The Man Who Loved Books Too Much: The True Story of a Thief, a Detective, and a World of Literary Obsession

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. Most thieves, of course, steal for profit. John Charles Gilkey steals purely for the love of books. 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.

Gilkey is an obsessed, unrepentant book thief who has stolen hundreds of thousands of dollars' worth of rare books from book fairs, stores, and libraries around the country. Ken Sanders is the self-appointed "bibliodick" (book dealer with a penchant for detective work) driven to catch him. Bartlett befriended both outlandish characters and found herself caught in the middle of efforts to recover hidden treasure. 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. 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. more

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Smarter Choice The Man Who Loved Books Too Much: The... Allison Hoover Bartlett / 2009 / 274 pages Books	DeepDiscount.com 4,164 reviews *smarter certified	$17.47 Free Shipping Coupon 2 coupons available Code: Detail: Free USPS shipping at DeepDiscount.com Expires:Nov-20-2010 Restriction:Unknow Code:No Code Required Detail: Free Standard shipping on any order at DeepDiscount. Expires:Aug-31-2010 Restriction:Unknow	See it
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The Man Who Loved Books Too Much: The... In the tradition of "The Orchid Thief," a compelling narrative set within the strange and genteel world of rare-book...	24 reviews	$11.02 Free Shipping Coupon 1 coupon available Code: Detail: Free shipping on the first item you order at HotBookSale.com Expires:Nov-22-2010 Restriction:Unknow	See it
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Recent Reviews

3/5: From: Amazon; Posted: Sep-20-2009; A Man Walks Into A Bookstore; Drive by any flea market and you will see ample evidence that for any object you can think of, there is someone somewhere assembling a collection of it. When it comes to collecting books I can easily sympathizes, up to a point. As much...; read full review | report as inappropriate

3/5: From: Amazon; Posted: Sep-19-2009; Too much author, too little characters; The title of this book is great, isn't it? We readers, we do love books.I loved that for a book about rare books, obvious care was taken with details about the physical book -- thick paper, the deckle edge of the pages (well, it might...; read full review | report as inappropriate

4/5: From: Amazon; Posted: Sep-18-2009; Thieves and Rare Books; I wasn't sure I would like this book at first for a couple reasons. First, I don't normally read nonfiction. Second, it read kind of like a paper for school at first. But, it didn't take me long to get wrapped up in the world of rare...; read full review | report as inappropriate

4/5: From: Amazon; Posted: Sep-17-2009; Interesting read; I don't normally read Non-Fiction books mostly because the writing style is so much different than a fiction book and is often times a slower read. This one was no different for me. With that said however I actually really liked this...; read full review | report as inappropriate

Selected Reviews

4/5: From: Amazon; Posted: Sep-18-2009; Thieves and Rare Books; I wasn't sure I would like this book at first for a couple reasons. First, I don't normally read nonfiction. Second, it read kind of like a paper for school at first. But, it didn't take me long to get wrapped up in the world of rare...; read full review | report as inappropriate

3/5: From: Amazon; Posted: Sep-20-2009; A Man Walks Into A Bookstore; Drive by any flea market and you will see ample evidence that for any object you can think of, there is someone somewhere assembling a collection of it. When it comes to collecting books I can easily sympathizes, up to a point. As much...; read full review | report as inappropriate