not only reveals exactly how Gilkey pulled off his dirtiest crimes, where he stashed the loot, and how Sanders ultimately caught him but also explores the romance of books, the lure to collect them, and the temptation to steal them. In the tradition of The Orchid Thief, a compelling narrative set within the strange and genteel world of rare-book collecting: the true story of an infamous book thief, his victims, and the man determined to catch him. Rare-book theft is even more widespread than fine-art theft. In an attempt to understand him better, journalist Allison Hoover Bartlett plunged herself into the world of book lust and discovered just how dangerous it can be. Immersing the reader in a rich, wide world of literary obsession, Bartlett looks at the history of book passion, collection, and theft through the ages, to examine the craving that makes some people willing to stop at nothing to possess the books they love.. Gilkey is an obsessed, unrepentant book thief who has stolen hundreds of thousands of dollars? worth
Sanders, the Antiquarian Booksellers' Association's security chair, began compiling complaints from ripped-off dealers and became obsessed with bringing Gilkey to justice. Gilkey recounted his past triumphs in great detail, while Bartlett's interactions with the unrepentant, selfish but oddly charming Gilkey are revealing (her original article about himself appeared in The Best Crime Reporting 2007). 17)Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. Bartlett's journalistic position is enviable: both men provided her almost unfettered access to their respective worlds. On one end of the spectrum is Salt Lake City book dealer Ken Sanders, whose friends refer to him as a book detective, or Bibliodick. From Publishers Weekly Bartlett delves into the world of rare books and those who collect—and ste
"The story of a book thief, the man who brought about his arrest, and the journalist who wrote about it" according to Dora L. Davison. John Gilkey is a book thief. He loves antiquarian books and feels that he is entitled to them regardless of his ability to pay for them. His best scam was using credit card receipts acquired in his job at a high end department store to finance his book buy. "Reads like a detective story!" according to Lisa Dunckley. This book is partially about the notorious book thief John Gilkey, and the bookseller who became obsessed with catching him, Ken Sanders, and partially about the rare book industry in general. Author Allison Bartlett manages to contact John and repeatedly . thief who steals anything that looks like it will be impressive Thoreau book man As a book-lover, I thought I was going to read a work about a clever bibliophile who lost himself in an obsession. Instead, this is a book about a cheap, petty, thief who steals anything that looks like it will be impressive. His method of theft is clumsy