Skip to main content
M:S3:31 4
Edit position
Edit position

Last set 1 week, 1 day ago. Manual moves override automatic placement until the next shelfie/spine match.

A gentle madness : bibliophiles, bibliomanes, and the eternal passion for books / Nicholas A. Basbanes
Diagnose this book
Open in Vernon Browser

A gentle madness : bibliophiles, bibliomanes, and the eternal passion for books / Nicholas A. Basbanes

by Nicholas A. Basbanes

No description yet.

Accession 11214 ISBN 0805036539 Publisher Henry Holt & Co.
Book Images
Reference and live side by side Hover to see live images
Reference
A gentle madness : bibliophiles, bibliomanes, and the eternal passion for books / Nicholas A. Basbanes spine
A gentle madness : bibliophiles, bibliomanes, and the eternal passion for books / Nicholas A. Basbanes cover
Live
A gentle madness : bibliophiles, bibliomanes, and the eternal passion for books / Nicholas A. Basbanes live spine
No live
A gentle madness : bibliophiles, bibliomanes, and the eternal passion for books / Nicholas A. Basbanes spine A gentle madness : bibliophiles, bibliomanes, and the eternal passion for books / Nicholas A. Basbanes live spine
A gentle madness : bibliophiles, bibliomanes, and the eternal passion for books / Nicholas A. Basbanes cover
No live
TAGS
Curated Derived
Art Biography Collections Communication Culture Family and Society Information Resources Institutions Publications Social Sciences
CONNECTIONS
No connections
State
on_shelf
True
position_updated_at
2026-05-15 15:38
orientation
vertical
Details

Physical

binding_type
Hard Back
dimensions
none captured
spine_text
none captured
LOCATION HISTORY
M:S3:31 4 Current vertical
1 week, 1 day ago
1 week, 1 day ago
Book Location
Updated 1 week, 1 day ago
Vernon snapshot
View live

Frozen copy of Vernon's record from the last sync. Fields tagged flow back into the Pulse record.

Last synced 2026-05-21 00:53 (3 days, 13 hours ago)

Identity

name→ title
A gentle madness : bibliophiles, bibliomanes, and the eternal passion for books / Nicholas A. Basbanes
vernon_id
14994
accession_no→ accession_number
11214
vernon_slug
a-gentle-madness-bibliophiles-bibliomanes-and-the-eternal-passion-for-books-nicholas-a-basbanes

Drives Pulse state

curr_loc_status→ on_shelf
On Shelf
location_name
Zone S3/Level 2 (Mezzanine)/Phrontisterion/MONA
location_reason
On Shelf
isbn_issn→ isbn (when valid)
0805036539

Descriptive

production_date
1995
object_type
Books/Document genres/Information forms/Visual and Verbal Communication
object_status
Accessioned
brief_description
The passion to possess books has never been more widespread than it is today; indeed, obsessive book collecting remains the only hobby to have a disease named after it. A Gentle Madness is an adventure among the afflicted. Author Nicholas Basbanes, a dedicated bibliophile himself, begins his book 2,200 years ago in Alexandria, when a commitment was made to gather all the world's knowledge beneath one roof. In a series of lively chapters, the continuum then passes through the Middle Ages and the Renaissance to the twentieth century with a special emphasis on book lore and book culture in Great Britain and North America. In the second half of A Gentle Madness, Basbanes offers a gallery of revealing profiles of living collectors and presents exclusive examinations of the great contemporary stories. The book also includes the most comprehensive bibliography on book collecting compiled in more than a quarter century.

Subjects & people

authors→ author (initial fill only)
Nicholas A. Basbanes
tags→ tags
Art, Arts, Persons, Social sciences, Civilisation, Sociology, Communication, Books, Publications, Public institutions, Associations, institutions, etc., Collectors and collecting, Book collecting, Hobbyists, Libraries, Bibliomania, Libraries -- Special collections -- Rare books, Special libraries
subject_people
subject_objects

Cover image

vernon_cover_image_id→ cover_image
26002

Raw Vernon JSON

click to inspect

The source payload behind the snapshot above.

Use ⌘F to search once expanded.
{7 keys}
"slug": "a-gentle-madness-bibliophiles-bibliomanes-and-the-eternal-passion-for-books-nicholas-a-basbanes"
"opacObjectId": "14994"
"opacCollection": {1 keys}
"opacCollectionId": "1"
"imagesCollection": {2 keys}
"images": [1 items]
"[0]": {5 keys}
"imageId": "26002"
"cssColors": [3 items]
"[0]": {9 keys}
"hex": "d2b48c"
"hue": 34
"rank": 1
"presence": 9.5
"colorName": "tan"
"lightness": 69
"colorGroup": "brown"
"saturation": 44
"formattedColorName": "tan"
"[1]": {9 keys}
"hex": "808080"
"hue": 0
"rank": 2
"presence": 9.75
"colorName": "gray"
"lightness": 50
"colorGroup": "gray"
"saturation": 0
"formattedColorName": "gray"
"[2]": {9 keys}
"hex": "000000"
"hue": 0
"rank": 3
"presence": 1.88
"colorName": "black"
"lightness": 0
"colorGroup": "gray"
"saturation": 0
"formattedColorName": "black"
"rawColors": [7 items]
"[0]": {6 keys}
"hex": "5c543c"
"hue": 45
"rank": 1
"presence": 78.47
"lightness": 29
"saturation": 21
"[1]": {6 keys}
"hex": "e1d9c0"
"hue": 45
"rank": 2
"presence": 9.5
"lightness": 81
"saturation": 35
"[2]": {6 keys}
"hex": "998d6d"
"hue": 43
"rank": 3
"presence": 9.75
"lightness": 51
"saturation": 17
"[3]": {6 keys}
"hex": "242a23"
"hue": 111
"rank": 4
"presence": 1.88
"lightness": 15
"saturation": 9
"[4]": {6 keys}
"hex": "7d7a6e"
"hue": 48
"rank": 5
"presence": 0.33
"lightness": 46
"saturation": 6
"[5]": {6 keys}
"hex": "aaad94"
"hue": 67
"rank": 6
"presence": 0.05
"lightness": 62
"saturation": 13
"[6]": {6 keys}
"hex": "9ca09c"
"hue": 120
"rank": 7
"presence": 0.01
"lightness": 61
"saturation": 2
"imageLabels": [10 items]
"[0]": {5 keys}
"count": 10019
"score": 88.68
"status": "auto_verified"
"imageLabel": "Rectangle"
"imageLabelId": 11
"[1]": {5 keys}
"count": 11006
"score": 80.68
"status": "auto_verified"
"imageLabel": "Art"
"imageLabelId": 4
"[2]": {5 keys}
"count": 19411
"score": 80.57
"status": "auto_verified"
"imageLabel": "Font"
"imageLabelId": 12
"[3]": {5 keys}
"count": 5578
"score": 75.58
"status": "auto_verified"
"imageLabel": "Pattern"
"imageLabelId": 24
"[4]": {5 keys}
"count": 2685
"score": 69.75
"status": "auto_verified"
"imageLabel": "Painting"
"imageLabelId": 36
"[5]": {5 keys}
"count": 1482
"score": 69.29
"status": "auto_verified"
"imageLabel": "Drawing"
"imageLabelId": 62
"[6]": {5 keys}
"count": 3376
"score": 69.05
"status": "auto_verified"
"imageLabel": "Visual arts"
"imageLabelId": 18
"[7]": {5 keys}
"count": 15171
"score": 68.59
"status": "auto_verified"
"imageLabel": "Book"
"imageLabelId": 67
"[8]": {5 keys}
"count": 3297
"score": 67.77
"status": "auto_verified"
"imageLabel": "Circle"
"imageLabelId": 8
"[9]": {5 keys}
"count": 3468
"score": 67.26
"status": "auto_verified"
"imageLabel": "Paper"
"imageLabelId": 54
"imageDerivatives": [6 items]
"[0]": {4 keys}
"url": "https://browser.mona.net.au/records/images/large/3742/6bfa9850742d4abd05a2ed26462d3ad29a28fb51.jpg"
"width": "544"
"height": "800"
"identifier": "LARGE"
"[1]": {4 keys}
"url": "https://browser.mona.net.au/records/images/medium/3742/6bfa9850742d4abd05a2ed26462d3ad29a28fb51.jpg"
"width": "272"
"height": "400"
"identifier": "MEDIUM"
"[2]": {4 keys}
"url": "https://browser.mona.net.au/records/images/nano/3742/6bfa9850742d4abd05a2ed26462d3ad29a28fb51.jpg"
"width": "24"
"height": "35"
"identifier": "NANO"
"[3]": {4 keys}
"url": "https://browser.mona.net.au/records/images/small/3742/6bfa9850742d4abd05a2ed26462d3ad29a28fb51.jpg"
"width": "102"
"height": "150"
"identifier": "SMALL"
"[4]": {4 keys}
"url": "https://browser.mona.net.au/records/images/tiny/3742/6bfa9850742d4abd05a2ed26462d3ad29a28fb51.jpg"
"width": "51"
"height": "75"
"identifier": "TINY"
"[5]": {4 keys}
"url": "https://browser.mona.net.au/records/images/xlarge/3742/6bfa9850742d4abd05a2ed26462d3ad29a28fb51.jpg"
"width": "816"
"height": "1200"
"identifier": "XLARGE"
"totalImages": 1
"objectSearchScore": 0.3118719
"opacObjectFieldSets": [40 items]
"[0]": {2 keys}
"identifier": "accession_no"
"opacObjectFields": [1 items]
"[0]": {1 keys}
"value": "11214"
"[1]": {2 keys}
"identifier": "name"
"opacObjectFields": [1 items]
"[0]": {2 keys}
"value": "A gentle madness : bibliophiles, bibliomanes, and the eternal passion for books / Nicholas A. Basbanes"
"opacObjectFieldAttributes": [1 items]
"[0]": {2 keys}
"key": "title"
"value": "A gentle madness : bibliophiles, bibliomanes, and the eternal passion for books / Nicholas A. Basbanes"
"[2]": {2 keys}
"identifier": "other_name"
"opacObjectFields": [1 items]
"[0]": {1 keys}
"value": ""
"[3]": {2 keys}
"identifier": "artist_last_first"
"opacObjectFields": [1 items]
"[0]": {1 keys}
"value": "Basbanes, Nicholas A."
"[4]": {2 keys}
"identifier": "prod_pri_date"
"opacObjectFields": [1 items]
"[0]": {2 keys}
"value": "1995"
"opacObjectFieldAttributes": [2 items]
"[0]": {2 keys}
"key": "earliest_date"
"value": "1995-01-01Z"
"[1]": {2 keys}
"key": "latest_date"
"value": "1995-12-31Z"
"[5]": {2 keys}
"identifier": "prod_pri_date_notes"
"opacObjectFields": [1 items]
"[0]": {1 keys}
"value": ""
"[6]": {2 keys}
"identifier": "edition"
"opacObjectFields": [1 items]
"[0]": {1 keys}
"value": "First Edition - 1995"
"[7]": {2 keys}
"identifier": "brief_desc"
"opacObjectFields": [1 items]
"[0]": {1 keys}
"value": "The passion to possess books has never been more widespread than it is today; indeed, obsessive book collecting remains the only hobby to have a disease named after it. A Gentle Madness is an adventure among the afflicted. Author Nicholas Basbanes, a dedicated bibliophile himself, begins his book 2,200 years ago in Alexandria, when a commitment was made to gather all the world's knowledge beneath one roof. In a series of lively chapters, the continuum then passes through the Middle Ages and the Renaissance to the twentieth century with a special emphasis on book lore and book culture in Great Britain and North America. In the second half of A Gentle Madness, Basbanes offers a gallery of revealing profiles of living collectors and presents exclusive examinations of the great contemporary stories. The book also includes the most comprehensive bibliography on book collecting compiled in more than a quarter century."
"[8]": {2 keys}
"identifier": "measure_desc"
"opacObjectFields": [1 items]
"[0]": {1 keys}
"value": ""
"[9]": {2 keys}
"identifier": "credit_line"
"opacObjectFields": [1 items]
"[0]": {1 keys}
"value": ""
"[10]": {2 keys}
"identifier": "curr_loc_status"
"opacObjectFields": [1 items]
"[0]": {2 keys}
"value": "On Shelf"
"opacObjectFieldAttributes": [1 items]
"[0]": {2 keys}
"key": "search"
"value": "curr_loc_status:"On Shelf""
"[11]": {2 keys}
"identifier": "ob_status"
"opacObjectFields": [1 items]
"[0]": {1 keys}
"value": "Accessioned"
"[12]": {2 keys}
"identifier": "lender"
"opacObjectFields": [1 items]
"[0]": {1 keys}
"value": ""
"[13]": {2 keys}
"identifier": "copyright_owner"
"opacObjectFields": [1 items]
"[0]": {1 keys}
"value": ""
"[14]": {2 keys}
"identifier": "copyright_type"
"opacObjectFields": [1 items]
"[0]": {1 keys}
"value": ""
"[15]": {2 keys}
"identifier": "copyright_start"
"opacObjectFields": [0 items]
"[16]": {2 keys}
"identifier": "copyright_expiry"
"opacObjectFields": [0 items]
"[17]": {2 keys}
"identifier": "copyright_notes"
"opacObjectFields": [1 items]
"[0]": {1 keys}
"value": ""
"[18]": {2 keys}
"identifier": "curr_loc"
"opacObjectFields": [1 items]
"[0]": {1 keys}
"value": "Zone S3/Level 2 (Mezzanine)/Phrontisterion/MONA"
"[19]": {2 keys}
"identifier": "object_type"
"opacObjectFields": [1 items]
"[0]": {2 keys}
"value": "Books/Document genres/Information forms/Visual and Verbal Communication"
"opacObjectFieldAttributes": [1 items]
"[0]": {2 keys}
"key": "search"
"value": "object_type:"Books/Document genres/Information forms/Visual and Verbal Communication""
"[20]": {2 keys}
"identifier": "collection"
"opacObjectFields": [1 items]
"[0]": {2 keys}
"value": "Main Collection/Library"
"opacObjectFieldAttributes": [1 items]
"[0]": {2 keys}
"key": "search"
"value": "collection:"Main Collection/Library""
"[21]": {2 keys}
"identifier": "prod_pri_place"
"opacObjectFields": [1 items]
"[0]": {1 keys}
"value": "New York/United States of America"
"[22]": {2 keys}
"identifier": "prod_pri_publisher"
"opacObjectFields": [1 items]
"[0]": {1 keys}
"value": "Henry Holt & Co."
"[23]": {2 keys}
"identifier": "physical_notes"
"opacObjectFields": [2 items]
"[0]": {1 keys}
"value": "xvi, 638 pages, 32 pages of plates : illustrations ; 24 cm."
"[1]": {1 keys}
"value": "Includes bibliographical references and index."
"[24]": {2 keys}
"identifier": "language"
"opacObjectFields": [1 items]
"[0]": {1 keys}
"value": "English"
"[25]": {2 keys}
"identifier": "isbn_issn"
"opacObjectFields": [1 items]
"[0]": {1 keys}
"value": "0805036539"
"[26]": {2 keys}
"identifier": "user_sym_1"
"opacObjectFields": [1 items]
"[0]": {1 keys}
"value": "002.075 BAS"
"[27]": {2 keys}
"identifier": "usual_loc_being"
"opacObjectFields": [1 items]
"[0]": {1 keys}
"value": "Zone S3/Level 2 (Mezzanine)/Phrontisterion/MONA"
"[28]": {2 keys}
"identifier": "subject_class"
"opacObjectFields": [6 items]
"[0]": {2 keys}
"value": "Bibliomania"
"opacObjectFieldAttributes": [1 items]
"[0]": {2 keys}
"key": "search"
"value": "subject_class:"Bibliomania""
"[1]": {2 keys}
"value": "Book collecting/Collectors and collecting/Hobbyists/Persons"
"opacObjectFieldAttributes": [1 items]
"[0]": {2 keys}
"key": "search"
"value": "subject_class:"Book collecting/Collectors and collecting/Hobbyists/Persons""
"[2]": {2 keys}
"value": "Books/Publications/Communication/Sociology/Social sciences/Civilisation"
"opacObjectFieldAttributes": [1 items]
"[0]": {2 keys}
"key": "search"
"value": "subject_class:"Books/Publications/Communication/Sociology/Social sciences/Civilisation""
"[3]": {2 keys}
"value": "Collectors and collecting/Art/Arts"
"opacObjectFieldAttributes": [1 items]
"[0]": {2 keys}
"key": "search"
"value": "subject_class:"Collectors and collecting/Art/Arts""
"[4]": {2 keys}
"value": "Libraries -- Special collections -- Rare books/Public institutions/Associations, institutions, etc."
"opacObjectFieldAttributes": [1 items]
"[0]": {2 keys}
"key": "search"
"value": "subject_class:"Libraries -- Special collections -- Rare books/Public institutions/Associations, institutions, etc.""
"[5]": {2 keys}
"value": "Special libraries/Libraries/Public institutions/Associations, institutions, etc."
"opacObjectFieldAttributes": [1 items]
"[0]": {2 keys}
"key": "search"
"value": "subject_class:"Special libraries/Libraries/Public institutions/Associations, institutions, etc.""
"[29]": {2 keys}
"identifier": "subject_date"
"opacObjectFields": [0 items]
"[30]": {2 keys}
"identifier": "subject_event"
"opacObjectFields": [1 items]
"[0]": {1 keys}
"value": ""
"[31]": {2 keys}
"identifier": "subject_period"
"opacObjectFields": [1 items]
"[0]": {1 keys}
"value": ""
"[32]": {2 keys}
"identifier": "subject_object"
"opacObjectFields": [1 items]
"[0]": {1 keys}
"value": ""
"[33]": {2 keys}
"identifier": "subject_person"
"opacObjectFields": [1 items]
"[0]": {1 keys}
"value": ""
"[34]": {2 keys}
"identifier": "subject_place"
"opacObjectFields": [1 items]
"[0]": {1 keys}
"value": ""
"[35]": {2 keys}
"identifier": "assoc_person"
"opacObjectFields": [1 items]
"[0]": {1 keys}
"value": ""
"[36]": {2 keys}
"identifier": "assoc_place"
"opacObjectFields": [1 items]
"[0]": {1 keys}
"value": ""
"[37]": {2 keys}
"identifier": "assoc_event"
"opacObjectFields": [1 items]
"[0]": {1 keys}
"value": ""
"[38]": {2 keys}
"identifier": "assoc_object"
"opacObjectFields": [1 items]
"[0]": {1 keys}
"value": ""
"[39]": {2 keys}
"identifier": "user_sym_9"
"opacObjectFields": [1 items]
"[0]": {1 keys}
"value": ""
"relationshipsCollection": {2 keys}
"relationships": [1 items]
"[0]": {4 keys}
"relatedRecords": [1 items]
"[0]": {3 keys}
"slug": "nicholas-a-basbanes"
"title": "Nicholas A. Basbanes"
"relatedRecordId": "15101"
"relationshipId": "object_prod_pri_person"
"relatedRecordType": "person"
"totalRelatedRecords": 1
"totalRelationships": 1