An Affair with Stamps

In the new book The Error World: An Affair with Stamps author Simon Garfield writes about an “ordinary” life made unusual by his obsession with stamp collecting.

In a review posted on the TimesOnLine website, reviewer Christopher Hart writes, "...unlike other forms of collecting, buying, consuming and hoarding, Garfield points out that the nature of stamp collecting is partly non-consumerist, as we safeguard artefacts that previously would have been used up and thrown away..."

Garfield began collecting when he was 8 and lost interest in stamp collecting around 20.

"Only later would he connect this revived hobby with the gradual decline and then break-up of his marriage, and a subconscious longing for the simple pleasures of his boyhood"

At one point he even took his stamp album along to his marriage-guidance counselor and said he intended to sell his collection. She observed that their sale might signify a new start.

To read the entire article, click here.

For an excerpt from the book, click here.