I recently requested a book and got a really nice note back from the sender, saying there was a tear/chunk out of the front cover - enough that the author's last name couldn't be read.   I mentioned that the rules say the book is only postable if the tear is small - less than an inch - and asked him if he could be more specific about the size.  I basically got back a pm saying the tear was "very small" and in the bottom right corner of the cover.  Now, I'm thinking that if the author's last name is unreadable, it's not a "very small" tear, so I told him I didn't want it because I wasn't sure it was postable, and I didn't want to get stuck with it, and I cancelled the order.

So to get to the point - not knowing what the tear actually looks like, do you think the book was okay?  Should I have accepted it or was it a violation of the rules?  I'm just trying to figure out if I should just go ahead and re-request the book, since he had the only copy. :)

there is no way to know without being able to see the cover.  too bad they couldn't have emailed you a picture of the cover and let you decide.  There is no telling with the book cover and placement of names and such as to whether or not the book is postable

My personal opinion is that if there is enough damage to a book that the person feels they need to warn someone before sending it, it shouldn't be posted. The sender could have easily measured the amount of cover missing to see if it was less than an inch and told you, or just send the book if it met guidelines. I would have been like you and gotten suspicious when the exact information wasn't given.  I love all books, even those that look well loved, but not all of them are postable here.

Sounds like the guy might have been trying to get by with trading an unpostable book.  He could have measured it for you and given the dimensions.  I think you were wise to turn it down, but next time, make him cancel the order so that you can get the next book in line, and/or go on the wishlist for it.