Pushkin is to Russian literature what Shakespeare is to English, and first editions of his books have been disappearing across Europe. A sophisticated

MILLER’S BOOK REVIEW 📚

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2024-05-05 17:30:08

Pushkin is to Russian literature what Shakespeare is to English, and first editions of his books have been disappearing across Europe. A sophisticated group of forgers and thieves have been consulting rare copies in libraries and replacing the originals with intricately produced fakes.

“Since 2022, more than 170 books valued at more than $2.6 million . . . have vanished,” reports the New York Times. State and university libraries in Germany, France, Latvia, Estonia, and Finland have all suffered losses. “The University of Warsaw library was hardest hit, with 78 books gone.”

But sometimes book theft is less egregious, less obvious. For instance, what about that novel you borrowed from me nine years ago and is still somewhere on your shelves? And don’t I still owe you that essay collection, the one by what’s-his-name?

Addressing the cost of books compared to other expenses and pastimes, George Orwell once tallied the titles on his shelves. Counting “only those books which I have acquired voluntarily, or else would have acquired voluntarily, and which I intend to keep,” he arrived at 442 in all.