Ten books about the mysterious world of audiophiles

Luke Geddes's new novel is Heart of Junk.

At CrimeReads he tagged "ten of the many mystery and mystery-tinged books about audiophiles," including:

Do Not Sell at Any Price by Amanda Petrusich

The title of this nonfiction book refers to 78rpm records so singular in their rarity that they are literally priceless. Petrusich embeds herself with a cadre of deeply committed collectors as they follow leads and resort to Indiana Jones levels of ingenuity to track down and recover records as rare as Biblical artifacts. One memorable incident involves a scuba expedition in Grafton, Wisconsin. But the collectors’ aim is ultimately less hoardery and more altruistic; they digitize and preserve the historical recordings, many of which have survived only in quantities of one. In light of the Universal Studios fire that allegedly destroyed more than a hundred-thousand priceless master recordings from artists as diverse and important as Buddy Holly, Blackstreet, the Carter Family, Rosemary Clooney, and Lionel Essrog’s beloved Prince—among many, many others—their work feels all the more heroic.

Read about the other entries on the list.

--Marhal Zeringue