In a library book that hasn’t been checked out since 1997, I found this:
Can anybody decipher this missive?
5 responses to “Mystery: Found in a Book”
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A jiffy bag is a padded mail envelope used in Britain and Australia…
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“A jiffy bag “
I’d never heard/seen the term, but Americans of my generation (and maybe later) would associate it maybe with popcorn… do they even still make jiffy pop?
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“Can anybody decipher this missive?”
I was going to post something humorous but I looked up the book and so I’ll pass….
But, some quick googling indicates that ‘jiffy bag’ is a common term in Britain for a padded envelope.
My guess, someone just used it as a bookmark. Originally it was to remind a person or persons not to use padded envelopes for something or other.
Also, I see that a company that makes them wants to prevent ‘jiffy bag’ from being genericized (like jello or aspirin before it) and it may be related to that….
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The book is actually really good. The author is a talented writer. There are many of these hidden gems all over Central America and the Caribbean. Excellent writers that nobody knows about. I unearthed this one for a student’s research project and I’m glad I did because it’s very well written.
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A conservative literary critic and college professor
Clarissa's Blog 
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