The Map Thief: The Gripping Story of an Esteemed Rare-Map Dealer Who Made Millions Stealing Priceless Maps
by Michael Blanding
- Used
- Condition
- UsedGood
- ISBN 10
- 1592408176
- ISBN 13
- 9781592408177
- Seller
-
Brooklyn Park, Minnesota, United States
Payment Methods Accepted
About This Item
Synopsis
The story of an infamous crime, a revered map dealer with an unsavory secret, and the ruthless subculture that consumed him Maps have long exerted a special fascination on viewersboth as beautiful works of art and as practical tools to navigate the world. But to those who collect them, the map trade can be a cutthroat business, inhabited by quirky and sometimes disreputable characters in search of a finite number of extremely rare objects. Once considered a respectable antiquarian map dealer, E. Forbes Smiley spent years doubling as a map thief until he was finally arrested slipping maps out of books in the Yale University library. The Map Thief delves into the untold history of this fascinating high-stakes criminal and the inside story of the industry that consumed him. Acclaimed reporter Michael Blanding has interviewed all the key players in this stranger-than-fiction story, and shares the fascinating histories of maps that charted the New World, and how they went from being practical instruments to quirky heirlooms to highly coveted objects. Though pieces of the map theft story have been written before, Blanding is the first reporter to explore the story in fulland had the rare privilege of having access to Smiley himself after he’d gone silent in the wake of his crimes. Moreover, although Smiley swears he has admitted to all of the maps he stole, libraries claim he stole hundreds moreand offer intriguing clues to prove it. Now, through a series of exclusive interviews with Smiley and other key individuals, Blanding teases out an astonishing tale of destruction and redemption. The Map Thief interweaves Smiley’s escapades with the stories of the explorers and mapmakers he knew better than anyone. Tracking a series of thefts as brazen as the art heists in Provenance and a subculture as obsessive as the oenophiles in The Billionaire’s Vinegar , Blanding has pieced together an unforgettable story of high-stakes crime.
Reviews
(Log in or Create an Account first!)
Details
- Bookseller
- Goodwill (US)
- Bookseller's Inventory #
- 2Y6RVS0036NT_ns
- Title
- The Map Thief: The Gripping Story of an Esteemed Rare-Map Dealer Who Made Millions Stealing Priceless Maps
- Author
- Michael Blanding
- Book Condition
- UsedGood
- Quantity Available
- 1
- Binding
- Hardback
- ISBN 10
- 1592408176
- ISBN 13
- 9781592408177
- Publisher
- Gotham
- Place of Publication
- New York
- This edition first published
- 2014-05-29
Terms of Sale
Goodwill
Address changes and cancellations after shipment may result in only a partial refund amount that does not include shipping postage. This also applies to returns/refunds made for discretionary returns.
About the Seller
Goodwill
About Goodwill
Glossary
Some terminology that may be used in this description includes:
- Rubbing
- Abrasion or wear to the surface. Usually used in reference to a book's boards or dust-jacket.