I don't lend out my books and here's why

Hi guys ^^ So today I thought I would talk about something that I rarely ever bring up: lending out books to other people. Or as I like to call it, my book borrowing horror stories!

People have diverging views about it here in the book community. Some people argue that books are meant to be shared and that a worn out book is just a well loved book. I agree that there is a certain beauty to old, worn out books. I have several of my mom's old books and I love their 'old book smell' and their yellow pages. But a book ruined because someone just happened to be careless with it? That's something else entirely.

Some people won't even hear about sharing their books due to a series of past nightmarish experiences. I've been through some of said nightmarish experiences myself and I thought it would be fun (and maybe even therapeutic lol) to share them with you today!

That time my friend returned my book covered in ink

Honestly, I'm not sure how you can get ink all over a book cover. Like, did you do it on purpose, or what??? So basically what happened is that at some point during early high school, I lent my copy of Eye of the Dragon by Stephen King to a classmate. She told me she loved Stephen King and asked if she could borrow my book to read. Naturally, young and innocent Sou (that's me by the way) said yes. Weeks later, yes WEEKS, I get my book back and there are ink splotches all over the cover.... My friend doesn't even bring it up. She just gives me the book and mumbles thanks before leaving. I couldn't even say anything on the spot as I was half livid with nerdy fury and half incredulous. 

That time my friend wrecked my book's spine

DO NOT WRECK THE SPINE OF MY BOOKS. Ever!!! If you do, you might as well have issued a declaration of war and chances are I'll never speak to you ever again. It was the good old Twilight days and I was one of the girls in my class (I went to an all-girls high school) who actually had the sequels. So my classmate, who was a huge Twilight fan asked me if she could borrow my copy of New Moon. I was a little short on friends at the time and she was one of the few people I was actually friends with. You guessed it, I couldn't say no. And then she returned the book many days later with the spine completely ruined. When she saw I was pissed, she just shrugged and gave me the classic 'it's just a book' line. No girl. Just no! It's never just a book!

That time someone wrecked my book's spine so bad all the pages actually came loose

Look I did try to be a reasonable person when it came to book lending. Despite horrific experiences with it, I still tried to trust other people with my books. And this is what happened. And to my copy of Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince no less. Yes, that person wrecked my Harry Potter book. And it was so bad that all the pages came loose. If hearts could actually shatter, mine would have that day. In case you were wondering, I am still on talking terms with the person but I'm never, ever lending them my books again!

That time someone borrowed my book and never returned it

The dreaded book thief. Not the sweet German one. No, I'm talking about the one we probably all encountered at some point. The one who will tell you they are still reading it, that they haven't finished it. The one who will stall for weeks and then months before admitting that they lost your book. If you're lucky that is. Cause they might also just fall off the face of the earth, your book in tow, and you'll never hear from them again or see your book again. That happened to me only once and that was when I decided that I was done with lending out my books. 

I know that just because some people are disrespectful towards books that this is not the case with everyone. But personally, I've had too many awful experiences with it to continue letting people borrow my books. The only person who still borrows my books is my sister but that's largely because she's one of those rare, rare people I know I can always trust with my books. After all, it's not just money that builds a book collection, but also time and passion. And yes, a great deal of love. And if you're going to borrow someone's book, you must understand and respect that.

So what are your views on lending out books? Do share your thoughts with me in the comments!

Until next time, take care and read on 💛