Library books returned to Portland Univ. -- 52 years later

Two long overdue novels – reportedly borrowed 52 years ago – were returned to Portland University with an anonymous handwritten note earlier this month, the Washington Postreports.

And the two books -- Basic Principles of Speech and Preface to Critical Reading -- are so outdated school librarians don’t know what to do with them, reports the Oregonian.

While there's typically a $110 charge for replacing books, school officials assure the anonymous person that he or she won’t face disciplinary action.

"We don't care who it is," librarian Joan Petit, told the Oregonian. "We'd just like to say, 'Thank you, and we're sorry they felt so bad.'"

Besides, she says, “We typically want our books back, but in this case, we didn’t really know they were gone."

This story originally appeared on the Paste BN College blog, a news source produced for college students by student journalists. The blog closed in September of 2017.