Take a photo of a barcode or cover
3.34 AVERAGE
3.34 AVERAGE
A fascinating look into the world of rare books, book collectors, and thieves. Bartlett tells the story of John Gilkey, the titular book thief, and Ken Sanders, the man who tracked him down.
A story that simply boggles the mind of anyone who loves, truly loves, old books.
I'm not sure what to make of this book. The story is well written, but it seems to lack a point. Is Gilkey a villain? Isn't Sanders a hero? Is it really that easy to steal a rare book from a dealer?
Even though the author attempts to show the villainy of Gilkey, it seemed to make him a victim of his book loving ways. Instead of earning a collection he just stole what he liked. To me, the man was a thief who kept his books as trophies of the theft rather than a man who simply loved books too much. He didn't come across to me as someone who was knowledgeable beyond knowing how to case a rare book shop and know what to ask for to appear knowledgeable. He simply knew what was valuable. The author attempts to make this point throughout the book, but I felt the emphasis should have been on Ken Sanders more than on Gilkey. Sanders was responsible for modernizing the security for rare book dealers (and demonstrated the problems with buying things through E-bay), yet his story seems to fade about 3/4 of the way through the book. There really wasn't any punishment for Gilkey, other than a few months in prison here in there for stealing possibly hundreds of thousands of dollars in rare books. He didn't even see it as theft.
There seemed to be a cohesive narrative on the allure of the rare book and a great deal of information on that, which I very much enjoyed. I understand the allure of the physical book. I suppose I read this book as an owner of books and would never want anyone to steal them and then to justify his actions in the way Gilkey does.
Even though the author attempts to show the villainy of Gilkey, it seemed to make him a victim of his book loving ways. Instead of earning a collection he just stole what he liked. To me, the man was a thief who kept his books as trophies of the theft rather than a man who simply loved books too much. He didn't come across to me as someone who was knowledgeable beyond knowing how to case a rare book shop and know what to ask for to appear knowledgeable. He simply knew what was valuable. The author attempts to make this point throughout the book, but I felt the emphasis should have been on Ken Sanders more than on Gilkey. Sanders was responsible for modernizing the security for rare book dealers (and demonstrated the problems with buying things through E-bay), yet his story seems to fade about 3/4 of the way through the book. There really wasn't any punishment for Gilkey, other than a few months in prison here in there for stealing possibly hundreds of thousands of dollars in rare books. He didn't even see it as theft.
There seemed to be a cohesive narrative on the allure of the rare book and a great deal of information on that, which I very much enjoyed. I understand the allure of the physical book. I suppose I read this book as an owner of books and would never want anyone to steal them and then to justify his actions in the way Gilkey does.
This book made no sense what so ever. It was an interesting topic it was just very poorly executed. It jumped around a lot and was hard to understand where the author was going. Could have been done so much better. The writing wasn't even that great.
This book was part history of books and collecting, part analysis of the book thief and part crime novel. Bartlett details John Gilkey's years of stealing books and tries to give a deeper look into his motives. I didn't find that she glorified him, instead I found him to be a self-centered coward who had no concept of how to actually get what he wanted. When it really came down to it he didn't even seem to enjoy books for more than a trophy of "winning" over those he thought were unfair to him.
The history of ABBA's security network was interesting and the interviews with Gilkey's victims really showed the damage that is done by this kind of crime. I thoroughly enjoyed it.
The history of ABBA's security network was interesting and the interviews with Gilkey's victims really showed the damage that is done by this kind of crime. I thoroughly enjoyed it.
Many of the reviewers here seem to take offense with the fact that the titular thief in this book does not match the description of the master book thief that they were probably expecting from reading the title. The idea of a book thief conjures up images of an Danny Ocean-esque character stealing from super-wealthy precious book collectors out of a deep-felt adoration of these objects and their contents (or even simply because they are valuable). Or else someone like Liesel out of [b: The Book Thief|19063|The Book Thief|Markus Zusak|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1390053681s/19063.jpg|878368] who steals books in order to save them from destruction. After all, when we pick up this book, as book-lovers, we are ready to sympathize with the man simply loved books so much that he had to steal them
What we get instead is the story of a common book thief: a man with warped morals who swindled and lied to people simply trying to make ends meet. There is nothing remotely romantic or picturesque about it. But after all, theft in the real world isn't really something pretty.
Once you accept the fact that you are not going to like the main character of this story, you can enjoy this book for its other fascinating quality: the fact that it introduces us to a wide variety of ways in which books can be loved. We meet the author who, like most of us, loves books for their stories, loves the feel of their weight in her hands, and loves a few copies of books in particular because of the memories they evoke when she sees them on her shelf. We meet the many people who spend their time and money collecting books, not because they will read them, but because of the other values that they represent. We meet the sellers of old books, who love books so much that they make it their life's work to make them available to people, and to help others find their happiness through texts. And then, of course, we meet the book thief, a man who loves books because he sees them as a potent symbol of all that he did not have growing up—wealth, affluence, respectability—and thus steals them while dreaming that he can use them to build his idyllic image of himself.
In the end, this is a book about love—or rather, about obsession—and the lengths to which people are willing to go, whether we agree with them or not, to fill their own heart's desires.
What we get instead is the story of a common book thief: a man with warped morals who swindled and lied to people simply trying to make ends meet. There is nothing remotely romantic or picturesque about it. But after all, theft in the real world isn't really something pretty.
Once you accept the fact that you are not going to like the main character of this story, you can enjoy this book for its other fascinating quality: the fact that it introduces us to a wide variety of ways in which books can be loved. We meet the author who, like most of us, loves books for their stories, loves the feel of their weight in her hands, and loves a few copies of books in particular because of the memories they evoke when she sees them on her shelf. We meet the many people who spend their time and money collecting books, not because they will read them, but because of the other values that they represent. We meet the sellers of old books, who love books so much that they make it their life's work to make them available to people, and to help others find their happiness through texts. And then, of course, we meet the book thief, a man who loves books because he sees them as a potent symbol of all that he did not have growing up—wealth, affluence, respectability—and thus steals them while dreaming that he can use them to build his idyllic image of himself.
In the end, this is a book about love—or rather, about obsession—and the lengths to which people are willing to go, whether we agree with them or not, to fill their own heart's desires.
Read my review on my blog:
http://www.50ayear.com/2013/01/31/2-the-man-who-loved-books-too-much-by-allison-hoover-bartlett/
http://www.50ayear.com/2013/01/31/2-the-man-who-loved-books-too-much-by-allison-hoover-bartlett/
this was very interesting. I love to collect old books, but to steal them,oh my!!
2 months ago
This is a very different sort of non-fiction/sort-of-biography, and while not for everyone, if you are intrigued by both the psychology of human nature and love of books this one may be for you.
The author, a journalist, became interested in the world of rare books, those who sell them and those who steal them by accidentally coming across an extremely rare book on plants from the 1600's which came with a note indicating it had been inadvertently taken from a library, but that the "accidental thief" wanted it to be returned.
This led her to the world of rare books, and to two quixotic, determined, some might say slightly mad individuals on opposite sides of the street: an unrepentant and incorrigible rare book thief, and the rare book seller who hunted him over a period of years.
As I said earlier, this book won't be for everyone, and not even for most people. It is a quiet, unassuming story, and moves at a slow and gentle pace. There are no thrilling climaxes or over-blown take-downs of the thief. Instead, the author consistently builds her story about these two men and the rarified world they both inhabit - albeit from very different perspectives - by repeatedly interviewing both of them and following along in their daily lives.
In addition to learning about the world of rare book selling, we learn much about the history of books, book-lovers, and book thieves and there are plenty of interestingly odd historical tid-bits offered and interspersed throughout the story of the two main characters. If you are a book-nerd, and/or a fascinated student of why people do the strange things they do, there is much here to interest you.
Throughout the book, the author discussed her own psychology and her worries that she may be doing something illegal, or, at the very least, immoral, simply by listening to the often criminal stories told by the thief. She also struggles with the impact of the thefts on the many rare book sellers she meets and talks to as she researches this book. This, too, is an interesting alternate perspective, as the author also discusses her own love of books and how it influences her life and the lives of those around her.
It may be that last thing that made the book ultimately fascinating to me. As a voracious reader myself since I learned to read at about 5 years of age, I can understand the drive to own books, although not the sense of entitlement loving them gives the thief to steal many books - and repeatedly go to jail as a result - and feel absolutely zero responsibility or sense of being wrong for doing so.
My favourite passage in the book comes from the author discussing why books mean so much to so many people, whether or not they are rare, or even valuable at all:
"Physical artifacts carry memory and meaning, and this is as true of important historical texts as it is of cherished childhood books. Sitting in any library, surrounded by high shelves of books, I sense the profoundly rich history of scholarship as something real, and it's both humbling and inspiring. This manifestation of reality is true of other artifacts as well. We can read about the Holocaust or where Emily Dickinson wrote her "letter to the world" or where Jim Morrison is buried. We can view online photos of all these places. Still, each year, thousands of people visit Auschwitz, The Homestead, and Pere Lachaise. I suppose our desire to be near books rises from a similar impulse; they root us in something larger than ourselves, something real. For this reason, I am sure that hardbound books will survive, even long after e-books have become popular."
Almost as thrilling was this other passage I loved in which she discusses the power books hold and the fear they inspire in some because of it: "The fearsom urge to destroy or suppress books is an acknowledgement of their power, and not only that of august scientific, political and philosophical texts, but that of small, quiet books of poetry and fiction as well, which nonetheless hold great capacity to change us."
These two passages alone were reason enough for me to say I am happy to have read this book because both of them make me, as a writer myself, envious of them and appreciative of how they affected me and inspire me to continue writing.