I got this message

"AS soon as you are done with this book, please send it back to me ASAP. I am leaving the website and I would like to have my books back. No rush, please take your time and enjoy the book:) Thanks! "

Have you ever been asked to return a book? 

Occasionally there is a member who gets the impression that they are "lending" their books to other members. 

You are NOT obligated to return the book.  You paid a credit for it, and it's now yours.  You can let the other member know that she won't be getting her book back.

Edited to Add:  If she wants a copy of the book back, she can stay a member long enough to reorder the book--she should have the credit you spent on the book to order herself another copy.

I have never had anyone ask me to return a book.  I would do like Diane said and point out that this is not a book lending but a book trading site. Tell her if she wants the book back she can order it from you when you are done (or you can post it to her WL)-if you are a reposter.  Don't feel like you have to give up a keeper or rush to read this book.  She clearly did not read the rules/guidelines before joining if she thinks she'll get her books back.

I wouldn't wait to have her order the book from you.  Let her know that if she wants the book back, she will have to buddy you a credit to cover the cost of sending the book back to you. 

Anyone who would think that they were "lending" people books here didn't bother to read anything before signing up.

LOL ....  guess they're confused where the library is. 

I guess they don't get that when they send it out, it's not theirs anymore. I'm wondering if this person is willing to spend a credit to get the book back or do they just expect you to spend your postage dollars and send it back to them? Pretty good ... then they get the credit AND the book back. 

And I also wonder, how many books they sent out and are they trying to get them ALL back?? 

Anyhow, I've never gotten a request like this but I remember someone else did quite awhile back. 

As for what I'd do, send it back out of the goodness of my heart? No, because then they're ripping off the site and everyone that gave them a credit. If they wanted to pay another credit for it and it was not wishlisted, sure I'd send it back to them. If it was wishlisted book, I probably would not because I'd either post it FIFO, to a friend or offer it up in a forum if it was a particular genre.  

I had someone cancel an order one time for a wishlisted book they'd posted, because in reading further "I see that books aren't going to be returned, and I posted books from my keeper shelf. I thought we were just swapping and returning them."  *sigh* You really wonder why people don't read the site rules or at least the basics of how things work before they get all excited and post their whole bookshelf!

I wouldn't return it either...but that's just me. I very rarely read books as soon as I get them--I've got a TBR of about 600 books, so plenty to choose from and they often seem better if they've marinated on the shelf for awhile. LOL

I would send a PM saying something like, "I'm sorry you've misunderstood how PBS works, but when you send a book out and another member pays a credit for it, the book then belongs to them, it does not get returned to you. If you want the book back, you have to spend a credit to re-order it and it may not be the same copy you sent--I don't plan to read it for awhile yet, sorry."

Of course, you can do what you like...you're probably nicer than I am. :)

Cheryl

It's amazing to me that people sign up and start swapping books here before figuring out how this site works!  There is plenty of information in the help files on how this place operates.  I know that I spent quite a while reading through the help documents before I actually posted any books.  I wanted to make sure I knew what I was doing and that I was following all the rules.

It's also amazes me that someone (like in Cheryl's post) would be willing to send books from their "keeper shelf" to others to read and return.  If I have a book that I consider is a keeper, there are only a very few of my close friends I'd actually let borrow the book--no way would I send it to a total stranger and hope that it would be returned to me in decent condition!

Ok, I'm kind of in a cranky mood today so I'm just going to say it...............Some people are f.....g idiots!!

Please use the "Contact Us" button at the bottom of the page to contact the site owners and let them know about this. When you recieve a book through PBS it becomes your property. Asking for thier books back like this is akin to an ebay seller asking for all of their stuff back because they are leaving eBay. Chances are you are not the only member who is getting this message. Please let the owners know so they can advise this member that the books no longer belong to them.

I'm with Sandra D - and no matter what you do you can't make the system idiot proof

Ya know, I don't think I'd even bother to respond to that PM.  If they didn't read the rules of the site before they joined and started sending out books, then that's their problem.  (Can you tell it's been a long stressful week and I have no tolerance for stupidity at this point? LOL)

I've never been asked to return a book.

I'd tell them that, once I was done reading it and if I decided I wasn't keeping it, I would be happy to post it back to them if they are still a PBS member.  I wouldn't feel any pressure to read the book as soon as I got it.  I repost about 85% of the books I get from PBS.  Eventually anyway.  Some I keep for quite a while, either having read them or not.  I wouldn't feel obligated to read their book and send it back out to them right away though.

I too am wondering how many of those PMs they sent out.  Hopefully not a lot.  This is just another one of those things that goes hand-in-hand with a site/system with a fairly shallow learning curve; you don't have to read a lot of the help docs to start using it right away, and unfortunately, there is no shortage of people who do just that.  I'd suggest they read the site tutorial and tell them all swaps are permanent, then leave the response ball in their court.  I'm with whoever said that IF you don't want to keep the book in question mention that you will be willing to repost it so they can order it from your shelf, but I wouldn't move mountains for someone who never bothered to read how the site works.  Just the bare basics would have told them that much.

wow....that is soo funny.....I know I usually march to my own drum......but I did read the docs before I signed up (it was to good to be true..was looking for the scam.....lol)

So, if I have sent you a book please don't send it back to me!!!!!!!!

I don't think I could ignor that PM. I would have to answer and try very, very, very hard not to say "duh......"

I'd tell them that, once I was done reading it and if I decided I wasn't keeping it, I would be happy to post it back to them if they are still a PBS member.

How do you go about posting a book to a specific member?  I didn't even know you could do that.  If they put it on their wish list and you go to their wish list and click "Post this book" from there,  does it skip the queue and go directly to that member?

But if  they want their own book back and put it on their wish list, and it's already been posted,  or somebody else posts it before you do, wouldn't they get that one instead of their own copy? 

If there are no other wishers ahead of them and someone posts one before you can post it to their WL, then yes.  If that's the case though, you can always coordinate it with them to put it on their WL just prior to posting it for them.  As for how to, you open their WL from their profile or a forum post & when you see it on their shelf you click on "post this book" from there (DO NOT click on the title, or it will go in the system FIFO.  If it's not a WL book, you'd have to just put it on your PBS shelf and have them order directly from you.

Gavia, you go directly to that person's Wish List and post it from there.  You can also order a book directly from another member by requesting it from that person's Bookshelf.

Another great reason not to have a public "feedback" system.  Can you imagine what feedback would be given by this poor member who doesn't read the rules?

Ruth

Sammy - when did this member join?