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The Orchid Thief
The Orchid Thief
Author: Susan Orlean
In Susan Orlean's mesmerizing true story of beauty and obsession is John Laroche, a renegade plant dealer and sharply handsome guy, in spite of the fact that he is missing his front teeth and has the posture of al dente spaghetti. In 1994, Laroche and three Seminole Indians were arrested with rare orchids they had stolen from a wild swamp in sou...  more »
ISBN: 399950
Publication Date: 1998
Pages: 293
Rating:
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0 stars, based on 0 rating
Publisher: Ballantine Books
Book Type: Paperback
Other Versions: Hardcover, Audio Cassette, Audio CD
Members Wishing: 2
Reviews: Member | Write a Review

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PageSage avatar reviewed The Orchid Thief on + 10 more book reviews
Helpful Score: 1
This is the true story of a writer who investigates an old theft in the Florida Everglades. The character she's writing about is truly a character. This starts slow but i found myself fascinated with the orchid world and how the people who love them - who are obsessed with them, operate. I now own about 20 or so orchids myself; that's since I read the book! This was edifying/enriching but a very strange topic.
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sh0rtstak avatar reviewed The Orchid Thief on + 89 more book reviews
I just finished this book tonight and am sitting here pondering what in the world possessed me to order it in the first place. I must have thought it would involve a good mystery or something. I sure didn't expect it to go that deep into orchids, the weirdness of those who worship them, the many illegal ways they're obtained, and talk of a swamp over and over..and over. The main character, John Laroche was boring at best. It's like he used the Indians to do his dirty work and then got off scott free. I sincerely hated this book. I kept reading hoping it would get better but it didn't. I was really disappointed with the ending...the ever elusive ghost orchid that the whole book talked about and never finished with. Just a terrible, terrible book.


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