Charles Davis writes “Story from
The Telegraph, See also
bizarrebooks.co.uk
Dealers in these tomes are laughing all the way to the bank.
“Here’s one,” says Brian Lake. “Criminal Life: Reminiscences of Forty-Two Years As A Police Officer. By Superintendent Bent.” His face creases with mirth.
Anyone who has ever pulled a Christmas cracker and, merry with port and clothed in an inadequate paper hat, provoked a fusillade of groans by reading out the motto, will be familiar with the genre: The Haunted House by Hugo First; Skiving Off by Marcus Absent.
Except that this is not a cracker joke. In 1891, the unfortunately named Charles Bent published, in all innocence, his memoir of a crime-fighting life. He can have had no idea of how, more than a century on, his book would be prized among antiquarian booksellers for its frontispiece rather than its contents.
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