In this collection of short pieces published in 2000, most only three pages long, 74 authors write about books that have made a lasting impression on them, but which they have lost or that are otherwise hard to find. The works cited are quite eclectic, including major works of fiction, children's books, travelogues and other varieties of non-fiction. While most of the books--and the authors writing about them--were unfamiliar to me, this book is 100% fascinating from beginning to end. It is difficult to put down once you start, assuming, of course, that you are a book lover. Time after time, it demonstrates the power and importance of books, and it shows all the ways, large and small, that they educate and influence the lives we lead.

There is no need to single out individual examples of these authors' reminiscences, since all are interesting and many are memorably written. You'll be looking up these "lost classics" and their authors on the internet in almost every case. I'm happy to report that most of these books are no longer "lost". Some are available in reprints or new editions, and nearly all are available used at reasonable prices from Amazon, abebooks.com, and other sources.

This book will make you think about your own lost classics, and maybe you'll dig one or two up from the back of your double-stacked shelves or the bottom of a box in the back corner of your storeroom. This book itself, I'm happy to say, doesn't appear to have imitated the fate (at least circa 2000) of its subjects. Amazon still has new copies for sale, and it was reprinted in 2011. ( )

It's interesting to read what writers think of books by other authors. This is a collection of short essays about books that had meaning for the readers, who are themselves well-known authors. I started by reading the essays on books that I am familiar with, then those by authors that I have read, and so on. Naturally, with such variety, some were better or more interesting than others. ( )

A keeper. Authors write about obscure books that changed their lives, books we readers should find and read. ( )

Writers writing about books from their past that have been lost to them. Full of interesting ideas and suggestions. ( )

essays on obscure books