The Man Who Loved Books Too Much by Allison Hoover Bartlett

The true story of a thief, a detective, and a world of literary obsession. Sorry that it has been a while since the last post, I’ve been quite busy with graduating and being Megan. Those two combined are more time consuming than I had hoped. Any doodle. Lettuce tart.

People have been collecting-and stealing-books since before Gutenberg invented the printing press. Internationally, according to Interpol, rare book theft is more widespread than fine art theft. Although dealers will tell you "every rare book is a stolen book," the stories of these heists have remained quiet, shielded by an insular community of book dealers and book collectors that prefers to keep its losses secret.

In The Man Who Loved Books Too Much, Allison Hoover Bartlett takes us deep inside the world of rare books, and tells the cat-and-mouse story of two men caught in its allure. Here we meet John Gilkey, an unrepentant, obsessive book thief, and Ken Sanders, the equally obsessive self-styled "bibliodick," a book-dealer turned amateur detective. While their goals are at direct odds, both men share a deep passion for books and a fierce tenacity-Gilkey, to steal books; Sanders, to stop him.

This novel starts off with a compelling description of an old book and instantly the reader is pulled in. Why would they be reading if they didn’t have a love for books? That is why this story was destined to become popular, what bookworm wouldn’t love an adventure about a man who loved books too much? Frankly you can’t go wrong with this one.

Compared to the other types of books I usually read, this non-fiction was refreshing. I liked the narrative style, and some of the footnotes held some interesting information. The style of writing is simple and to the point, but also includes Barlett’s thoughts as she unoticingly weaves herself into her own story.

The motive for the story is simply to understand what makes a collector’s hunger for books grow, and how far will some people go to get their precious paperbacks? I would say from this point that if you want to find out, then get reading!!!

This one will be a 3.5 OUT OF 5, I enjoyed the easy read and gained some knowledge into the Rare Books wooooooooorld. Oooh laa laa. Check out Bartlett’s website: http://www.allisonhooverbartlett.com/

And have a good weekend!

MRR - out