Book nearly 90 years overdue returned to New York library – NBC New York
We’ve all had overdue library books before, but this one may set some sort of record.
A library in Westchester County said it received a package recently containing a book that was due back on Oct. 11 — of 1933. It was received in September, making it about a month shy of hitting 90 years overdue.
The Larchmont Public Library said it received a package from Virginia of the book that was very, very overdue. The book in question was “Youth and Two Other Stories,” by Joseph Conrad, which was published in 1925.
So how much would it have been in overdue fees? The library said that at 20 cents a day, the fine could have reached over $6,400. But because of the library’s rules, the site said the fine would have been just $5.
That’s because the Larchmont Public Library has a policy for long-overdue books. Any item not returned after a month is considered “lost” by the library, and the patron must pay for the initial price of the book to replace it. But when the book is returned, the maximum fine reverts to just $5 — no matter how long it has been delinquent, according to the site.
The library thanked the woman who found the book, Joanie Morgan, who they said found the book among her step-father’s belongings and shipped it to them. The book is now back with the library.
