A book that was overdue for nearly half a century has finally been returned to the library.
Diana Edwards tells the Midcoast Villager that she checked out a copy of the children’s book Bunches and Bunches of Bunnies from the Camden Public Library in Maine back in 1979. She brought it back in October 2025, 46 years later.
As Edwards explains, she came across the forgotten Bunches and Bunches of Bunnies while packing up for a move.
“I looked for a dedication — i.e., Love from Grandmother, or Hugs from Aunt Sherry, but there was none,” Edwards says of opening up the book. “It was then that I realized it was a library book — the Camden Public Library. The due date was 1979!”
“My children and I lived on Pearl Street [in Maine] from the mid-1970s to around 1984 when we moved to Vermont,” she continues. “Those bunnies have been traveling with me since then.”
Edwards decided it was time for Bunches and Bunches of Bunnies to return to its original home, and made the trip back to the library.
“As one might imagine, it was a deep breath moment as I approached the circulation desk,” Edwards says.
Instead of being met with disappointment and condemnation, Edwards was greeted with excitement from the librarians.
“The women at the circulation desk couldn’t have been more welcoming and kind,” Edwards says. “They were excited to actually see a book that had been checked out for so long! It was then that one of them commented on the great condition of the book. (My one moment of redemption!)”
Edwards did not have to pay any late fees, which the library has since gotten rid of, but she did make a donation.