I read somewhere that it was supposed to denote works of fiction. It was just the en vouge style to write stories set in the present world about fictional events.

It was literary fad at the time. It's done in plenty of other books of the period, like in much of Dostoevsky and some books by Victor Hugo. (Les Misérables is a notable example that comes to mind.)

The idea is to mimic how something would be presented if it were actually true, as specific identifying information like cities and stuff would be censored. You can think of it as being in the same vein as "found footage" films (like "The Blair Witch Project" and "Paranormal"). It would have served to help readers of the time suspend disbelief, as they would be familiar with actual true accounts where information was censored in this way. It doesn't really serve its purpose for a modern reader, which is why some translations substitute in the name of the city the author meant in lieu of the dashes.

Ooo I know!

Ironically it was commonplace in literature to create a sense of realism in fiction. The authors would “redact” these names and places giving the reader the impression that the author wanted to protect certain privacies leaving the reader not knowing if the work was real or not. So Frankenstein was that much more terrifying

The more I learned about them the more I came to love them.

If you're writing a story set in your area and you want your readers to feel like they can really relate, then you want to be both vague and detailed. You want your readers to be thinking, "Ooh, I know where this is!" (even though they're wrong because you are making it up) and also, "God, I know someone exactly like that! I wonder if the author actually knows them and used them as inspiration for the character?"

It grounds a story in reality without making it so specific that readers lose that feeling of connection. A lot of English classics are written in this way, meant to feel familiar and relatable without involving any real-life people or places or causing the inhabitants of those places to feel maligned or made fun of. Especially when the setting is some small town or village where everyone really knows each other - you can't go around turning your neighbors into fictional idiots and cheaters and criminals. But you can imply that there are idiots, cheaters, and criminals in a small village...just a few miles away or in the next county or over there in Sussex/Yorkshire/Wales/etc. and all the readers will nod their heads and think, "Ha! Nice try but I know you are describing Lady B---ton and her ridiculous son, Lord J--r B---ton! They are a menace! W--shire is just chock full of reprobates and rogues!"

It's all so deliciously gossipy and scandalous! (without actually slandering real people)

This convention is also sometimes used for people's names. I can't think of exact examples, but it occurs well into the 20th century, like 50s, 60s.

As Chaoticidealism said, it's just a thing to indicate that the information isn't important - it could've been any town in ireland, the minor character is any Smith or Jones. I think books went away from this as there was an ambition toward realism with an increase in detail and specificity.

That's a good question that I don't know the answer to, except that I know it was pretty common in nineteenth century lit.

Sometimes its to avoid getting sued or cause a scandal by associating a place with a certain book, and other times its because it stops the immersion from being broken by someone like, "On page 335 you state the monster travels to Dublin, and that he travelled 10 km on hollyhill road. In actuality Hollyhill Road didn't exist until 1922 and is less than a kilometer in length. Are we supposed to believe the monster can bend both time and space?"

Lol, I mean you could say that about almost every detail of a story. The whole thing could be dashes except for the bare bones events at the core. Why single out specific place names? It raises more questions than it answers

I think it's just because they don't like the idea of either using a real place, or making up a name. So the characters' letters are "redacted for privacy", removing some place names and some people's names too, as though they were actually written by the characters and published.

Anonymity? The actual town doesn't matter, just what happens there.

Amazon makes it so easy to exchange anything. I returned a new book because the cover had a bend in it

Haha, while you have a point, used books just feel more homey to me though I see worn and damaged as two different things… I don’t want coffee stains or torn pages or anything. Maybe part of it is that I grew up going to the library a lot and very few of those books are in perfect condition though they aren’t damaged by my measure. Also, I don’t think of my books as a collection, more like mementos, which often aren’t perfect.

While I enjoy a new car, it doesn’t feel like it’s mine until I’ve worn it in a bit… and I’m definitely not “precious” with my car, shoes, or many other things that some people consider collectibles.

I feel this way about sneakers and think people who don’t feel that way about sneakers are fucking losers lol

I guess it’s just the difference between having the desire to display them and not caring about that. I am also a person who likes worn books - I believe rehoming used books is a more environmentally friendly choice and I also don’t care if they’re pretty and perfect when I put them on the shelf. I don’t mind if they look like I’ve actually spent some time with them - I feel that is the point. I respect that some people want them to look pretty but I think that’s kind of silly personally. I do understand wanting the experience of the book looking new if you are buying it new because you like it that way. There is something pleasing about a brand new book. I just personally wouldn’t bother much about keeping it that way. But no disrespect to you and your personal preferences.

Edit - ALSO when I get a secondhand worn book it is cool to imagine the people who have spent time with the book. For that reason I also enjoy other people’s marginal notes and various markings as long as it isn’t overboard.

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I would definitely contact them and explain the problem. I’ve found that Amazon frequently throws one book into a much larger box with a few air pillows floating around inside, and the DJs get wrinkled, corners bumped, etc. They’ll definitely let you return it for free if it was a new book, but they might even replace it without asking you to return it.

If you buy from a third party seller (Marketplace) you should still be able to do a free return and be refunded if you return within 30 days. But if I’m doing that, I always check to make sure the seller does free returns.

If I buy a New book, it had better be in "New" condition.

I don't mind dents and things, but if it was stained (and supposed to be new), I would return it.

And this folks, is why you should always buy from your local bookstore. Fuck Amazon!

Well, if I want a book with signs of use I can usually get a better deal than buying it new from Amazon. If a corner is slightly dented, OK, that can happen during transportation but I have seen customer pictures of books that were clearly already damaged when they were sent off. That's what I wouldn't tolerate.

I rarely buy new books but if I do I'm the kind of buyer that analyze a dozen of the available copies on the bookstore before selecting the one that looks pristine... Only to find some small dent when i arrive home.

Instead, I have no problems with second hand books having issues is the price is right.

I've kept a few damaged and returned a few damaged. Kind of depends on the damage and the book. If it's an expensive hardcover it's going back. Softcover with a big crease or tear in a cover it's probably going back. A creased page or a small stain I'll keep.

I'd return them- you didn't pay for a damaged book, you paid for a new one! I've returned plenty of books that have shown up bent, or super dinged up. Amazon never seems to pack books in a way that they don't get damaged.

If I bought a book new, I expect it to arrive looking fairly new new. I don’t care about a little fold in a page or something very minor but if something is torn, stained, severely folded or out of shape I would probably return it. I know things get tossed around in shipping so I pretty much expect some small creases on the cover or corners of pages to be folded a little.

I like my books with some character. The wear and tear from reading, transporting in and out of bag/car/etc. As long as it is still readable, I'm fine with it.