The map thief: the gripping story of an esteemed rare map dealer who made
millions stealing rare maps, by Michael Blanding, New York, Gotham Books, 2014.
300 pp. US$25.00 (soft cover), ISBN 978-1-592 40817-7
Basing his book on personal interviews and much research, Blanding offers a
biography of Forbes Smiley III, map thief extraordinaire and a personality as complex
as any novel might draw. It is intended for an educated, literate readership that can
take in much historical information about map history and the world of rare map
collecting. It is also written with some touches of detective fiction (we are told about
thoughts and feelings). Blanding seems sometimes very close to his subject, who
has a fascinating side as well as a very dark one. This makes for an engaging and
instructive narrative. Two tabular appendices list maps Smiley admitted stealing and
others reported as missing and still not retrieved. Extensive notes and an excellent
bibliography are provided. The book is recommended for public and academic
libraries.
Beyond this recommendation, there are also powerful reasons for librarians to look
into this book. The story is not simply about theft, deceit on a grand scale and
retribution. Blanding uncovers glaring deficiencies in the practices of major US rare
book libraries where Smiley stole many of the maps he sold to collectors. Libraries
such as the New York Public Library, Yale (Sterling and Beinecke), Boston Public
Library and even the British Library are all found wanting. Yale comes off very baldly,
but the overall picture is deplorable in its implications. To give even a bare outline is
not possible here. Perhaps one quotation alluding to the fruitless legal efforts the
British Library made to get the US libraries victimised by Smiley to cooperate in a
joint recovery effort will indicate what is at the bottom of this sorry saga: ‘It seemed
too risky to expose themselves [i.e. the libraries suffering theft] in court and open
themselves to cross-examination…about their security procedures and the extent of
their losses. Such a public display could alienate donors…’.
The ample details of the court hearing, the efforts of the FBI to gather evidence and
the plea bargaining that Smiley entered into are both the stuff of television drama
and farce. Smiley went to prison with a piffling sentence for stealing maps valued at
over US$2 million, and he continues to reside at Martha’s Vineyard in
Massachusetts!
Librarians can take little comfort from the inglorious picture concerning aspects of US
rare book librarianship. Changes have been forced on the profession through
Smiley’s amazing depredations. But cynicism suggests that there is much more
needing to be confronted. Perhaps Nicholson Baker (author of Double fold) might
see a fertile field to plough here? The implications of this story have still to unfold.
R.L. Cope
Page, NSW