Magnificent Obsession. the Story of the Mitchell Library, Sydney.

The Mitchell Library, Sydney, was established as a result of the magnificent obsession of one man—David Scott Mitchell—who assembled the premier collection of books, manuscripts, maps and pictures relating to Australia and the Pacific. Mitchell bequeathed his collection to the State Library of New South Wales on his death in July 1907 with an endowment of £70 000 to fund additions. The library that emerged as a result was shaped in part by the richness of its continually expanding collections, the beauty of its buildings and its relationship with the rest of what is now the State Library.

Brian Fletcher's engaging narrative has a strong focus on the people who, for over a century, have nurtured and developed the library, often with an obsession the equal of Mitchell's. H.C.L. Anderson put his career on the line in order to secure the initial bequest and the redoubtable Ida Leeson's appointment as the first female Mitchell Librarian became a cause célèbre. We learn also of the readers, the benefactors, and the behind-the-scenes dramas which inevitably occur between passionate and committed people.

Magnificent Obsession: the story of the Mitchell Library, Sydney describes the riveting stories and the thrill of the chase as the accumulation of these world-renowned collections continued. Mitchell's original gift of 40 000 books has now increased to almost 600 000. 'Not held by the Mitchell Library' is booksellers' code around the world for 'of the utmost rarity'.

Fletcher brings to life not only an invaluable Australian institution but one of the great research libraries of the world in this social and cultural history that all readers interested in Australia's past will find fascinating.