Man returns a book to a library... 96 years later!
Almost a year ago, a mysterious anonymous reader returned a book borrowed... in 1927 from a Library in California.
Chris Kreide, the director of the St. Helena, California library, was surprised when one of her employees showed her a book in pitiful condition, returned by an anonymous citizen. "We didn't realize right away how old it was. It was falling apart and we were afraid to touch it," she says.
The miraculously recovered book, devoted to the history of the United States, was published in 1892 and had been borrowed from the library in 1927. Since then, it had simply disappeared. Inside, the librarians found a notice that stated, ironically: "This book can be kept for two weeks." The identity of the person who brought the book to the library is unknown, but he apparently mentioned his father when he dropped it off.
The estimated fine for such a delay is around $1,700, but the library has long since given up on fining latecomers, local media report.
In order to best preserve this relic, library staff put it in a display case. On its Instagram account, the institution posted several photos of this object that came back from nowhere: "It's never too late to return a book to the library," reads a message placed as a caption in the display case.
(MH with FL - Source: 20min.ch/Picture: Sara Cohen via Unsplash)
