Man who loved books too much the true story of a thief a. Unrepentant book thief john charles gilkey has stolen a fortune in rare books from around the county. 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. Convicted book thief, john gilkey, is the subject of the man who loved books too much written by allison hoover bartlett. Perhaps equally obsessive is ken sanders, a lifelong rare book collector and dealer turned amateur detective, who will stop at nothing to catch the thief. The man who loved books too much online media of northern.
Gilkey, whose love for books became an obsession the asian age. Abaa security chair john waite has forwarded this gilkey updaterequest from inspector jeff levin of the sfpd. John charles gilkey, perhaps the most relentless and unrepentant book thief in recent history, and surely the. Allison hoover bartlett audio books, best sellers, author. In the tradition of the orchid thief, a compelling narrative set within the strange and genteel world of rarebook collecting.
Yet unlike most thieves, who steal for profit, gilkey steals for love the love of books. Yet unlike most thieves, who steal for profit, gilkey steals for the love of the. Unrepentant book thief gilkey has stolen a fortune in rare books from around the country. Book thief john charles gilkey strikes again entertainment. Equally fascinating is gilkeys pursuer, ken sanders, a rarebooks dealerturnedamateur detective. The book follows gilkey and his theft of rare books and the self. The man who loved books too much sunshine coast libraries.
Yet unlike most thieves who steal for profit, gilkey steals for lovethe love of books. Langdon brown gilkey 19192004, american protestant ecumenical theologian. John gilkey is an obsessed, unrepentant book thief who has stolen hundreds of thousands of dollars worth of rare books from. John charles 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 2 out of 5 stars. Allison hoover bartletts the man who loved books too much tells the story of john gilkey, a narcissistic book thief who uses his job at saks fifth avenue in sf to steal credit card numbers so that he can finance the library to which he believes hes entitled, and ken sanders, a rare book dealer turned detective, who is determined to catch him. Perhaps equally obsessive, though, is ken sanders, the selfappointed bibliodick driven to catch him. Gilkey is an obsessed, unrepentant book thief who has stolen hundreds. Perhaps equally obsessive, though, is ken sanders, the self. Randy gilkey born 1976, american singer, songwriter and producer. In an attempt to understand him better, journalist allison hoover bartlett plunged herself into the world of. Jul 20, 2011 abaa security chair john waite has forwarded this gilkey updaterequest from inspector jeff levin of the sfpd. Equally fascinating is gilkey s pursuer, ken sanders, a rarebooks dealerturnedamateur detective. 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.
As both a member of the antiquarian booksellers association of america and a friend and colleague of the booksellers who finally caught the oftencharming book thief john charles gilkey, its. Yet unlike most thieves, who steal for profit, gilkey steals for lovethe love of books. Gilkey used modern librarys list of 100 best novels as a guide to what items he would steal. John gilkey has dreams of building an empire, not of railroads or real estate, but of rare books. Yet unlike most thieves, who steal for profit, gilkey steals for the love of the books. The man who loved books too much ebook hennepin county. May 14, 2018 when journalist allison hoover bartlett befriended master book thief john charles gilkey and ken sanders, the book dealer determined to catch him, she uncovered a riveting story about the truth of. Gilkey seems to have stolen rare books out of love of them, not for resale. Unrepentant book thief john charles gilkey has stolen a fortune in rare books from around the country. The man who loved books too much by allison hoover. Gilkey are in brick row, the owner, john crichton, asks gilkey what his name is.
Mar 12, 2020 while most thieves steal for profit, rare book thief john charles gilkey steals purely for the love of books. Although spiegelman is briefly mentioned in the man who loved books too much, the book is about another notorious rare book thief, john gilkey. That john gilkey is an obsessed book collector is beyond question. A comic book dealer in new york state is his latest victim. John gilkey, american actor, comedian, juggler and clown. Rare book theft is even more widespread than fineart theft. The man, john gilkey, is a convicted thief who covets a vast. Bibliodick ken sanders tracked, identified and exposed book thief john gilkey. Sep 16, 2014 the man who loved books too much by allison hoover bartlett. In the tradition of the orchid thief, a compelling narrative set within the strange and genteel world of rare book collecting. The man who loved books too much the true story of a thief, a detective, and a world of literary obsession ebook. One only has to read the books subtitle, the true story of a thief, a detective, and a world of literary obsession, to learn that the man in question had a much different problem.
Perhaps equally obsessive is ken sanders, the selfappointed bibliodick driven to catch him. This, bartlett thinks, is the sort of thief whose motivation i might understand. Gilkeys gnawing desire to own rare books, however, does not make him unique or even uncommon. Yet unlike most thieves who steal for profit gilkey steals for love the love of books. John 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. When journalist allison hoover bartlett befriended master book thief john charles gilkey and ken sanders, the book dealer determined to catch him, she uncovered a. John charles gilkey apprehended rbms security committee.
Nov 05, 2009 a thief and a detective bound by rare volumes. Gilkey, however, doesn t let this small detail stand in his way, and as author allison hoover bartlett beautifully demonstrates in the man who loved books too much riverhead, 2009, he is willing to. The man who loved books too much the true story of a thief, a detective, and a world of literary obsession. The man who loved books too much reading group choices. Allison hoover bartlett unrepentant book thief john charles gilkey has stolen a fortune in rare books from around the county.
Please be aware that convicted fraudster and thief john gilkey is operating once again, likely out of northern california. He is returning to san francisco in police custody. Thief stole rare books for love, says author the seattle times. Hes a dirty little book thief and theres nothing romantic about it. Perhaps equally obsessive is ken sanders, the selfappointed bibliodick whos driven to catch him. John charles 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. Gilkey has a long record of defrauding rare book and autograph. The man who loved books too much by allison hoover bartlett. Hollywood loves rare books the new antiquarian the blog. Bartlett begins her research by interviewing ken sanders, at the time the abaa security chair. Aug 01, 2009 allison hoover bartletts the man who loved books too much tells the story of john gilkey, a narcissistic book thief who uses his job at saks fifth avenue in sf to steal credit card numbers so that he can finance the library to which he believes hes entitled, and ken sanders, a rare book dealer turned detective, who is determined to catch him. The journalist who wanted her story too much midwest. Yet unlike most thieves who steal for profit, gilkey steals for love the love of books.
John charles gilkey, perhaps the most relentless and unrepentant book thief in recent history, and surely the most successful. The book thief book thief libguides at san antonio public. Thief stole rare books for love, says author the seattle. Earlier this month convicted fraudster and thief john charles gilkey of california was arrested for a parole violation stemming from a series of incidents in san francisco late last year. Bartlett interviewed gilkey several times, during which the thief admitted that he was primarily motivated by a desire to attain a higher social status. With a mixture of suspense, insight, and humor, the man who loved books too much immerses the reader in the world of literary obsession and reveals how dangerous it can be. Rarebook theft is even more widespread than fineart theft. John charles gilkey steals purely for the love of books. John charles gilkey, 34, was apprehended by police in palo alto, ca, on january 29, 2003 on charges of grand theft and credit card fraud. Allison hoover bartlett in her book, the man who loved books too much, writes about john charles gilkey, whose love for books became an.