"A fascinating intellectual adventure story...an astonishingly imaginative book." --USA Today "An intriguing literary adventure story, written with flair, imagination, and precision. By recreating the journey of a strange and remarkable map thief, author Miles Harvey takes readers on a compelling exploration of the weird world of maps." --Susan Orlean, author ofThe Orchid Thief "Beguiling...as with the best of maps, the more one looks, the more fascinating and intriguing it all becomes." --Simon Winchester, author of theProfessor and the Madman

The Island of Lost Mapstells the story of a curious crime spree: the theft of scores of valuable centuries-old maps from some of the most prominent research libraries in the United States and Canada. The perpetrator was Gilbert Joseph Bland, Jr., an enigmatic antiques dealer from South Florida, whose cross-country slash-and-dash operation had gone virtually undetected until he was caught in 1995and was unmasked as the most prolific American map thief in history. As Miles Harvey unravels the mystery of Bland's life, he maps out the world of cartography and cartographic crime, weaving together a fascinating story of exploration, craftsmanship, villainy, and the lure of the unknown.