We're all building narratives

12. The Man Who Loved Books Too Much: The True Story of a Thief, a Detective, and a World of Literary Obsession by Allison Hoover Bartlett

I picked up this book in anticipation of reading not a detective story in a book but a detective story about books. The subtitle, at least as I interpretted it, was a bit misleading. I was anticipating that the book thief would have been far more notorious than he is -- in fact, the only truly notable thing about him is that authorities don't know where he's hidden most of his stolen books (my money says in mummy's house in plain sight). What does make this book interesting is the question Hoover Bartlett asks over and over: what drives the obsession to collect rare books, whether legally or illegally? Money does not necessarily equate to legally purchased books, but what stops a person who clearly does not have the money from stealing a coveted book either from a bookseller or a library? It put me in mind of the couple of times I checked out the second edition of Darwin's On the Origin of Species from WSU's library. Both times I found myself seriously wondering what the library's lost book charge was, but both times I turned it back in. I doubt the 1871 edition has any value, but I wanted it not for the money but to have something from close in time to when the foundation of science was being shaken, close in time to the author himself. A treasure for one person might be junk to another. But wherein does true value lie -- in the money, or in the perception of the beholder?