Becky Stone loves to read stories about princesses who save themselves and firmly believes that a mug of hot chocolate paired with the right novel can solve almost any problem. Becky recently did that thing where you leave your safe, easy job to try to make money doing what you love, and is now a professional jewelry lover and freelance writer. You can find more of Becky at her blog, Diamonds in the Library, where she writes about both jewelry and books. Twitter: @DiamondsintheLi
Tragic image thanks to The Harry Ransom Center
Lending a book to a friend always seems like a wonderful idea. You get to feel like a magnanimous literary Yenta and your friend enjoys the privilege of reading the free book that you carefully selected just for her.
But there is a dark side. I’m all too familiar with that moment when I accept a book I’d lent out and discover that it doesn’t look anything like it did when I last held it. Rips, spills, broken bindings; many are the mishaps that can befall a borrowed book. I understand that creases are a part of life, but when I lend you one of my books, I am trusting you to care for it as if it were your own.
The uncertainty ends today.
For the protection of your books and mine, I offer the following document. Never again will we hold a returned book in our hands, wondering why it is in two pieces when previously it was only one.
I ______________, (“the borrower”) hereby apply to borrow a book from ___________ (“the owner”). I recognize that book borrowing is a privilege administered on a case-by-case basis by the owner, and that borrowing one book does not mean I will be permitted to borrow future books. By signing below, I agree to be held responsible for the following conditions.
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The borrower must make every effort to keep the book free of foreign substances, smells, and/or objects. This includes, but is not limited to: food; drink; drink-like foods (soup); food-like drinks (smoothies); bodily fluids; anything that was previously attached to a human or animal, such as hair and fingernails; particles of anything crunchy, recognizable or not; bookmarks with stupid sayings; cat pictures that the owner will not find adorable; and personal notes that are not interesting to the owner.
B. Right of Refusal
The owner has the right to refuse to loan any book at any time. It is not necessary to provide an explanation; however, if the owner does offer an explanation, the rejected borrower does not have the right to take offense and/or argue. Valid explanations may include, but are not limited to, the following:
