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3.34 AVERAGE
3.34 AVERAGE
informative
mysterious
reflective
medium-paced
A book about a book theif, a book dealer turned amateur slueth, a reporter, and their connections to books and the stories that define us.
informative
medium-paced
adventurous
informative
reflective
medium-paced
interesting read, i enjoyed the writing style. i expected more of a mystery crime solving vibe which we did get early on but it wasn’t enough for my taste.
I confess to being disappointed by this book. Whilst i thought it was an easy read the author never truly picks up the narrative line in a way that made me feel like I knew the M and what made him tick. In fact i felt it was more about the ABAA and its security member.
Very mixed. The thief wanted to be a hero. The hero was not a hero. The writer involved their self too much I think. What about the books? Where are they?
This is more of a 2.5. You can skim it and get the gist. Too much repetition and way too much of her own story in here. Still a fascinating tale and I will now Google it.
This was an interesting story about a man addicted to stealing rare books (to build a library that will impress others with his erudition and taste, I guess? because it looks so classy and wealthy?) and another man who wants to stop the thefts of rare books from dealers and individuals.
The thief has a view of the world I do not relate to: That the wealth of others is somehow an unfairness that is only balanced by him taking part of that wealth for himself.
He stole credit card numbers from the wealthy in San Francisco so that he could buy rare books from book shops. The credit card holders were wealthy and either wouldn't miss or would contest the charges, no harm done. The book sellers were over charging, or super wealthy (witness their collection up for sale), and thus, it was mere cosmic rebalancing for him to acquire things he wanted.
He's a less charming version of Rocket at the end of "Guardians of the Galaxy:" What if I see something I want and it belongs to someone else. I can take it, right? (No, that's stealing.) No, You don't understand - I want it more!
I'm glad I read it, I'm super glad I have nothing of temptation for this thief (he's still out there in the world - unless he's being temporarily incarcerated for credit card theft, or some other slight crime that gets him out in 3-6 months).
The thief has a view of the world I do not relate to: That the wealth of others is somehow an unfairness that is only balanced by him taking part of that wealth for himself.
He stole credit card numbers from the wealthy in San Francisco so that he could buy rare books from book shops. The credit card holders were wealthy and either wouldn't miss or would contest the charges, no harm done. The book sellers were over charging, or super wealthy (witness their collection up for sale), and thus, it was mere cosmic rebalancing for him to acquire things he wanted.
He's a less charming version of Rocket at the end of "Guardians of the Galaxy:" What if I see something I want and it belongs to someone else. I can take it, right? (No, that's stealing.) No, You don't understand - I want it more!
I'm glad I read it, I'm super glad I have nothing of temptation for this thief (he's still out there in the world - unless he's being temporarily incarcerated for credit card theft, or some other slight crime that gets him out in 3-6 months).
very fun story about an obsession( kind of like the Feather Thief) I wish the process of hunting for rare books is described mroe in detail. I really loved the butterfly hunting segments in Nabokov's speak memory. very very interesting character study though.
Very interesting book about rare book thief John Gilkey and the rare book dealer/bibliodick that tracked him for years. Three stars because it felt like there should have been more to this book and because of questions regarding the journalist's integrity and ethics in interviewing Gilkey and not turning over information regarding recent thefts for fear of losing Gilkey's trust and thus, her story.