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A Gentle Madness : Bibliophiles, Bibliomanes, and the Eternal Passion for Books
A Gentle Madness Bibliophiles Bibliomanes and the Eternal Passion for Books
Author: Nicholas A. Basbanes
The passion to possess books has never been more widespread than it is today; indeed, obsessive book collecting remains the only hobby to have a disease named after it. A Gentle Madness, finalist for the 1995 National Book Critics Circle award, is an adventure among the afflicted. Richly anecdotal and fully documented, it combines the perspectiv...  more »
ISBN-13: 9780805061765
ISBN-10: 0805061762
Publication Date: 3/15/1999
Pages: 668
Rating:
  • Currently 4.1/5 Stars.
 8

4.1 stars, based on 8 ratings
Publisher: Owl Books
Book Type: Paperback
Other Versions: Hardcover
Members Wishing: 11
Reviews: Member | Amazon | Write a Review

Top Member Book Reviews

reviewed A Gentle Madness : Bibliophiles, Bibliomanes, and the Eternal Passion for Books on + 6 more book reviews
Helpful Score: 1
I love this book. I read it when I was in college and I remember not being able to pull myself away. Of course, I think to truly enjoy the book, you must be a bit of a bibliomaniac yourself. :-)
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BethG avatar reviewed A Gentle Madness : Bibliophiles, Bibliomanes, and the Eternal Passion for Books on + 108 more book reviews
I was disappointed by this book. I expected more about books.

Instead Mr. Basbanes concentrates is on collectors, auctions, outstanding collections, and, at the last, theft of rare books and manuscripts. He also spends some time on where the best collections are going to end up when the collector dies or decides to quit collecting.

He introduce some interesting characters and some of the books he mentions are absolutely wonderful. (I just wish I could go and see them.) Still there is more about prices and sales than I wanted and far less about the books.


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