Book Handling: Things Found in Books

We have pretty much seen it all.

Things get left in books and we do the best we can to find them.

Things like...photos of pets, family and friends, love letters, paperclips, sticky notes, receipts, doodles, old homework assignments, toilet paper, coupons, membership cards, condoms, lottery tickets, duct tape, playing cards, sugar packets, newspaper clippings, candy and gum wrappers, money, scotch tape, price tags, handwritten notes, phone numbers, squished bugs, drivers licenses, candy, flowers, glue, art projects, jewelry, stickers, Q-tips, phone numbers, origami...

and SO MUCH MORE...

A small sample of things we have found in the books at Memorial Library.
Photo courtesy of J.Myers who worked with the Circulation department to collect things found in books for 1 full year. 

Though we can get a chuckle out of some of the things people leave behind in library books, it is important to remember that many things can damage books if left inside for too long. For instance, office tapes and glues chemically change and damage the paper inside books, paperclips rust and tear paper, acidic papers and sticky notes cause a nasty chemical reaction to occur. Three-dimensional objects and wet items can warp the pages while leftover food and squished bugs can cause their own problems. Eventually the book may begin to deteriorate. All this can bring a book to its untimely end!

An ironic comic strip found as a bookmark in a returned library book. Photo courtesy of J. Myers.

The truth is that bookmarks are not exactly things people have on hand most of the time. If a person picks up a book and reads then gets a little distracted, his or her natural inclination will be to put the smallest closest object inside the book to keep track of where he or she left off.

So, Here’s What You Can Do to Help!:
1. Use a bookmark – Ask the Library and we will gladly give you some!
2. Can't find a bookmark? No problem! Grab some plain white printing paper - most are acid-free!
3. Please avoid dog-earring, use of sticky notes and paperclips!
4. Please do not write or highlight in books.
5. Do not attempt to mend or repair a book, especially with office tapes and glues. This will damage the book even more. We have a Preservation department who will be happy to do it!
6. And, most importantly, take out your “bookmark” before returning a book to the library. This tiny action can make all the difference for others to enjoy this same book in the many years to come!

The smallest changes can make the biggest differences. 

Comment below if you have ever found something interesting inside a book!

Jamie Dalbey is a Preservation and Government Documents Technician at Minnesota State University, Mankato.