Travis McDade

Rare Books

Professor McDade, curator of Law Rare Books, received his J.D. from Case Western Reserve University and his M.S.L.I.S. from the University of Illinois. He is the country’s foremost expert on crimes against rare books, maps, documents and other printed cultural heritage resources. His first book on the subject, The Book Thief: The True Crimes of Daniel Spiegelman, was the first to highlight the federal judicial recognition of books as cultural objects whose value cannot be adequately captured by market price. His second book, forthcoming from Oxford University Press, is called Thieves of Book Row: New York’s Most Notorious Book Theft Ring and the Man Who Ended it.

Professor McDade teaches Legal Research at the College of Law and Rare Books, Crime & Punishment at the Graduate School of Library and Information Science. He serves on the editorial boards of The Journal of Art Crime and Library and Archival Security. He has lectured extensively, including radio and television appearances, on the subject of book crime. He is also a regular commentator on the radio program, Legal Issues in the News, on WILL Illinois Public Radio.