By Tim Binnall
The staff at a library in California were understandably astounded when they received an overdue book that had been checked out in 1927. According to a local media report, the long-lost tome was dropped off at the St. Helena Public Library last week by a mysterious man who offered little explanation for the strange delivery. "One of my staff members came up and said somebody had returned that book," said Library Director Chris Kreiden, noting that their initial intrigue over the crumbling publication, titled A History of the United States, turned to amazement when they took a closer look at it and realized that it was actually a whopping 96 years overdue.
"All of us are wondering where the book could have been so long," she mused, marveling that the first time it had ever been checked out of the library was back in 1892. As for the man who brought the tome back, Kreiden indicated that no one on the staff recognized the mysterious stranger and the only clue as to the story behind the book's nearly century-long disappearance was that he mentioned his father, "but we didn't catch anything else." To that end, they are now hoping that the man will revisit the library to shed light on the tome's tale and, as such, have waived the $1,700 late fee that it accrued over the last 96 years.