Books: now a vector for sexually transmitted disease!

[DoktorH]

This librarys copy of Fifty Shades of Grey has herpes

I don't even want to think about what sort of germs would aggregate on Ligotti books. yet another reason I shall stick with e-books going forward.

[ramonoski]

The one thing I'm wondering now is how many books is it safe to take out before the cocaine adds up and kicks in

[Houses of the UnHoly]

I'd be worried more about the prose than the herpes inside it. You're probably more likely to get your brain hacked by an ebook of Fifty Shats than contract genital herpes from the library copy. Also I did recently read an interesting medical article (which, sorry, I'm presently having trouble finding to link to) which purported that almost every single human being latently carries some form of the Herpes virus (not necessarily the STD versions) which tends to remain dormant until a major compromise of the immune system, such as during chemotherapy. So I guess read what you like, since life is short and we all probably have some version of the virus 'dead but dreaming' in our corpus anyhoo.

[Houses of the UnHoly]

Found the article:

To wake a sleeping herpes virus Scienceline

[Freyasfire]

This is not an encouraging thing to read about when one works in a library. I, unfortunately, have had to handle numerous copies of Fifty Shades of various nonsenses several times... *shudder*

[DoktorH]

if popular books have trace amounts of drugs and STDs on them, what do the unpopular books have traces of?

[Druidic]

This could end up as a variation on the old Public Reastroom myth. Some poor teenager saying to his/her doctor, "Honest, Doctor, I got this unpleasantness from the Twilight saga."

I remember reading a William Hope Hodgson letter where Hodgson advised one of his siblings, coming to London for the first time, to avoid direct contact with hard surfaces in Public Restrooms. Of course, they probably weren't called 'restrooms' back then--I'm amazed they had lavatories at all LOL!!!

[qcrisp]

Hmmm. Not sure the herpes-averse should come to my flat for tea, as I tend to put the herpes-carrying maids on sandwich duty. Not on purpose, you understand, although more than one caller has noted it adds a certain frisson to the eating of sandwiches, not unlike the piquancy of mustard.

I could always transfer their labour to the upkeep of the bookshelves, but that might not go down well, either, it seems. They'd have to swap duties with the ebola-infected maids.

[Derek]

Those paranoid about catching something nasty from a book should definitely avoid reading my story Le Frotteur de Livres (in the Book anthology from Inkermen press).

[Freyasfire]

Quote Originally Posted by Derek John

Those paranoid about catching something nasty from a book should definitely avoid reading my story Le Frotteur de Livres (in the Book anthology from Inkermen press).

Haha, agreed, although I must say it was a BRILLIANT story!