It is lucky for Diana Edwards (formerly Fifield) that the Camden Public Library does not have a library detective, like the one featured on that long-ago episode of “Seinfeld.”
On Oct. 25, Edwards went into the library to return a book that had been due to be returned by Aug. 10, 1979. The library staff was pretty excited to see it returned and in great shape considering it had been out since the days of the Dewey Decimal System.
Edwards, who used to live on Pearl Street and now lives out of state, had been in the process of packing up the boxes of her books for a move from Massachusetts to Keene, New Hampshire. She was engaged in the usual process of distributing some of the collection to family members and some to be sold or donated. Other treasures were to be kept.
“I held onto books from my childhood and titles my own children had loved — the Eloise series, Tasha Tudor’s ‘A Time to Keep,’ and Robert Barry’s ‘Mr. Willowby’s Christmas Tree’ were among their favorite reads.”
Then she came across one that she had forgotten: “Bunches and Bunches of Bunnies” by Louise Mathews with pictures by Jeni Bassett, published in 1978.
“I looked for a dedication — i.e., Love from Grandmother, or Hugs from Aunt Sherry, but there was none. It was then that I realized it was a library book — the Camden Public Library. The due date was 1979!”
“My children and I lived on Pearl Street from the mid-1970s to around 1984 when we moved to Vermont. Those bunnies have been traveling with me since then.”
Some people might have shrugged and tossed the book into one of the piles to be distributed or moved. Edwards had to do the right thing.
“As one might imagine, it was a deep breath moment as I approached the circulation desk,” she said.
We asked library Executive Director Kristy Kilfoyle what the fine must have been after all of that time. Did it keep building like the reverse of bank interest over 46 years? Could this lead to prosecution, fines, imprisonment, or a visit from Lt. Joe Bookman, who had previously gone after Jerry Seinfeld for his failure to return “Tropic of Cancer”?
Library staff responded with laughter to this. “We don’t have fines anymore,” Kilfoyle explained.
At one point the library did, which was 10 cents per day up to $5, at which point a person was cut off from taking out further books. Even the cost of replacing the book would have amounted only to $6.95, which was the price on the book in 1978.
Of course, the book is now out of print, according to our AI helper on the Interwebs. We found a copy on Amazon going for the price of $48.55.
But in any case, all was forgiven, which is good news for anyone guiltily sitting on old, even ancient library books out there.
“The women at the circulation desk couldn’t have been more welcoming and kind,” Edwards reported. “They were excited to actually see a book that had been checked out for so long! It was then that one of them commented on the great condition of the book. (My one moment of redemption!) Those two women turned what might have been an awkward moment into a lovely conversation. Hats off to them both!”
The women in question are Amy Hand, director of youth services, and Nora Curry, collection development librarian.
“Bunches and Bunches of Bunnies,” in case you are wondering, is a counting book that helps children learn math by adding up and multiplying bunches and bunches of colorfully drawn bunnies.
“We just want the items back so the rest of the community can enjoy the book,” Kilfoyle said.
As for Edwards, she made a donation to the library, but would nonetheless have remained in good standing with the institution either way upon the return of the treasured volume.
This story appears through a media partnership with Midcoast Villager.
