Extremely Overdue Library Book/Playing With

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Basic Trope: A character has a library book that is overdue by months or even years.

  • Straight: Bob has a library book that is 20 years overdue.
  • Exaggerated: Bob has a book that is 200 years overdue, which was borrowed by his now-deceased great-grandfather.
  • Downplayed: Bob has a book that is only three months overdue.
  • Justified: Bob is very bad at keeping track of things.
  • Inverted:
    • Bob has a book that is a negative number of years overdue.
    • The book is returned very early, as in a few minutes after being checked out.
    • Bob Time Travels to the future, borrows a book and returns to his own time period. As a result, he'll get to keep the book for 20 years.
  • Subverted: Charlie had just taped a label on the back of the book saying it was checked out a long time ago...
  • Double Subverted: ...but Charlie was the librarian, and he used the labels because the date-stamp was out of ink.
  • Parodied: When Bob receives the notice, the heading is "20-Year-Overdue Notice"
  • Zig Zagged: Bob has a book that is 20 years overdue, but the date is just a label showing that it was borrowed three weeks ago. But that date was also just a fake label.
  • Averted:
    • Bob does not borrow any books.
    • Bob turns in his books on time or only a few days overdue.
    • There are no books in the work.
    • There are no libraries in the work.
  • Enforced: "We need to show how irresponsible Bob is. I know! Let's make him have a book that is a very long time overdue!"
  • Lampshaded: "Oh dear! The book was checked out 20 years ago!"
  • Invoked:
    • Bob checks out a book, hides it somewhere, and then takes it out again 20 years later.
    • Alice, wanting to get Bob into trouble, hides the book he borrowed from the library.
  • Exploited: Alice offers to pay Bob the money for his late fees if he helps around her house.
  • Defied: When borrowing a book from the library, Bob puts the book somewhere where it is easy to find and puts the due date on his calendar.
  • Discussed: "Oh my gosh! That book is very overdue! You probably owe lots of money in late fees!"
  • Conversed: "That guy on that show must be very irresponsible! He needs to learn to keep track of his library books!"
  • Deconstructed: Bob has to pay hundreds of dollars in late fees on the library book. He is eventually banned from the library.
  • Reconstructed: Bob tries to earn lots of money to pay the fines and possibly get his library privileges back.
  • Played For Laughs:
    • The book is titled "This Book is Very Overdue!"
    • Bob finds a library book that is 20 years overdue, and becomes extremely paranoid that a Scary Librarian will have him executed if he goes anywhere near the library. When Clara successfully drags him to the library and forces him to return the book, it's revealed that he just has to pay a fine - which reached its $50 cap 19 years ago anyway.
  • Played For Drama:
    • Bob owes lots of money to the library.
    • Bob's stupid-sounding fears were well-founded because the library does have a Scary Librarian who will kill him for being overdue. Not that he needs to go to the library anyway — the librarian has spent the past 19 years, eleven months, twenty days and thirteen hours hunting him down.
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