Stranger finds incredibly moving note from mom inspiring her son to read tucked in old second-hand book

Even in today's digital age, where many of us read on screens, books still hold a special place—especially second-hand books with their tanned pages and nostalgic, musty smell. These used books sometimes carry unexpected treasures, like personal mementos left behind by previous owners. One Redditor, u/relentlesslykind, found a touching letter from a mother to her son Adrian tucked inside an old copy of J.R.R. Tolkien’s The Fellowship of the Ring.

The Redditor shared a screenshot of the letter in the r/MadeMeSmile group, where it quickly racked up 31,000 upvotes. One commenter even said it was their “favorite unintentional poem.” The note, addressed to Adrian, read: “‘The Hobbit’ is the first book. So keep your eyes open in second-hand bookstores. Remember, take your time—whether it’s a paragraph, a line, or a page. It doesn’t matter how long it takes, what matters is that you do it.” This heartfelt message shows two things: the mother’s deep love for her son and her desire to nurture his love for reading.

No one knows the identity of the boy named Adrian mentioned in the note or the mother, but wherever he may be, the Redditor told him, “Adrian, if you’re out there - your book is in safe hands, hit me up if you’d like it back,” through the caption of his post. He also added that the book spent a considerable time in the Toronto school’s library system before reaching him. A search for the title “The Fellowship of the Ring” reveals lots of results in Toronto Public Library’s online catalog. Perhaps, another copy might contain one such surreal souvenir from its previous owner as well.

In the comments section, people shared their thoughts on different elements of the book and the note left within. Some just adored how much this mom seemed to love her son Adrian, which made them bawl. Whereas, some others even commented about mom’s whimsical handwriting, noting that there are some spelling and punctuation errors, which they considered cute. Many people shared personal stories of how they too found treasures like this note in old books, or how their mom used to inspire them to read books.

“I've found lots of little notes scribbled in the Silver Age comics I collect. One time I even found an old Polaroid of a couple on their 49th anniversary, and it was about as old as Polaroid cameras get. Noted with the names and all. Always fun to think that the thing you have has had its own rich story,” said u/segmentedmoss in a comment. Another Redditor, u/JonPQ, recounted an experience when they also bought a secondhand copy of “The Hobbit” and found a sweet note inside it. They added, “I absolutely adore finding notes in used books I buy. I have an 80s copy of The Hobbit I randomly bought online, with a cheerful note from a guy to his sister wishing her an ‘Amazing Adventure’ and it is signed the day I was born.”