Scholar Adventurers

Richard Altick's book was required reading for a graduate school course I had in the mid 70's. This was my first introduction to the world of "detective" work within the framework of literature and I found all the stories fascinating. I kept the book for many years, loaning it out to friends for their enjoyment. Not until a friend recently asked me about the world of the bibliographer (via reading John Dunning's books about the world of book collecting) that I remembered Altick's book and, when I looked for my copy, discovered that I had loaned it once too often and it hadn't been returned. I was delighted to find that the book is still in print and I look forward to re-reading it once again before I loan it out.

Altick's The Scholar Adventurers is a book full of adventure and detective work. When I first read it in the early 80's (the first edition), not only could I not put it down, but I immediately bought two more copies as gifts. Very soon thereafter, the book went out of print. Today I thought of The Scholar Adventurers again as I wondered if I could part with my copy: a scholar friend recently fell off his roof, breaking multiple bones. His hospitalization means a meager Christmas for his family, so I've been deciding what books I could pass along to make the holiday brighter. I decided I could not give up this book, however, even under these circumstances, unless I had some assured way of replacing my copy. Happily I do. So, after you've finished calling me selfish, check the book out for yourself. It's a great read.