In one volume, an anthology of seminal work of one of the twentieth century’s most original thinkers, René Girard. This is a great place to start for newbie’s to Girard’s mimetic theory.
The only drawback is that this book is out of print and thus is ridiculously expensive; however, it does contain essential nuggets of Girard’s thought and worth the read for those who want to drop the coin. This book includes Girard’s seminal insights into literary theory, the scapegoat mechanism, mimetic rivalries, and the foundational role of mimetic desire in all of this.
Check out The Girard Reader on Amazon.