Book Log 2010 #63: The Man Who Loved Books Too Much by Allison Hoover Bartlett

Book theft among rare book dealers is not uncommon, but the response to theft might be, at least to outsiders. Dealers are loathe to report the crime for fear of being seen as incompetent or untrustworthy, and the mechanisms for reporting theft to other sellers who may also fall victim was, until recently, haphazard at best.

Enter book seller Ken Sanders, who took on the role of security chair for the largest association of dealers and developed a reporting system that proved effective enough to identify a significant thief who, using stolen credit information, was ripping off stores all over the west coast.

That thief, John Gilkey, was stealing not so much to make a profit but because he loved books and the idea that owning rare books would help elevate his social status. It's the obsessive nature of Gilkey's crimes that pull in Bartlett, who spends most of the book trying to sort out what drives Gilkey to steal (and, once out, to contemplate stealing some more).

The author does get to an interesting ethical line when she goes into a store with Gilkey, who doesn't steal anything but talks her through his thought process. There's at least one comparison to The Orchid Thief (I think in a blurb), which is apt. I do think the book loses steam towards the end, as the author becomes less comfortable working with Gilkey and as Sanders becomes less involved in security matters. But it's still a worthy read to get an insight into both the world of rare books and into the twisted logic of one book thief.