The main branch of the St. Paul Library from which the books were taken.
A love of books is a wonderful thing. It can lead one to knowledge, to an appreciation of all things. Books make us better people. Then there is Amanda Cortright. Her love of books led her down the wrong path. There is a right way to love books, and a wrong way. Ms. Cortright, after a good start, drifted over the line. Her passion turned to obsession, her obsession to crime. Now, her crime has turned to sentencing, and a career in books is laid to ruins.
Amanda Marie Cortright must have always felt a connection to books, for at the age of 18, 13 years ago, she went to work for the St. Paul (Minnesota) Library. That has been her career ever since, until last year, when she was placed under arrest.
Library officials became suspicious of Ms. Cortright a few years ago, and began monitoring her activities. What they discovered was through her access to library computers, she had created several fictitious customer accounts. These fictitious persons would check out books, after which, Ms. Cortright would delete the records of items borrowed. She evidently became adept at this process, as by the time officials were able to put together a case against her, she had removed around 1,400 books, DVDs, and magazines from the library.
These were not particularly valuable items she was taking, though even cheap things can add up when you take 1,400 of them. The library estimated the value at just under $38,000. Among the items taken were DVDs of television shows, copies of the magazines Good Housekeeping and Vanity Fair, and copies of Berenstain Bears books. I can understand the temptations of an Alice in Wonderland or Wizard of Oz, Winnie-the-Pooh or something by Dr. Seuss, but entering a life of crime for the Berenstain Bears? That is incomprehensible. She could have won this case with an insanity plea.
However, Ms. Cortright took full responsibility for her behavior. She pled guilty this past April, a year after the charges were filed. Fortunately, police were able to find all of the material known to have been taken from the library in her home. Ms. Cortright also was found to have sold almost 600 books to a used book store going back to 2004, but none of those books was traced to the St. Paul Library. Since the library books were returned, she was not charged for their value (nor any overdue book fines either), although she must reimburse the library $11,585 for documenting the missing items and restoring them to the shelves. The defendant's attorney asked for simple probation, but Ramsey County Judge Judith Tilsen felt that $38,000 worth of theft warranted time in prison. So, she compromised, sentencing Ms. Cortright to 30 days of home confinement under electronic monitoring, 10 years of probation, and 200 hours of community service. On successful completion of probation, the crime will be downgraded from a felony to a misdemeanor.
According to the St. Paul Star Tribune, Judge Tilsen did leave us with some words of wisdom: "Books are incredibly valuable assets." The "incredibly" might be a bit of hyperbole in this day and age, and even the "valuable" part doesn't seem to apply to the books Ms. Cortright pilfered. Nonetheless, it is always good to hear someone defending the value of books, especially when that defense comes with the backing of law. Judgment has been rendered. Books are incredibly valuable assets. Case closed.
Heritage, Dec. 15: Jerry Thomas. How to Mix Drinks, or the Bon-Vivant's Companion, Containing Clear and Reliable Directions for Mixing All the Beverages Used in the United States…
Rare Book Hub is now mobile-friendly!
Bonhams, Dec. 8-18: Autograph Letter Signed ("Martinus Luther") to His Friend the Theologian Gerhard Wiskamp ("Gerardo Xantho Lampadario"). $100,000 - $150,000.
Bonhams, Dec. 8-18: An Exceptionally Fine Copy of Austenís Emma: A Novel in Three Volumes. $40,000 - $60,000.
Bonhams, Dec. 8-18: Presentation Copy of Ernest Hemmingwayís A Farewell to Arms for Edward Titus of the Black Mankin Press. $30,000 - $50,000.
Bonhams, Dec. 8-18: Autograph Manuscript Signed Integrally for "The Songs of Pooh," by Alan Alexander. $30,000 - $50,000.
Bonhams, Dec. 8-18: Autograph Manuscript of "Three Fragments from Gˆtterd‰mmerung" by Richard Wagner. $30,000 - $50,000.
Bonhams, Dec. 8-18: Original Preliminary Artwork, for the First Edition of Snow Crash. $20,000 - $30,000.
Bonhams, Dec. 8-18: Autograph Letter Signed ("T.R. Malthus") to Economist Nassau Senior on Wealth, Labor and Adam Smith. $20,000 - $30,000.
Bonhams, Dec. 8-18: History of the Peloponnesian War by Thucydides Finely Bound by Michael Wilcox. $20,000 - $30,000.
Bonhams, Dec. 8-18: First Edition of Lewis and Clark: Travels to the Source of the Missouri River and Across the American Continent to the Pacific Ocean. $8,000 - $12,000.
Bonhams, Dec. 8-18: Original Artwork for the First Edition of Neal Stephenson's Groundbreaking Novel Snow Crash. $100,000 - $150,000.
Bonhams, Dec. 8-18: A Complete Set Signed Deluxe Editions of King's The Dark Tower Series by Stephen King. $8,000 - $12,000.
Bonhams, Dec. 8-18: Autograph Letter Signed ("John Adams") to James Le Ray de Chaumont During the Crucial Years of the Revolutionary War. $8,000 - $12,000.
Sotheby’s Book Week December 9-17, 2025
Sotheby’s, Dec. 17: Francesco Colonna. Hypnerotomachie, Paris, 1546, Parisian calf by Wotton Binder C for Marcus Fugger. €200,000 to €300,000.
Sotheby’s, Dec. 17: Nausea. De principiis dialectices Gorgias, and other works, Venice, 1523, morocco gilt for Cardinal Campeggio. €3,000 to €4,000.
Sotheby’s, Dec. 17: Billon. Le fort inexpugnable de l'honneur, Paris, 1555, Parisian calf gilt for Peter Ernst, Graf von Mansfeld. €120,000 to €180,000.
Sotheby’s Book Week December 9-17, 2025
Sotheby’s, Dec. 16: Salinger, J.D. The Graham Family archive, including autographed letters, an inscribed Catcher, a rare studio photograph of the author, and more. $120,000 to $180,000.
Sotheby’s, Dec. 16: [Austen, Jane]. A handsome first edition of Sense and Sensibility, the author's first novel. $60,000 to $80,000.
Sotheby’s, Dec. 16: Massachusetts General Court. A powerful precursor to the Declaration of Independence: "every Act of Government … without the Consent of the People, is … Tyranny." $40,000 to $60,000.
![<b>Heritage, Dec. 15:</b> John Donne. <i>Poems, By J. D. With Elegies on the Author's Death.</i> London: M[iles]. F[lesher]. for John Marriot, 1633.](https://ae-files.s3.amazonaws.com/AdvertisementPhotos/8caddaea-4c1f-47a7-9455-62f53af36e3f.jpg "<b>Heritage, Dec. 15:</b> John Donne. <i>Poems, By J. D. With Elegies on the Author's Death.</i> London: M[iles]. F[lesher]. for John Marriot, 1633.")
![<b>Sotheby’s, Dec. 16:</b> [Austen, Jane]. A handsome first edition of <i>Sense and Sensibility,</i> the author's first novel. $60,000 to $80,000.](https://ae-files.s3.amazonaws.com/AdvertisementPhotos/9a74d9ff-42dd-46a1-8bb2-b636c4cec796.png "<b>Sotheby’s, Dec. 16:</b> [Austen, Jane]. A handsome first edition of <i>Sense and Sensibility,</i> the author's first novel. $60,000 to $80,000.")
