100 Books #6 - The Man Who Loved Books Too Much
Iiiiit's back! I know I've spent way too much time away from this challenge, but RL has slowed down...I think.
Anyway, today's post is The Man Who Loved Books Too Much by Allison Hoover Bartlett, by special request for inkvoices because she asked me about it and I hadn't finished reading it yet.
Also, I don't have a book trailer for this one. :(
The Man Who Loved Books Too Much is about a man who has taken to stealing books for the simple fact that he wants to own them. And I'm not talking about an everyday book in a bookstore, either. I'm talking about first editions of books worth $2500, and $9500 collections of Winnie the Poohs. These are the books that are so rare, you either have to be really dedicated to your collection or have a ton of disposable cash, because some of the books the author talks about sold for $200 000 to $244 000 in auctions.
The author is a journalist who interviews a professional book thief, who has stolen thousands of dollars worth of rare books; a man who was the head of the security council for a rare booksellers organization; and other people in the world of rare books. She has conversations with both of the men about their lives in relation to collecting books, more so with the criminal than the man who caught him, and starts to form a rapport with the criminal to the point that you start to question some of her ethical decisions.
I liked the beginning of the book well enough, and found the world of books that the author describes as one to be envious of, almost, but still loving the elements of it. About two-thirds of the way through the author starts making ethical decisions in relation to her relationship with the criminal which made it uncomfortable to read the rest of the book.
Anyway, today's post is The Man Who Loved Books Too Much by Allison Hoover Bartlett, by special request for inkvoices because she asked me about it and I hadn't finished reading it yet.
Also, I don't have a book trailer for this one. :(
The Man Who Loved Books Too Much is about a man who has taken to stealing books for the simple fact that he wants to own them. And I'm not talking about an everyday book in a bookstore, either. I'm talking about first editions of books worth $2500, and $9500 collections of Winnie the Poohs. These are the books that are so rare, you either have to be really dedicated to your collection or have a ton of disposable cash, because some of the books the author talks about sold for $200 000 to $244 000 in auctions.
The author is a journalist who interviews a professional book thief, who has stolen thousands of dollars worth of rare books; a man who was the head of the security council for a rare booksellers organization; and other people in the world of rare books. She has conversations with both of the men about their lives in relation to collecting books, more so with the criminal than the man who caught him, and starts to form a rapport with the criminal to the point that you start to question some of her ethical decisions.
I liked the beginning of the book well enough, and found the world of books that the author describes as one to be envious of, almost, but still loving the elements of it. About two-thirds of the way through the author starts making ethical decisions in relation to her relationship with the criminal which made it uncomfortable to read the rest of the book.