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Articles - November - 2013 Issue

A Passion for Books Gone Wrong

- by Michael Stillman

New Bedford branch library.

New Bedford branch library.

This is the story of a librarian who loved books too much. We see no need to name names as it seems more a tragic misdirection of passion than a desire to make money at someone else's expense. It's one of those stories that are hard to comprehend. Book collectors can understand the motivation, but not the means.

 

The website of the New Bedford Standard Times (Massachusetts) reports that a branch librarian in the New Bedford system was arrested for larceny for checking out 292 books but failing to return them. She did begin returning some, but only after an exposé in the local newspaper began to reveal her actions. The books are valued at $6,000, or around $20 per book. There is no indication she sold any, and most people don't steal $20 books if they are looking to make money. It seems she just wanted to have them. Indeed, the police described it as a case of “hoarding.”

 

The librarian, 57 years old, checked out books on her own library card until she reached the maximum. She then used the library card of a “boyfriend” who died in 2007. After that, she turned to the library card of another deceased man. Finally, she used the library card of her nursing home-bound mother.

 

The librarian, who began returning books after the publication of the newspaper article, was quickly placed on administrative leave. She remained on leave at the time of her arrest although the library board said that it intended to reconsider that status. Meanwhile, city officials put the library system's director on administrative leave and said his soon to expire term would not be renewed. He was not implicated in any wrongdoing but city officials felt he was not sufficiently proactive in reporting the problem to them.

 

The books were mainly mysteries and crime stories with a mix of other topics thrown in. Obviously, the librarian loved books, and way too much, but how one moves from here to there is hard to understand.

Rare Book Monthly

  • <center><b>Ketterer Rare Books<br>Auction May 26th</b></center> <b>Ketterer, May 26:</b> Th. McKenney & J. Hall, <i>History of the Indian tribes of North America,</i> 1836-1844. Est: €50,000 <b>Ketterer, May 26:</b> <i>Biblia latina vulgata,</i> manuscript on thin parchment, around 1250. Est: €70,000 <b>Ketterer, May 26:</b> M. Beckmann, <i>Fanferlieschen Schönefüßchen,</i> 1924. Est: €10,000 <center><b>Ketterer Rare Books<br>Auction May 26th</b></center> <b>Ketterer, May 26:</b> A. Ortelius, <i>Theatrum orbis terrarum,</i> 1574. Est: €50,000 <b>Ketterer, May 26:</b> M. S. Merian, <i>Eurcarum ortus, alimentum et paradoxa metamorphosis,</i> 1717-18. Est: €6,000 <b>Ketterer, May 26:</b> <i>PAN,</i> 9 volumes, 1895-1900. Est: €12,000 <center><b>Ketterer Rare Books<br>Auction May 26th</b></center> <b>Ketterer, May 26:</b> Breviarium Romanum, Latin manuscript, 1474. Est: €15,000 <b>Ketterer, May 26:</b> Quran manuscript from the Saadian period, Maghreb, 16th century. Est: €10,000 <b>Ketterer, May 26:</b> E. Hemingway, <i>The old man and the sea,</i> 1952. First edition in first issue jacket. Presentation copy. Est: €3,000 <center><b>Ketterer Rare Books<br>Auction May 26th</b></center> <b>Ketterer, May 26:</b> Flavius Vegetius Renatus, <i>De re militari libri quatuor,</i> 1553. Est: €3,000 <b>Ketterer, May 26:</b> K. Marx, <i>Das Kapital,</i> 1867. Est: €30,000 <b>Ketterer, May 26:</b> Brassaï, <i>Transmutations,</i> 1967. Est: €6,000
    Ketterer Rare Books
    Auction May 26th
    Ketterer, May 26: Th. McKenney & J. Hall, History of the Indian tribes of North America, 1836-1844. Est: €50,000
    Ketterer, May 26: Biblia latina vulgata, manuscript on thin parchment, around 1250. Est: €70,000
    Ketterer, May 26: M. Beckmann, Fanferlieschen Schönefüßchen, 1924. Est: €10,000
    Ketterer Rare Books
    Auction May 26th
    Ketterer, May 26: A. Ortelius, Theatrum orbis terrarum, 1574. Est: €50,000
    Ketterer, May 26: M. S. Merian, Eurcarum ortus, alimentum et paradoxa metamorphosis, 1717-18. Est: €6,000
    Ketterer, May 26: PAN, 9 volumes, 1895-1900. Est: €12,000
    Ketterer Rare Books
    Auction May 26th
    Ketterer, May 26: Breviarium Romanum, Latin manuscript, 1474. Est: €15,000
    Ketterer, May 26: Quran manuscript from the Saadian period, Maghreb, 16th century. Est: €10,000
    Ketterer, May 26: E. Hemingway, The old man and the sea, 1952. First edition in first issue jacket. Presentation copy. Est: €3,000
    Ketterer Rare Books
    Auction May 26th
    Ketterer, May 26: Flavius Vegetius Renatus, De re militari libri quatuor, 1553. Est: €3,000
    Ketterer, May 26: K. Marx, Das Kapital, 1867. Est: €30,000
    Ketterer, May 26: Brassaï, Transmutations, 1967. Est: €6,000
  • <b>Leland Little, May 21:</b> Signed Artist Proof of the Monumental <i>G.O.A.T.: A Tribute to Muhammad Ali.</i> <b>Leland Little, May 21:</b> Assorted Rare Publications Related to H.P. Lovecraft, Including <i>The Recluse</i> Signed by Vincent Starrett. <b>Leland Little, May 21:</b> Two Issues of <i>The Vagrant,</i> Including the First Appearance of H.P. Lovecraft's "Dagon" in Number Eleven. <b>Leland Little, May 21:</b> Rare First Printing of <i>Anne of Green Gables,</i> With ALS from the Author. <b>Leland Little, May 21:</b> First Edition of Hemingway's <i>The Old Man and the Sea,</i> In First Issue Jacket. <b>Leland Little, May 21:</b> The Limited Paumanok Edition of <i>The Complete Writings of Walt Whitman.</i> <b>Leland Little, May 21:</b> Beautifully Bound Limited Flaubert Edition of The Works of Guy de Maupassant. <b>Leland Little, May 21:</b> First Edition of Bonaparte's Celebrated <i>American Ornithology,</i> With Spectacular Hand-Colored Plates. <b>Leland Little, May 21:</b> A Rare Complete Set of Jardine's <i>The Naturalist's Library,</i> With Hand-Colored Plates. <b>Leland Little, May 21:</b> Invitation to the Lincoln-Johnson National Inaugural Ball, March 4th, 1865. <b>Leland Little, May 21:</b> A Scarce Inscribed First Edition of James Baldwin's <i>Nobody Knows My Name.</i> <b>Leland Little, May 21:</b> Picasso's <i>Le Goût du Bonheur,</i> Limited Edition.
    Leland Little, May 21: Signed Artist Proof of the Monumental G.O.A.T.: A Tribute to Muhammad Ali.
    Leland Little, May 21: Assorted Rare Publications Related to H.P. Lovecraft, Including The Recluse Signed by Vincent Starrett.
    Leland Little, May 21: Two Issues of The Vagrant, Including the First Appearance of H.P. Lovecraft's "Dagon" in Number Eleven.
    Leland Little, May 21: Rare First Printing of Anne of Green Gables, With ALS from the Author.
    Leland Little, May 21: First Edition of Hemingway's The Old Man and the Sea, In First Issue Jacket.
    Leland Little, May 21: The Limited Paumanok Edition of The Complete Writings of Walt Whitman.
    Leland Little, May 21: Beautifully Bound Limited Flaubert Edition of The Works of Guy de Maupassant.
    Leland Little, May 21: First Edition of Bonaparte's Celebrated American Ornithology, With Spectacular Hand-Colored Plates.
    Leland Little, May 21: A Rare Complete Set of Jardine's The Naturalist's Library, With Hand-Colored Plates.
    Leland Little, May 21: Invitation to the Lincoln-Johnson National Inaugural Ball, March 4th, 1865.
    Leland Little, May 21: A Scarce Inscribed First Edition of James Baldwin's Nobody Knows My Name.
    Leland Little, May 21: Picasso's Le Goût du Bonheur, Limited Edition.
  • <center><b>Doyle<br>The Collection of Mary Tyler Moore<br>June 4, 2025</b></center> <B>DOYLE:</B> Peter Max, <i>Portrait of Mary Tyler Moore (Versions 1,2, 5, 6),</i> 2001. Estimate $10,000-15,000 <B>DOYLE:</B> The iconic screen-used wall-mounted "M" from The Mary Tyler Moore Show. Estimate $5,000-8,000 <B>DOYLE:</B> The Mary Tyler Moore Show by Al Hirschfeld. Estimate $4,000-6,000 <center><b>Doyle<br>The Collection of Mary Tyler Moore<br>June 4, 2025</b></center> <B>DOYLE:</B> Annie Leibovitz presents Mary Tyler Moore and Dick Van Dyke for Vanity Fair. Estimate $4,000-6,000 <B>DOYLE:</B> Al Hirschfeld presents Mary Tyler Moore and Dick Van Dyke in the CBS Wednesday Night Lineup. Estimate $4,000-6,000 <B>DOYLE:</B> Richard McKenzie, <i>Portrait of Mary Tyler Moore.</i> Estimate $1,000-2,000 <center><b>Doyle<br>The Collection of Mary Tyler Moore<br>June 4, 2025</b></center> <B>DOYLE:</B> Three Original Bill Hargate Costume Designs for The Mary Tyler Moore Hour. Estimate $600-800 <B>DOYLE:</B> The famous Bonnie and Clyde "Wanted" broadside. Estimate $500-800 <B>DOYLE:</B> Ticket to the Final Episode of the Mary Tyler Moore Show Estimate $400-600
    Doyle
    The Collection of Mary Tyler Moore
    June 4, 2025
    DOYLE: Peter Max, Portrait of Mary Tyler Moore (Versions 1,2, 5, 6), 2001. Estimate $10,000-15,000
    DOYLE: The iconic screen-used wall-mounted "M" from The Mary Tyler Moore Show. Estimate $5,000-8,000
    DOYLE: The Mary Tyler Moore Show by Al Hirschfeld. Estimate $4,000-6,000
    Doyle
    The Collection of Mary Tyler Moore
    June 4, 2025
    DOYLE: Annie Leibovitz presents Mary Tyler Moore and Dick Van Dyke for Vanity Fair. Estimate $4,000-6,000
    DOYLE: Al Hirschfeld presents Mary Tyler Moore and Dick Van Dyke in the CBS Wednesday Night Lineup. Estimate $4,000-6,000
    DOYLE: Richard McKenzie, Portrait of Mary Tyler Moore. Estimate $1,000-2,000
    Doyle
    The Collection of Mary Tyler Moore
    June 4, 2025
    DOYLE: Three Original Bill Hargate Costume Designs for The Mary Tyler Moore Hour. Estimate $600-800
    DOYLE: The famous Bonnie and Clyde "Wanted" broadside. Estimate $500-800
    DOYLE: Ticket to the Final Episode of the Mary Tyler Moore Show Estimate $400-600
  • <b><center>Sotheby's<BR>Sell Your Fine Books & Manuscripts</center></b> <b>Sotheby’s:</b> The Shem Tov Bible, 1312 | A Masterpiece from the Golden Age of Spain. Sold: 6,960,000 USD <b>Sotheby’s:</b> Ten Commandments Tablet, 300-800 CE | One of humanity's earliest and most enduring moral codes. Sold: 5,040,000 USD <b>Sotheby’s:</b> William Blake | <i>Songs of Innocence and of Experience.</i> Sold: 4,320,000 USD <b>Sotheby’s:</b> The Declaration of Independence | The Holt printing, the only copy in private hands. Sold: 3,360,000 USD <b><center>Sotheby's<BR>Sell Your Fine Books & Manuscripts</center></b> <b>Sotheby’s:</b> Thomas Taylor | The original cover art for <i>Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone.</i> Sold: 1,920,000 USD <b>Sotheby’s:</b> Machiavelli | <i>Il Principe,</i> a previously unrecorded copy of the book where modern political thought began. Sold: 576,000 GBP <b>Sotheby’s:</b> Leonardo da Vinci | <i>Trattato della pittura,</i> ca. 1639, a very fine pre-publication manuscript. Sold: 381,000 GBP <b>Sotheby’s:</b> Henri Matisse | <i>Jazz,</i> Paris 1947, the complete portfolio. Sold: 312,000 EUR
    Sotheby's
    Sell Your Fine Books & Manuscripts
    Sotheby’s: The Shem Tov Bible, 1312 | A Masterpiece from the Golden Age of Spain. Sold: 6,960,000 USD
    Sotheby’s: Ten Commandments Tablet, 300-800 CE | One of humanity's earliest and most enduring moral codes. Sold: 5,040,000 USD
    Sotheby’s: William Blake | Songs of Innocence and of Experience. Sold: 4,320,000 USD
    Sotheby’s: The Declaration of Independence | The Holt printing, the only copy in private hands. Sold: 3,360,000 USD
    Sotheby's
    Sell Your Fine Books & Manuscripts
    Sotheby’s: Thomas Taylor | The original cover art for Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone. Sold: 1,920,000 USD
    Sotheby’s: Machiavelli | Il Principe, a previously unrecorded copy of the book where modern political thought began. Sold: 576,000 GBP
    Sotheby’s: Leonardo da Vinci | Trattato della pittura, ca. 1639, a very fine pre-publication manuscript. Sold: 381,000 GBP
    Sotheby’s: Henri Matisse | Jazz, Paris 1947, the complete portfolio. Sold: 312,000 EUR

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