Alexander Monker is an Ottawa-based collector of Canadian poetry. I met recently with him to talk about his passion for these and other books, and to get some advise on the art of book collecting. 

We also talk about, among other things, the kindness and knowledge of used/antiquarian booksellers, misspelled book titles online, the Contact, Gaspereau and Apt. 9 Presses, buying what you love, Anglo-Irish novelist Charles Lever, Walter Scott, buying duplicate copies of books for trade, learning all you can about your specialty areas, and sending books to poets for their signatures. Plus many other great book collecting tips.