Old Books, Rare Friends: Two Literary Sleuths and Their Shared Passion [Large Print] [Hardcover]

Leona Rostenberg (Author), Madeleine Stern (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: May 1998

BiographyLarge Print EditionYoud think a book about antiquarian bookselling wouldnt be loaded with suspense or keep us laughing or make us shake our heads in wonder at the adventures of its 87-year-old authors . . . But Old Books, Rare Friends does that and more . . . The San Francisco Chronicle Heres a book about two forthright women who share a passion for literature and who know the true meaning of a lifelong friendship. Its a book to treasure.

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

Like 84, Charing Cross Road, Leona Rostenberg and Madeleine Stern's charming bibliocentric memoir is as much about relationships as it is about books. Charing Cross chronicled the decades-long epistolary friendship between American book lover Helene Hanff and Frank Doel, the equally devoted British bookseller in the London shop from whom she bought many of her treasures. Rostenberg and Stern's book once again proves how a passion for great literature can make for fast friends. And in their case, these two octogenarians occupy the same geographical space, sharing both their professional and private lives.

In their introduction, Rostenberg and Stern write: "Several readers inferred ... that our relationship was a Lesbian one. This was a misconception. The 'deep, deep love' that existed and exists between us ... has no bearing upon sex." With that out of the way early on, the two recount the stories of their lives in alternating sections. And oh, what lives they've had! From identifying some of Louisa May Alcott's previously anonymous early writings to traveling the world in search of rare volumes and pamphlets, they have done and seen it all. Successful antiquarian book dealers Rostenberg and Stern undoubtedly are, but as this memoir makes clear, their greatest accomplishment just might be that rarer commodity of friendship that lasts a lifetime. --Alix Wilber --This text refers to the Paperback edition.

From Booklist

This small volume is so rich in anecdote, so warm with a loving friendship of many decades, so precise in its evocative descriptions of the rare-book trade from the 1930s to the present, that it is hard to imagine any reader who would not find pleasure in it. Leona Rostenberg and Madeleine Stern, who are the firm of Leona Rostenberg Rare Books, are now in their 80s, but their elegant writing and limpid descriptions of growing up in Manhattan and the Bronx, studying at Barnard, NYU, and Columbia, and touring Europe as young women show no signs of age. It is to Stern's scholarship that we owe the current rage for the non^-Little Women writings of Louisa May Alcott; it is to Rostenberg that we owe the notion that early printer-publishers influenced scholarship. Her adviser at Columbia had rejected her dissertation upon that topic: she was only granted her degree 30 years later. Their individual voices make both harmony and counterpoint in this joint autobiography; we are wiser and more blessed for the words and journeys they have shared. GraceAnne A. DeCandido --This text refers to an alternate Hardcover edition.

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 477 pages
• Publisher: Thorndike Pr; Lrg edition (May 1998)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0786214147
• ISBN-13: 978-0786214143
• Product Dimensions: 8.8 x 6 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.4 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (9 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #6,634,122 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

32 of 35 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Old Books, Rare Friends are marvelous., May 21, 2000

By 

Rebecca Brown "rebeccasreads" (Clallam Bay, WA United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Old Books, Rare Friends: Two Literary Sleuths and Their Shared Passion (Hardcover)

Given to me as a birthday present on a misty Northwest beach,the whimsical allure of these charmingly self-possessed women residingin one of the toughest cities in the world, drew me into its first pages even as the rest of my party sat around on logs, barbecuing fine local viands & feeding the camp dogs. From their student years, surviving the Depression & WWII; to studying & getting published through the exciting times of starting a company & their book-hunting jaunts to musty basements in faraway places this is a lively, lovely duet by two voices weaving a deeply evocative memoir...

21 of 22 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Loving books and each other, August 22, 1999

By 

Onno de Zwart ([e-mail]) (Rotterdam, the Netherlands) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Old Books, Rare Friends: Two Literary Sleuths and Their Shared Passion (Paperback)

For everyone loving books, history and detectives this book is a great pleasure to read. With great enthusiasm Leona & Madeleine write about their lives and the books which they bought and sold. It makes one jealous of times when rare books could still be found under piles of dust instead of being sold for fortunes. So stop reading the reviews and start reading this book now.

14 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars An enchanting and thrilling saga, October 15, 1998

By A Customer

This review is from: Old Books, Rare Friends: Two Literary Sleuths and Their Shared Passion (Paperback)

I didn't expect to be so enthralled by this fast moving and engrossing joint autobiography by original thinkers and literary sleuths/feminists who were drawn together by a devotion to literature, the printed word, and a thirst for adventure.

I expected to be interested, and was rewarded with a page turner that I was reluctant to put down. The dedication with which the authors pursued lost works of the printers' art, and unravelled conundrums of history make marvellous reading.

If you love literature, as I suspect most Amazon book customers do, than you'll enjoy this most unusual duo.