Remember A Million Little Pieces? This former best-seller biography was rendered a paperweight when it was revealed the author made the whole thing up. It had been an item in the Oprah Book Club, and you DON'T cross The Oprah, so he got an earful from her the second time he was on her show.
Oprah vowed to all her viewers that she would never betray their trust by recommending a fraudulent book again. The next book she recommended was The Secret.
I still feel guilty about taking this one, even if the ends DO justify the means.
The day I found it, another teacher was going through the book bin at the same time, looking for salvageable free material. She was most interested in literary classics like Walden. I saw this one first, though, and called dibs, maybe without thinking. The problem is, The Prince isn't the kind of book you can leave lying around. Anyone who sees it at your house is going to start asking questions about you and any possible plans you may have. The only kind of person who can get away with owning The Prince, socially, is a teacher, because they can always claim "well, you know, it's a significant historical tome, so I need it for reference."
Dangit.....Why'd I take this? I'm not gonna "use" it, and I can't let anybody else see it, so the only thing I can do is throw it out. It shoulda been hers.
This one, I don't regret taking at all. It will remain in my library forever.
Best novel ever. It's too good for Oprah's cursed list.