William Eichler 01 June 2023

Amnesty sees library book returned 50 years late

A library book amnesty in East Sussex has seen the return of a book that is nearly half a century overdue.

The seven-week book amnesty by East Sussex County Council saw over 750 lost books returned.

One of the books, Havelok The Warrior by Ian Serraillier, was taken out from Hastings library nearly 48 years ago and should have been returned by 14 April 1975.

Cllr Claire Dowling, lead member for transport and environment at East Sussex County Council, said: ‘It’s wonderful to see these books returned to our libraries, and I would like to thank our residents for searching out any overdue items and for taking the time to return them to us.

‘Unfortunately, every year nearly 5,000 books fail to be returned to East Sussex libraries. The amnesty has seen many lost books return to our library shelves so books lovers can enjoy them once again.’

If this story is of interest, then check out our feature, 'Embracing the local library'.

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