Author Michael Blanding to visit Canton library

On Thursday, June 12, at 7 p.m., investigative journalist and author Michael Blanding will visit the Canton Public Library to discuss his book The Map Thief: The Gripping Story of an Esteemed Rare-Map Dealer Who Made Millions Stealing Priceless Maps.

Michael Blanding

The book details the career of E. Forbes Smiley, an antiquarian map dealer who spent years doubling as a map thief until he was finally arrested while delicately tearing maps out of books in the Yale University Library in 2005. Smiley would later confess to the theft of 97 maps valued at more than $3 million and served 42 months in prison for these crimes.

The Map Thief, published by Gotham Books, includes the results of an exclusive interview with Smiley before he went quiet, as well as the other individuals involved, from the dealers he worked with to the librarians affected by Smiley’s theft. While Smiley swears he has admitted to all of the maps he stole, the libraries he victimized have uncovered hundreds more they accuse him of taking — along with some intriguing clues to prove it.

Previous to writing The Map Thief, Blanding penned The Coke Machine: The Dirty Truth Behind the World’s Favorite Soft Drink (Avery, 2010) and has spent more than 15 years as a journalist writing long-form narrative and investigative journalism. He has written for Boston magazine, The Nation, The New Republic, Consumers Digest, and Boston Globe Magazine, where he has focused on investigative stories involving intensive research and interviews.

This event is free and open to the public. An author signing will follow, and books will be available for purchase. Reservations are not necessary, but guests are asked to come early. For more information, contact Carolyn Elkort, community outreach librarian, at 781-821-5027 ext. 126.

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Posted by Canton Citizen on Jun 5 2014. Filed under Uncategorized. Both comments and pings are currently closed.