Paul Collins is one of my favorite writers of historical true-crime, as seen in his wonderful books Blood & Ivy and Duel with the Devil. When I learned about his first book, Banvard’s Folly, I knew I had to get my hands and eyes on it. The subtitle promises a fascinating collection: Thirteen Tales of Renowned Obscurity, Famous Anonymity, and Rotten Luck. The book jacket positions it as a story of antiheroes: people who “might have claimed their renown but who, whether from ill timing, […]