The island of lost maps : a true story of cartographic crime
Harvey, Miles
The island of lost maps : a true story of cartographic crime / Miles Harvey - 1st ed - New York : Random House , c2000. - xxiii, 405 p. : ill., maps ; 19 cm.
Map on endpapers.
Includes bibliographical references (p. [355]-394) and index.
This is the spellbinding story of author Miles Harvey's quest to understand America's greatest map thief, a chameleon who changed careers and families without ever looking back. Gilbert Bland was a cipher, a blank slate--for Harvey, journalistic terra incognita. Filling in Bland's life was like filling in a map, and grew from an investigation into an intellectual adventure. Harvey listens to the fury of the librarians from whom Bland stole. He introduces us to America's foremost map mogul, a millionaire maverick who predicted the boom in map collecting. He retraces Bland's life, from his run-ins with the law to his troubled service in Vietnam. And finally, with the aid of an FBI agent, Harvey discovers the Island of Lost Maps. The deeper Miles Harvey investigates, the more we are drawn into this fascinating subculture of collectors, experts, and enthusiasts, all of them gripped by an obsession both surreal and sublime. Capturing that passion in perfect pitch, The Island of Lost Maps is an intriguing story of exploration, craftsmanship, villainy, and the lure of the unknown.
9780375501517
00025604
Bland, Gilbert Lee Joseph.
Map thefts----History----United States----20th century.
Libraries----Special collections----Maps----History----United States----20th century.
Z702.B58 / H37 2000
025.8 HAR
The island of lost maps : a true story of cartographic crime / Miles Harvey - 1st ed - New York : Random House , c2000. - xxiii, 405 p. : ill., maps ; 19 cm.
Map on endpapers.
Includes bibliographical references (p. [355]-394) and index.
This is the spellbinding story of author Miles Harvey's quest to understand America's greatest map thief, a chameleon who changed careers and families without ever looking back. Gilbert Bland was a cipher, a blank slate--for Harvey, journalistic terra incognita. Filling in Bland's life was like filling in a map, and grew from an investigation into an intellectual adventure. Harvey listens to the fury of the librarians from whom Bland stole. He introduces us to America's foremost map mogul, a millionaire maverick who predicted the boom in map collecting. He retraces Bland's life, from his run-ins with the law to his troubled service in Vietnam. And finally, with the aid of an FBI agent, Harvey discovers the Island of Lost Maps. The deeper Miles Harvey investigates, the more we are drawn into this fascinating subculture of collectors, experts, and enthusiasts, all of them gripped by an obsession both surreal and sublime. Capturing that passion in perfect pitch, The Island of Lost Maps is an intriguing story of exploration, craftsmanship, villainy, and the lure of the unknown.
9780375501517
00025604
Bland, Gilbert Lee Joseph.
Map thefts----History----United States----20th century.
Libraries----Special collections----Maps----History----United States----20th century.
Z702.B58 / H37 2000
025.8 HAR
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