It looks like some kid got hold of Mom's nail polish and painted the front and back covers in red and pink. The Help FAQ on conditions just says that front and back covers should be present, and no water damage. I wanted to get some opinions before I RWAP the sender.

The sucky thing is that this book was going to be a Book Train copy - read it and send it along to a group of internet romance friends. The bad condition of the cover sort of puts a wet blanket on it now. :-\

I would say it's staining. No staining is allowed.

Thanks Lisa. I'm really disappointed since it was the last copy in the system. :-(

I think a case can be made that it's writing, and writing is allowed on covers.

You can ask the sender, but if they feel that it's writing, they may not refund your credit.

Did they paint the whole cover? That might fall under "generally not in good condition". However, if it is just nail polish marks on the cover and not a substantial portion painted ... I'm not so sure that's against the rules.

If the nail polish is all over the book I would consider it both not in "good condition" and stained/soiled. The rules say writing is allowed on the cover, but I don't think it is meant to allow writing to every extent and in any substance. Its not up to the receiver to determine if that is nail polish or some other substance splashed all over the book. 

A book with a lot of a foreign substance all over the book should not be posted into the system IMO. It should be traded in the Bazaar were the condition can be explained so the receiver can know what they are getting beforehand.  If I received a book with a few swipes of nail polish in it, I would probably let it go and retire the book, but if it was all over the book I would RWAP.

If the nail polish is all over the book I would consider it both not in "good condition" and stained/soiled.

I agree. Nail polish is not natural or expeced on a book and it shouldn't have been posted.

I have an sensitivity to a lot of things and can't wear nail polish. I certainly wouldn't want to hold a book covered in it.

And if it's not nail polish, no telling what it could be. A recever shouldn't have to guess.

This is the condition of the book. The sender refunded my credit, said the pages were readable and didn't think the cover was a problem, and said I could send it back to her. I haven't responded yet, because seeing these other posts that it could be considered "writing" has me in doubt, but it IS pretty thoroughly "painted." I have rarely kicked up a fuss in my years here on PBS over a book's conditions and accepted all kinds of crap early on before I knew better. But this crossed a line. The sender should at least have sent a PM beforehand. I wish PBS had a way to list conditions like Bookmooch does. It would be SOOO helpful.

That is definitely a RWAP.  That is staining, I doubt you'd be able to remove the polish without further damage.

Yep. And if she wants it back she'll have to compensate you for that.

Help doc:

Remember that the requestor is not required to send a problem book back at his or her expense.   The sender of a problem book does risk losing credit, book and postage; this is the incentive not to send problem books. 

• If you want a problem book back you can provide a stamped, self-addressed envelope to the requestor by snail mail (or you can give the requestor an extra Book Credit to compensate for postage, if both of you agree on that).
• Refund and postage compensation must be completed first - before the requestor returns the book (= it is not OK to wait to refund credit until getting a problem book back in the mail, or to expect the requestor to send the book back before getting postage compensation as described above).

<<The sender should at least have sent a PM beforehand. I wish PBS had a way to list conditions like Bookmooch does. It would be SOOO helpful.>>

The sender should not have sent a PM, because this item should never have been posted.  PBS doesn't need condition statements, because all posted items are expected to meet or exceed the condition guidelines, period.  

I'm sorry you had this experience, and am glad she returned your credit.  Lisa is correct -- she does need to compensate you for postage before you send the book back, but you aren't obligated to send it back if you don't want to (unless, of course, you accept the postage compensation).  This looks like an older title that could be hard to come by -- you could still use it for your book train if the other members don't mind the cover.

The sender has resolved it. She doesn't want it back. Thanks for all your input. I have rarely had problems lately, so I was happy to get opinions on condition standards. :-)

Luckily there's a good image of the cover online, so that, a color printer, and some tape will make the cover passable!

Since the cover is already "ruined" why don't you try some nail polish remover or acetone? It might remove the polish and leave the cover intact. Try it on the back cover first.

And if it doesn't work, you're no worse off, eh?

Newer book covers are pretty resistant to acetone. I've used to it remove inkmarks and black marker from covers without damaging the cover.

 Doesn't work on older covers though. Takes all the ink off the cover.