A fascinating, one-of-a-kind journey through the world of stamps and collecting by maverick historian and writer Robert IrwinWhy do we collect? Is it to rescue objects from oblivion? Is it a kind of desire - or even a kind of madness? In this mosaic of fiction, philosophy, sociology, biography and autobiography, virtuoso thinker Robert Irwin takes us on a wayward journey through the art of collecting, and his own intellectual passions.Drawing on the works of writers including Susan Sontag, Walter Benjamin, Iris Murdoch and Georges Perec, as well as a host of lesser-known geniuses, flaneurs, obsessives and eccentrics, Irwin explores everything from mysticism to nostalgia, classical antiquity to surrealism, dreams to death. We join Thomas De Quincey on a night mail coach, encounter the man who set out to acquire every stamp ever issued and enter the badlands of fakes and forgeries, all in the company of a uniquely brilliant mind.This is a book of wonders; of labyrinthine digressions, good humour and a delight in small things. It is a meditation on the stuff of life.
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The Madman's Guide to Stamp Collecting 9781805337744 Hardback
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- Authors:
- Irwin, Robert
- Year Published:
- 2025
- Country of Publication:
- United Kingdom
- Format:
- Hardback
- ISBN:
- 9781805337744
- Number of Pages:
- 240
- Publication Date:
- 10/04/2025
- Publisher:
- Pushkin Press
- Language:
- English
- Place of Publication:
- London
- Imprint:
- ONE
- SKU:
- 9781805337744