From Wiktionary, the free dictionary
Prepositional phrase [ edit ] in the books
( idiomatic ) Finished ; concluded ; able to be regarded as a matter of record .
1982 Feb. 3, Bob Ryan, "Parish spruces up Celtics, 109-105 ," Boston Globe p. S-1 (retrieved 18 March 2013) :
Two Bird swishes and a Johnny Davis three-point air ball later, the victory was in the books . 1998 May 25, Ted Geltner, “Ocala's Peggy Takacs Wins Big With Oscar Picks ”, in Ocala Star-Banner , retrieved 19 March 2013 , page 1C:The 1998 Academy Awards ceremony is in the books , and now that we have had a chance to reflect on the big event, we can put the proceedings in some context.
2008 October 17, Alex Altman, “The Bradley Effect ”, in Time :With the presidential debates in the books and a commanding lead in the polls, Barack Obama appears to be coasting toward history.
