Books can be passed around. They can be shared. A lot of people like seeing them in their houses. They are memories. People who don't understand books don't understand this. They learn from TV shows about organizing that you should get rid of the books that you aren't reading, but everyone who loves books believes the opposite. People who love books keep them around, like photos, to remind them of a great experience and so they can revisit and say, "Wow, this is a really great book."
Interpretation
Books are cherished for their memories and experiences, unlike the transient nature of TV shows.
This quote emphasizes the emotional and sentimental value that books hold for readers. Unlike merely consumable media like TV shows, books represent personal experiences, memories, and knowledge that readers choose to keep, akin to treasured photographs. Those who appreciate books find joy in their physical presence and the possibility of re-experiencing the knowledge and emotions contained within their pages, contrasting with the common advice to discard unused items.
In practice
I shared this quote in a book club meeting to discuss our emotional connections to our favorite reads.
Read to your children all of the time_x000D_ Novels and nursery rhymes_x000D_ Autobiographies, even the newspaper_x000D_ It doesn't mater; it's quality time_x000D_ Because once upon a time _x000D_ We grew up on stories in the voices in which they were told _x000D_ We need words to hold us and the world to behold us _x000D_ For us to truly know our souls
It is those books which a man possesses but does not read which constitute the most suspicious evidence against him.
To go back and read Swift and Defoe and Samuel Johnson and Smollett and Pope - all those people we had to read in college English courses - to read them now is to have one of the infinite pleasures in life.
Do not believe what your teacher tells you merely out of respect for the teacher.
Some teachers teach for others to learn. That's not me. Some teachers teach for others to accomplish. That is me.
Inclusive, good-quality education is a foundation for dynamic and equitable societies.
Subscribe for the occasional hand-picked quote. No noise.