I've been a PBS member for many years and have never had a problem with books damaged in the mail ... until this summer. Two of the books I've mailed arrived intact but with wrapping badly torn. One was a paperback that went to Michigan; one a hardback that went to Florida. Both were mailed at my local post office and had preliminary sorting in Portland, Oregon, before going on the rest of their journey.

So, the question is -- are the odds just now catching up with me after successfully mailing thousands of books? Or has the post office put in new and more hungry machines?

How about other swappers? Are you seeing more damaged packaging?

I'm not. Everything I've received in the past year or so has been fine. Well, except for one.

The Sampsonite gorilla must be moonlighting in a USPS sorting center near you

I got two today that were mangled in the machines. One book held up ok and just damaged the packaging but the other book was so messed up. It must have happened at the last sorting center. (Neither were PBS books but from Amazon sellers. Both used those poly bags.)

I bought a package of plastic (2.5 mm) envelopes from Amazon because both of the post offices that I use told me that they prefer the plastic envelopes. They said that the paper (manilla, bubble wrap lined) envelopes will tear and the plastic envelopes almost never tear. They are also waterproof, which is good if you are mailing to rural route address. Some mail boxes are leaky when it rains and a package can be exposed to the elements for several hours before the recipient gets home. The post office says the plastic envelopes are much more durable and that it is not necessary to wrap the book tightly in the envelope.

PS: I still wrap the book in plastic to keep it from getting mussed looking during transit. Just a little insurance against rough handling.

The plastic or tyvek envelopes are great.  They are water resistant, not water proof.  Alot of that depends on how well the package is sealed.

I have worked at the PO for more than 30 years.  I still would recommend that the book be tightly wrapped to help prevent damage to the corners and spine of the book.  Any time an item is loose in the envelope you run the risk of tears to the envelope (even the plastic ones).

Regularly happening to us........just received daughter's paperwork to renew her college apartment for next August and the 5 x7 envelope and contents were shredded into about 3 equally sized strips........it's always funny how the PO packages the pieces in a ziplock and sends on to you, but I guess that way you at least can try to ID what it was and contact the sender.

"The post office says the plastic envelopes are much more durable and that it is not necessary to wrap the book tightly in the envelope."

Uh yeah that's totally false. Even with the thickest and most durable of mailers, you risk both the book being damaged and the poly mailer ripping open if the book is floating around loose in there. 

But I've had issues with HC books poking thru at the corners when tightly mailed to me in the plastic or tyvek envelopes. No damage fortunately, probably cause no rain here in FL in dry season.

PBS used to recommend that hardback books be mailed in bubble or padded envelopes to prevent the sort of damage Jeanne describes. It just makes sense. No one type of envelope is ideal for all books. That's why I save the mailers I receive from other PBS senders...I can usually find the ideal envelope for  the book I need to send.

I know that this is an old post, but if you have a couple of packages that arrive mangled that were mailed virtually at the same time, contact your post master so that s/he can file an investigation.  Very likely, it is at the first sorting station.  The post office guy told me that most of the packages like those from PBS are hand placed on conveyor belt, not machine sorted the same way as commercial packages.   I've received a couple of books that had popped their packages years ago (heavy books without adequate tape), but nothing has been a problem recently.