Is it ever too late to return a library book?
Well, the answer is no, at least for an 86-year-old who borrowed a book from the Multnomah County Library in the American city of Portland in Oregon state.
In 1958, the person, whose gender is not known, borrowed a first-edition copy of George Orwell’s dystopian novel 1984. The book was returned to the library 65 years later, on May 16, with a note attached.
The borrower, who signed off as “WP” in the note, said: “I meant to return this book in 1958 when I (was) about to graduate from PSU (Portland State University) that year, but somehow never got around to doing it.
“After re-reading, I realise that more than ever, this book should be put back in circulation. Significant parts are as relevant today as they were 65 (years) ago… At age 86, I wanted to finally clear my conscience.”
On Wednesday, the library posted a photo of the book and the note on its Facebook page.
In the post, the library said: “Fine-free libraries for the win… It even has the Library Association of Portland stamp on the pages. Conscience cleared.”
It appears that the borrower did not have to pay a fine.
In 2020, the library said on its website that it will “permanently stop charging late fines on all library materials, clear all existing fines and restore access to accounts blocked because of fines, effective immediately”.
The novel, 1984, is about a dystopian future where totalitarian rulers deprive their citizens of all agencies in order to maintain support for senseless wars.
First published in 1949, the book features a devious “Big Brother” government that spies on its citizens and forces them into “doublethink”, or simultaneously accepting contradictory versions of the truth.
In 2022, the novel topped electronic bestseller lists in Russia. It was the most popular fiction download that year on the platform of Russian online bookseller LitRes, and the second most popular download in any category.
In 2017, the novel saw a boom in popularity after one of then American President Donald Trump’s advisers used the term “alternative facts”, a phrase found in the book. In the same year, sales in Britain soared by 165 per cent, according to publisher Penguin Books.
In recent months, there were other library books – missing for decades – that were returned.
For instance, in May, a history book about the United States, which was almost 100 years overdue, was returned to a library in California, said media reports.
In February, a 70-year-old woman, who kept a library book for 56 years, returned it to the Whitley Bay library in the United Kingdom, the BBC reported.
