Small-town reader outsmarts man who treats the library’s new arrivals like his personal stash: 'He got red, dropped the books on the counter, and stormed out'

Author image for Isabella Penn
Isabella Penn
Jan 25, 2026 4:00 PM EST

There is something uniquely absurd about waiting weeks—or months—for a digital library book. Anyone who has used Libby knows the feeling: a tap on "place hold," followed by a notification that you're somehow number 112 in line for a file that does not physically exist. No wear and tear. No coffee stains. Just vibes and scarcity. And yet, library holds remain one of the few systems in modern life that still prioritize fairness over speed, money, or entitlement.

You wait your turn, and then you get the book. That's how it works.

In one small town, though, a single patron quietly took advantage of the system. The town's only public library is already stretched thin by budget cuts, shorter hours, and a donation jar that's always out. Even so, the library still manages to offer plenty of new releases, thanks to a local donor who pays for new books.

That's where Derek comes in.

Derek acted like the New Arrivals shelf was his own subscription service. As soon as a popular book showed up, he'd arrive with his tote bag, grab everything from the front row, and later post online about "supporting literacy." He kept renewing the books, sometimes for weeks. Since the library's system lets you renew automatically unless someone else places a hold, Derek could keep the books as long as he wanted. In a small town where most people didn't bother with holds, no one stopped him.

The staff noticed, and so did the regulars. One librarian even sighed when someone asked about a missing book and said, "Derek has it. Again."

Rather than confronting him, a few readers decided to use the system as it was meant to be used. 

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  • They started placing holds on new releases as soon as they showed up in the catalog. A few regulars joined in—not enough to cause problems, but enough to make the waitlist real.

    Two weeks later, Derek couldn’t renew his books anymore.

    He came to the desk, frustrated, and loudly asked why the system “suddenly” wouldn’t let him renew his books. The librarian calmly explained that there were now several holds and the books had reached the end of their loan period. Rules were rules. Derek returned the books.

    The next day, the holds started clearing. New Arrivals were back on the shelf. Derek, who used to post a lot about literacy, stopped posting altogether.

    Sometimes the best solution isn’t to confront someone. It’s just letting the system work the way it’s supposed to.

  • Cheezburger Image 10599597568
    via Getty Images For Unsplash+

    Image is representative only and does not depict the actual subjects of the story.


     

  • "Local guy kept hoarding every new release at our library, so I weaponized the hold system"

    iron_leaf_7 https://www.reddit.com/r/revengestories/comments/1qj4bo3/local_guy_kept_hoarding_every_new_release_at_our/ - My town has one decent public library, and lately it's been kinda the only free thing left that doesn't feel like an ad.
    via iron_leaf_7
  • iron_leaf_7 https://www.reddit.com/r/revengestories/comments/1qj4bo3/local_guy_kept_hoarding_every_new_release_at_our/ - They've been dealing with budget cuts, shorter hours, the whole "please donate" jar at the desk.
    via iron_leaf_7
  • iron_leaf_7 https://www.reddit.com/r/revengestories/comments/1qj4bo3/local_guy_kept_hoarding_every_new_release_at_our/ - Still, they try hard. They also get a surprising amount of brand new books because some local benefactor pays for new releases.
    via iron_leaf_7
  • iron_leaf_7 https://www.reddit.com/r/revengestories/comments/1qj4bo3/local_guy_kept_hoarding_every_new_release_at_our/ - The problem is this one regular, I'll call him Derek, who treats the New Arrivals shelf like it's his personal subscription box.
    via iron_leaf_7
  • iron_leaf_7 https://www.reddit.com/r/revengestories/comments/1qj4bo3/local_guy_kept_hoarding_every_new_release_at_our/ - I'm not being dramatic: the day something hot drops, he's there at 10:01 with a tote bag, scoops the whole front row, then posts on Facebook about how he's "supporting literacy." He'd keep stuff for weeks, always renewed, always "oops I forgot." The library has auto- renew turned on unless there's a hold, so he basically had an infinite loan.
    via iron_leaf_7
  • XX
    via Shunya Koide For Unsplash+
  • iron_leaf_7 https://www.reddit.com/r/revengestories/comments/1qj4bo3/local_guy_kept_hoarding_every_new_release_at_our/ - I got used to waiting, but the final straw was when I asked the librarian if a specific title was coming back soon and she sighed and said, "Derek has it.
    via iron_leaf_7
  • iron_leaf_7 https://www.reddit.com/r/revengestories/comments/1qj4bo3/local_guy_kept_hoarding_every_new_release_at_our/ - Again." Like she'd said his name too many times already. I tried doing the polite thing first.
    via iron_leaf_7
  • iron_leaf_7 https://www.reddit.com/r/revengestories/comments/1qj4bo3/local_guy_kept_hoarding_every_new_release_at_our/ - I ran into him at the self-checkout and joked, hey save one for the rest of us.
    via iron_leaf_7
  • iron_leaf_7 https://www.reddit.com/r/revengestories/comments/1qj4bo3/local_guy_kept_hoarding_every_new_release_at_our/ - He did that fake laugh and said, "You just gotta be faster, that's the game." Then he actually added, "If you want it bad enough you can buy it." Cool, thanks, let me just print money in my kitchen.
    via iron_leaf_7
  • iron_leaf_7 https://www.reddit.com/r/revengestories/comments/1qj4bo3/local_guy_kept_hoarding_every_new_release_at_our/ - So I went home and looked up how holds work at our library, because I realized the system is designed to stop exactly this, it's just that nobody uses it in a small town.
    via iron_leaf_7
  • iron_leaf_7 https://www.reddit.com/r/revengestories/comments/1qj4bo3/local_guy_kept_hoarding_every_new_release_at_our/ - Holds are free, and if an item has a hold on it, it can't auto-renew. Also, if you don't return when it's due and there's a hold waiting, you start getting late fees and eventually you lose borrowing privileges.
    via iron_leaf_7
  • iron_leaf_7 https://www.reddit.com/r/revengestories/comments/1qj4bo3/local_guy_kept_hoarding_every_new_release_at_our/ - The next morning I placed holds on the next three new releases I wanted. Then I told two friends who also use the library (one's a single mom, one's a retired guy who reads like 4 books a week) to place holds too, same titles.
    via iron_leaf_7
  • iron_leaf_7 https://www.reddit.com/r/revengestories/comments/1qj4bo3/local_guy_kept_hoarding_every_new_release_at_our/ - Not a mob, just enough to make the queue real. We also started placing holds the minute the catalog showed a pre-order, so the holds were already sitting there before Derek could do his little sweep.
    via iron_leaf_7
  • iron_leaf_7 https://www.reddit.com/r/revengestories/comments/1qj4bo3/local_guy_kept_hoarding_every_new_release_at_our/ - Two weeks later, Derek tried to renew one of his stacks and got blocked. He came into the library loud about it, like the system had personally betrayed him.
    via iron_leaf_7
  • iron_leaf_7 https://www.reddit.com/r/revengestories/comments/1qj4bo3/local_guy_kept_hoarding_every_new_release_at_our/ - "It won't let me renew, what is this?" The librarian, sweetest woman alive, calmly said, "There are multiple holds.
    via iron_leaf_7
  • iron_leaf_7 https://www.reddit.com/r/revengestories/comments/1qj4bo3/local_guy_kept_hoarding_every_new_release_at_our/ - You've had it the full loan period, so it needs to come back." He tried to argue, then tried the guilt thing about how he "donates sometimes." She pointed at the policy sign and offered to print him the holds list, first names only.
    via iron_leaf_7
  • iron_leaf_7 https://www.reddit.com/r/revengestories/comments/1qj4bo3/local_guy_kept_hoarding_every_new_release_at_our/ - He got red, dropped the books on the counter like he was doing them a favor, and stormed out.
    via iron_leaf_7
  • iron_leaf_7 https://www.reddit.com/r/revengestories/comments/1qj4bo3/local_guy_kept_hoarding_every_new_release_at_our/ - The next day I got the email that my hold was ready. I picked it up, sat in the little reading area, and took my time opening that first page.
    via iron_leaf_7
  • iron_leaf_7 https://www.reddit.com/r/revengestories/comments/1qj4bo3/local_guy_kept_hoarding_every_new_release_at_our/ - Petty? maybe. But now the New Arrivals shelf actually has books on it again, and somehow Derek has stopped posting about literacy.
    via iron_leaf_7
  • iron_leaf_7 https://www.reddit.com/r/revengestories/comments/1qj4bo3/local_guy_kept_hoarding_every_new_release_at_our/ - Emergency-Ad9791 This actually makes me want to go to the library.
    via Emergency-Ad9791
  • iron_leaf_7 https://www.reddit.com/r/revengestories/comments/1qj4bo3/local_guy_kept_hoarding_every_new_release_at_our/ - now_you_see And how exactly do you know all of this. Especially the words he said & the colour of his face. They say that avid readers make the best writers; clearly not in this case lol.
    via now_you_see
  • iron_leaf_7 https://www.reddit.com/r/revengestories/comments/1qj4bo3/local_guy_kept_hoarding_every_new_release_at_our/ - ReeCardy While I love this, it doesn't make sense. Let's say he gets 5 new books every Tuesday. If he doesn't finish 1 book and wants to extend that loan, he is still returning 4 when he comes back the next week to get 5 new books. I am aware there are people who read multiple books every week. But this makes it sound like he wasn't returning any books when he is coming in the
    via ReeCardy
  • iron_leaf_7 https://www.reddit.com/r/revengestories/comments/1qj4bo3/local_guy_kept_hoarding_every_new_release_at_our/ - Beagle-wrangler Very cool you were there for the exchange even though you didn't have a book to pickup yet.
    via Beagle-wrangler
  • iron_leaf_7 https://www.reddit.com/r/revengestories/comments/1qj4bo3/local_guy_kept_hoarding_every_new_release_at_our/ - gromit 1991 Our library has a loan limit of 8 at any time. Also you can only renew 3 or 4 times. Won't that stop Derek's plans?
    via gromit1991

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reader revenge books library small town entitled people
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