An eight-year-old boy who penned an apology note to an east-end library branch after accidentally ripping a page from a book he had checked out is being rewarded for his honesty.

Staff at a Toronto Public Library branch on Main Street near Gerrard Street presented Jackson Dowler with a gift basket filled with books on Wednesday afternoon after they discovered that Dowler was the “Jackson” who dropped a note into the book return chute on Friday apologizing for the damage he caused to an Asterix comic book.

That note, which the library posted to Facebook, subsequently went viral and had been liked more than 4,100 times as of Wednesday afternoon.

“I thought I should let the library know there is a ripped page instead of just handing it in and having them discover it,” Dowler told reporters gathered at the library on Wednesday. “I think you should always write a note when you wreck a book because it is your fault.”

Dowler’s note, which was written with a blue marker, explained that he had ripped a page from the book after dropping it from his bunk bed when he fell asleep while reading.

After the library branch posted a photo of Dowler’s note the story went international with major media outlets such as ABC and the Huffington Post picking it up.

Dowler, however, only found out about his newfound fame after a neighbour stopped by his house on Tuesday evening to ask his parents about the media reports.

“I am getting my 15 minutes of fame right now,” Dowler told reporters on Wednesday.

The Main Street library branch plans to frame Dowler’s note and hang it up so other patrons will be able to learn something from the boy’s honesty.

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