Page 74 of Booked for Theft

I gave Ajani a few pets before setting her loose, and she went to check on her kittens, sitting beside Bradley while purring. “I don’t suppose you can confirm if books are being chosen because President Castillo views them as fairly worthless?”

“It is definitely playing a role. One of the books was actually recommended by President Castillo to be offered as a gift; the impression from that one was rather strong. He is of the opinion that librarians are much like dragons. If given a book, it will be hoarded and never shared. He projects his personal views of the world onto you, so he views you having these titles as a way to earn grace and respect.” Bradley’s father picked up one of the books from the box and set it on the table. “It’s this one, for the record. The book used to belong to Representative Dareth, purchased at an auction overseas.”

I nodded. “I’ll go get my other acquisitions, and if you could scan them, I’d be appreciative.”

“Of course. Have you gotten anything of use from them, Bradley?”

My fiancé shook his head. “I haven’t invested much effort in trying, truth be told. I’m only going to get the strongest things, and I’d be concerned I’d end up trying to peek into distant past—and I do not want to deal with that sort of headache.”

While I wanted to stick around and eye my future husband over his comment, I went to my office, put on my gloves, and ferried all my new books back to the dining room, handing them over with another pair of gloves. “If you want to handle them without gloves, wash your hands first. The soap to use with books is labeled books in the hallway bathroom.”

The older man chuckled, put on the gloves, and went to work checking everything over. “I can work with gloves on in this case, but if I need to have direct contact, I’ll wash my hands appropriately.”

I picked up the book President Castillo had recommended, tore off the paper, and raised a brow. Rather than one book, it turned out to be a set of three in tattered cloth and publisher’s board, so old I worried it might fall apart with any incorrect handling. Careful to support all three, I turned them to view the spines.

“Pride and Prejudice?” I blurted.

The book wasn’t on any banned lists, and I’d first read it as a child as part of a reading assignment, loving everything about the title, from its dated romantic elements to the foreign nature of the characters’ behaviors.

“It’s not just Pride and Prejudice, it’s a first edition of it. Those used to belong to a library overseas, but after the place burned, these were among the few that survived, and the set was sold so the library could be rebuilt. Representative Dareth wrote the book off as a charitable contribution, and while he loves old things, books included, he made the purchase because of its rarity rather than for any love of the book. President Castillo believes there are many overlaps with you and Bradley, so he thought it would make a good gift. Surprisingly genuine coming from him. President Castillo was truly delighted when he realized Representative Dareth was considering the set as a gift for you.”

“Can you tell when this happened?” I asked.

Bradley’s father nodded. “President Castillo, from what I can tell, had paid a personal visit to Representative Dareth’s home to discuss how he was to play his role in an upcoming bill. Representative Dareth then asked for President Castillo’s opinion on all the books in his box. They were all approved, although the representative did take the time to explain the reasoning for the choices. Fortunately for our cause, the reasons boiled down to a certainty you hadn’t read anything other than Pride and Prejudice before. President Castillo took the bait hook, line, and sinker.”

“He really just thinks I’m a book addict, doesn’t he?”

“Basically. You’re a book addict who put some sticks in the spokes, but the way you put the sticks in the spokes has ultimately served him well—at least for the moment. He’s satisfied that you are not a threat, however. You were discussed. When President Castillo asked Representative Dareth about your general inclinations, especially for politics, the answer was rather illuminating. The representative broke down laughing and said the only time you might be a risk to anyone about anything is if there were imperiled books nearby—or if Bradley got into trouble. As long as the library systems are preserved, you’ll be readily contained. You have no aspirations nor talent for politics. In fact, Representative Dareth doubts you could lie even if you wanted to. And President Castillo agreed with him on that score. Genuinely, I might add.”

How interesting. “I don’t suppose the subject on why so many of these books are a felony came up, did it?”

“To a degree. Representative Dareth asked why one of the books was on the banned list.” Bradley’s father went through the box and pulled out a thicker title. “This one, specifically.” A second book of similar length joined it in a pile beside me. “Those are actually the same book. The first one is in Russian. The second one is a later translation into English.” He rummaged even more, pulling out a package of a different size. “This is going to be one of the crowned jewels of your collection, I’m sure. This somehow survived the ages, and is the original partial printing spread across numerous periodicals. Much like Pride and Prejudice, it came from an auction to rebuild a library following a disaster. The owner was a private collector, however. Do take care with opening them. They’re all first editions.”

“How can one title have three first editions?”

“One is the first edition of the fully completed book, one is the first view the world got to see of the title as it evolved, and the last is the first edition printed into English,” Bradley’s father informed me. “It counts, although it only counts because of the nature of the book. The wife is going to be ridiculously jealous, as her copy is from the last print run before it was purged from American libraries, bookstores, and digital collections.”

I turned to Bradley’s mother. “What do I have to do to get that copy out of your hands?”

Bradley’s father laughed. “You won’t have to do anything. I saw it in the boxes we brought over for you. I’m sure the wife is going to be over frequently to visit that one. She rereads it with alarming regularity.”

“I’m sorry,” I told Mrs. Hampton.

“Don’t be sorry. If I didn’t want you to have them, I wouldn’t have given them to you. But yes, all four of those books are definitely felonies, quite serious ones. The banned list has the title in every language it was ever printed in.”

“My office is going to be a one massive felony, but it will also be a thing of beauty, Bradley.”

My fiancé chuckled. “That’s one way of putting it. Are you even going to have enough shelves in there?”

“I’ll have to move out all of my permitted titles to our library, but for now, I’ll probably manage.”

In reality, I would have at least six empty bookcases even after unloading all my new boxes of books.

I selected the English first edition and took care with taking off the wrapping paper, revealing a copy of War and Peace by Leo Tolstoy. I’d heard of the title, but thanks to its status as banned, I hadn’t known what it had been about or why it had a reputation for being obnoxious. “Do you know why this was banned?”

Bradley’s mother shrugged. “I suspect it is due to Tolstoy’s views regarding how history should have been recorded in the era he wrote it. It challenges the standardized norm, and such challenges are viewed as particularly dangerous, especially by our government. Any book that challenges the norm, for the most part, made the banned book list. Those that openly challenge rather than subtly do so were turned into felonies. The government’s stance regarding the legal gifting of these books preserves the ability of the rich to maintain their wealth. The smart read and learn, and they play the game within the government’s rules, preserving their life and perceived liberties. There is little care for everyone else. Most don’t even know these books once existed.”

“It becomes the domain of librarians, who have to check the banned list during the acquisition process,” I muttered. “You would think President Castillo would be more wary of a librarian with access to the banned book list and the books figuring all this out and deciding to expose everything.”