Lawrence Goldstone
Author of Used and Rare: Travels in the Book World
About the Author
Lawrence Goldstone is the author or co-author of more than a dozen books, including two other innovation histories: Drive!: Henry Ford, George Selden, and the Race to Invent the Auto Age and Birdmen: The Wright Brothers, Glenn Curtiss, and the Battle to Control the Skies. He has written for the show more Wall Street Journal, Los Angeles Times, Boston Globe, New Republic, Chicago Tribune, and Miami Herald. He and his wife, author Nancy Goldstone, live in Sagaponack, New York. show less
Image credit: Random House
Works by Lawrence Goldstone
Out of the Flames: The Remarkable Story of a Fearless Scholar, a Fatal Heresy, and One of the Rarest Books in the World (2002) 723 copies
The Friar and the Cipher: Roger Bacon and the Unsolved Mystery of the Most Unusual Manuscript in the World (2005) 403 copies
Tagged
Common Knowledge
- Birthdate
- 1947
- Gender
- male
- Nationality
- USA
- Places of residence
- Westport, Connecticut, USA
- Education
- (PhD | American Constitutional Studies)
- Occupations
- journalist
author - Relationships
- Goldstone, Nancy (wife)
- Short biography
- Lawrence Goldstone has written several books with his wife Nancy, including tales of their book collecting adventures. He has written for the Boston Globe, Los Angeles Times, Chicago Tribune, and Miami Herald. He lives in Westport, Connecticut.
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Used and Rare: Travels in the Book World in Used Books (December 2012)
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Statistics
- Works
- 25
- Members
- 5,222
- Popularity
- #4,773
- Rating
- 3.9
- Reviews
- 139
- ISBNs
- 116
- Languages
- 2
- Favorited
- 13
The book was written during the time when computers were just starting to be introduced to the general public for business and recreational use. There were several fun instances where I said to myself, "Oh yes, I remember that." One in particular was their thrill in finding that the library could print their cards right there in front of them (amazing technology, they said!)
Usually when I read something biographical/memoir-ish I stop about 10-15 pages in to look up what the author is doing now---especially with a book as "old" as this one. (I graduated high school in 1997) However, this couple had been having such a great time in this story that I was wary to look up anything on them for fear that perhaps their marriage didn't work out. I would be sad to think of them not continuing on these kinds of fun adventures together. About half way in, I finally couldn't stand it any longer and had to see what they were up to. Sure enough, their author pages seem to indicate they are happy and thriving---I'm so glad. In fact, I was so glad that I actually wrote the wife an email to tell her so. I'm sure I'm on somebody's weirdo list now but rarely do I engage so well with a memoir. ha!
Another interesting part of reading this book came with the "forgotten bookmarks" I found inside. In the front cover was a Barnes & Noble receipt from July 3, 1997. Someone in the Boston, Mass. store purchased this as a new release. Later in the book was a very early advertising bookmark for Amazon.com---back in the days when it was just an online bookstore. Some quotes from the back of the bookmark:
"Amazon.com: Earth's biggest bookstore."
"Offering 2.5 million titles (more than 14 times the number of books you'll find in the largest chain superstore), we're sure to have the book you want."
"Amazon.com has a wealth of information about the books and authors that interest you" (including) ... "Personalized E-mail notification about your favorite subjects and authors."
I don't remember the last time I actually bought a book on Amazon but I thought it was ironic that this novel new internet business was being advertised in this book about all the unique and often family owned book shops of the 90s---the same ones that Amazon long ago put out of business.
ETA: second irony is that my copy of this book is listed on several websites as being worth $50-$60. Ha!! I wonder if the receipt and Amazon bookmark add to that value at all???
Here is my post featuring photos of the "forgotten bookmarks": http://www.belleslibrary.com/2022/01/the-secret-lives-of-books-used-and-rare.htm...… (more)