Famous quotes
Quotes by famous people, credited to who said them. Your own quotes must not match any of these. More are added all the time. 1,158,808 quotes Who coined it · How we decide
EnglishItalianoPolskiעבריתFrançaisPortuguêsفارسیEspañol中文РусскийDeutschالعربيةहिन्दी日本語ΕλληνικάLatina
Books and reading
LoveFriendshipHappinessHopeFearCourageDeathLifeTimeWarPeaceFreedomTruthWisdomKnowledgeScienceArtMusicNatureMoneyWorkPowerGodBeautyLaughterFamilySuccess and failureChangeDreamsBooks and reading
“That fabulous polymath Samuel Johnson maintained that no man in his right mind ever read a book through from beginning to end.”
Daniel Bell (1919–2011) first seen 1978 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: Foreword: 1978, p. xi
“When you re-read a classic you do not see in the book more than you did before. You see more in you than there was before.”
Clifton Fadiman (1904–1999) first seen 1957 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: Any Number Can Play," 1957
“I sat on the bed and read the Gideon Bible until the food came. That Gideon sure had a weird sense of humor. Try “The Book of Genesis.”
John Varley (1947–2025) said by 2025 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“I heard the quotation read in a summary of the speech. I thought the words sounded familiar and suddenly it dawned on me that they were out of my little book.”
Minnie Louise Haskins (1875–1957) said by 1957 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: Her reaction on hearing her poem. Daily Telegraph, 16 Aug 2008
“Distant lands should draw you, people you don't know To read every book, know other's lives, you should be burning You shouldn't exchange for anything the pleasure of a glass of water No matter how much the joy, your life should be filled with yearning”
Ataol Behramoğlu (born 1942) wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“... and what you are left with is a premonition of the way your life will fade behind you, like a book you have read too quickly, leaving a dwindling trail of images and emotions until all you can remember is a name.”
Jay McInerney (born 1955) wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“If then I am addressing one of that numerous class, who read to be told what to think, let me advise you to meddle with the book no further. You wish to buy a house ready furnished: do not come to look for it in a stonequarry. But if you are building up your opinions for yourself, and only want to be provided with materials, you may meet with many things in these pages to suit you.”
Julius Hare (1795–1855) said by 1855 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“All I knew was that I’d flunked the third grade twice because I couldn’t learn to read, had a terrible time all through grammar school and high school. Then after ten years of writing, I was finally able to sell my first book to a leading mass-market paperback publisher in New York .”
Victor Villaseñor (born 1940) wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“My first contact with game theory was a popular article in Fortune Magazine which I read in my last high school year. I was immediately attracted to the subject matter and when I studied mathematics I found the fundamental book by von Neumann and Morgenstern in the library and studied it.”
Reinhard Selten (1930–2016) said by 2016 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“A great tree grew up, one with many branches, and six times it was almost felled. But still it grows and we are but one small branch, one that cannot live without its tree. And slowly, we learned to read the book of nature, to learn its laws, to nurture the tree. To find out where and when we are in the great ocean, to become a way for the cosmos to know itself and to return to the stars.”
Ann Druyan (born 1949) wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“See the gnarl. The air is a gnarly ocean; the leaves dance on the trees. I’ve always enjoyed watching clouds and water; and now I realize that the computations they’re carrying out are fully as complex as anything in any book I might read. Each flickering shadow is a reminder of the world’s unsolvable and unpredictable richness.”
Rudy Rucker (born 1946) wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“The scientist is, for me, the man who wants to read the book of Nature, who is as passionate about it as and more than a novel and has, among other things, a great characteristic, that of never exhausting himself. (p. 4)”
Carlo Rubbia (born 1934) wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“An array of puns, asides and (sometimes off-key) jokes makes the book more bulky and somewhat anecdotal, but also entertaining to read.”
Wendy Doniger O'Flaherty (born 1940) first seen 2012 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: Shome, Shubhodeep (2012), "Review of The Hindus: An Alternative History by Wendy Doniger", South Asia Research, 32: 77–79
“I have endeavour'd to make every thing so plain, that a very little Skill in Geometry may be sufficient to enable one to read this Book by himself.”
Brook Taylor (1685–1732) said by 1732 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“Our government should consider the internet as the most crucial matter. There should be wireless access to the internet all over Turkey and all kinds of restrictions on the internet should be abolished. Everyone should be able to log on to internet whenever they like. Putting a restriction on internet is something like putting a lock on a book and saying ; “you cannot read!”
Adnan Oktar (born 1956) first seen 2013 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: 23 April 2013.
“The General Theory is at once both a book of economic theory and a font of economic prejudices—there are probably few academics in economics and political science who do not have an opinion of it, whether they have read it or not. It has reached the status—which it obtained almost immediately—where the fact of its existence is as important, if not more important, than what it actually says.”
Alan O. Ebenstein (born 1959) wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“The humble man reached in his pocket for his sacred book, and began to read. It was this world alone that was certain.”
Alan Paton (1903–1988) said by 1988 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“He had brought nothing to read except The Tibetan Book of the Dead, hoping to find its exotic iconography ridiculous enough to purge any fantasies he might still cling to about consciousness continuing after death.”
Edward St. Aubyn (born 1960) wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“In this book, you’ll read dozens of stories about initiatives enabled by this trust protocol that create new opportunities for a more prosperous world. Prosperity first and foremost is about one’s standard of living.”
Don Tapscott (born 1947) wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“He now understood navigation. He had started with Gower's Treatise on the Theory and Practice of Navigation. ...The book itself was the ocean; when he closed it he could cover up deep water. He had read Moore's Practical Navigator and had tried Euclid. He found arithmetic easy, because nobody pushed him.”
Sten Nadolny (born 1942) wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“[About Aleksandr Dugin:] There are so many people who call him a fascist and it triggers me so much because that just tells me they're talking about Dugin when they haven't even read the first three pages of his book. He hates fascism.”
Lauren Southern (born 1995) first seen 2022 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: 'YOUR WELCOME' with Michael Malice #198: Lauren Southern" (at 16m6s), Michael Malice on YouTube, 16 March 2022.
“History was what had happened; class was something you read about in a book.”
Amit Chaudhuri (born 1962) wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“censorship very often does not achieve its objective. My first instinct, on learning that a book has been banned, is to seek it out and read it”
Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie (born 1977) first seen 2022 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: The Reith Lectures 2022: The Four Freedoms
“My husband is a veggie and I always wanted to try it. Our first step was making our entire family go “organic.” I only wish we had done it sooner! I also read a book called “Skinny Bitch”, which opened my eyes to cruelty to animals, and that was it! It hasn’t been that hard for me.”
Shanna Moakler (born 1975) first seen 2008 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: About her decision to go vegetarian. "Pinks & Blues talks exclusively to Crowned star Shanna Moakler!", interview with Pinks & Blues Girls (January 4, 2008).
“Moreover the book 'The Legend of Baal Shem', by Martin Buber gives beautiful images. I have read some chapters from it and the 'Werewolf' among others, has been written very beautifully.”
Hendrik Werkman (1882–1945) first seen 1882 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: In a letter [nr. 7] to August Henkels, 17 February 1941; as cited in H. N. Werkman - Leven & Werk - 1882-1945, ed. A. de Vries, J. van der Spek, D. Sijens, M. Jansen; WBooks, Groninger Museum / Stichting Werkman, 2015 (…
“I would like to devote little time to proving or disproving the reality of these wonderful flying objects... but for those who have heard of saucers only by hearsay or read of them in the popular Sunday papers that would prove a little unsatisfactory, so I shall dedicate the first part of this book to an account of what has happened up to the time of writing.”
George Adamski (1891–1965) said by 1965 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“The world is like a book in which the creative Trinity shines, manifests itself in sensible forms and is read.”
Bonaventure (1221–1274) said by 1274 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“I always had dreamed of writing a novel set in the Philippines—what I knew of it. I struggled for years while I was writing poetry, thinking, one day I’m going to write this book. But in what voice? I read Malaysian writers and Chinese writers and Indian writers until I stumbled upon the Latin American writers and I realized that that was it: the humor, the fatalism, the passion and irony (1991)”
Jessica Hagedorn (born 1949) wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“…I would have been a much better-adjusted adult earlier on if I’d read a single book about real queer people when I was growing up.”
Malinda Lo (born 1974) first seen 2011 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: On how reading about LGBT characters in her youth would have helped in “Queering SFF: An Interview with Malinda Lo” in Tor (2011 Apr 20)
“Read the book because some people don't want you to.”
Vivek Agnihotri (born 1973) wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“It's a very bourgeois industry. There's resistance to radicalism, and also less youth in charge. "A film can be feminist?" They don't know this concept. They don't read the book. They don't even know about the fact that "male gaze" exists. You can tell it's a country where there’s a lot of sexism, and a strong culture of patriarchy.”
Céline Sciamma (born 1978) first seen 2020 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: On the tepid reception of her film Portrait of a Lady on Fire in France in "Céline Sciamma: 'In France, they don’t find the film hot. They think it lacks flesh, it’s not erotic'", The Guardian (21 February 2020)
“I cannot let this book go no matter how many times I read it...it is as adorable as Lord Krishna.”
Bangalore Nagarathnamma (1878–1952) said by 1952 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: Medium Article - A tale of two devadasis - 22 May 2019 - Archive
“The hardest part of my narration was when I read about my assault. I cried. It took me a while to get through it, maybe because of the way I wrote it. It was very graphic and one of the parts of the book that I wrote while crying. It felt like the scab was off, and I was diffing deeper into my wounds when I talked about this moment and others.…”
Maria Hinojosa (born 1961) first seen 2020 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: On the part that was the most difficult to narrate in “INTERVIEWS: Maria Hinojosa” in BookPage (2020 Dec 3)
“Perhaps not many now read Tancred. ... Yet that book is far more than mere romance. It is evidence of the dissatisfaction with modern civilisation ...”
John Neville Figgis (1866–1919) said by 1919 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“So, for these young ladies here today, to meet a Deputy Minister of Sport, who is also a young woman, is more inspirational than any book they could ever read”
Tabetha Kanengoni-Malinga (born 1982) wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“To the young journalists, I say be original, know your job, be ethical and know that once you are famous, your life is a book, open to everyone to read. Such when you make a silly mistake, the papers will sell like hot cakes because you are a celebrity.”
Tilda Moyo (born 1966) first seen 2014 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: https://www.chronicle.co.zw/celebrated-female-broadcaster "Celebrated female broadcaster"], Chronicle (January 25, 2014)
“When I read a book, I look out for the message the author is trying to pass across to the reader. Does the work contain wisdom? Have I learnt anything from it? I also look out for entertainment. Have I been sufficiently entertained?”
Zaynab Alkali (born 1950) wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“I have no immediate plan to read a new book because I am seriously engaged in writing someone else’s story.”
Zaynab Alkali (born 1950) wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“At the time that I began to write the novel I was simply looking for a really good love story set in my parent’s generation with at least one character from West Africa, and because I couldn’t find such a story, I tried writing it myself. As Toni Morrison says, if there’s a book you want to read but can’t find, then try writing it.”
Sarah Ladipo Manyika (born 1968) wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“Gales of temperament can rage around her—she remains undisturbed ... I have seen her at a time when anyone else would have been distraught with anxiety, come quietly in from the set, eat her lunch calmly and collectedly (for first of all, Lillian believes in keeping fit for her work), then pick up some little book of philosophy and read it steadily until they sent for her.”
Albert Paine (1861–1937) said by 1937 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“If speaking is still difficult to negotiate, then writing has created a free space for most women -much freer than speech. The book is bound, circulated, read. It retains its autonomy much more than a woman is allowed in the oral situation.”
Yvonne Vera (1964–2005) said by 2005 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: Opening Spaces: An Anthology of Contemporary African Women's Writing, August 11, 2008 https://www.amazon.com/Opening-Spaces-Anthology-Contemporary-African/dp/0435910108
“If I have my breakfast, then I can think, and that includes spiritual things, or whatever it is I want to do, meditate or read a book or watch a movie, and so I respect the food because that comes first for me. I think the movie shows the power of the experience that we all have with food.”
Nicolas Cage (born 1964) first seen 2022 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: Interview: Nicolas Cage digs deep about ‘Pig,’ his favorite and most underrated of his own movies, and the role he’d love to play" in Awards Watch (14 January 2022)
“It’s like this Spinoza says,” said Witherwax, “when I read it in a book. You ain’t got no right to say something is bad just because you don’t like it personally. You’ve got to consider other people.”
L. Sprague de Camp (1907–2000) said by 2000 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“Culture for me is when you sing or dance, when you have theatre, when you read a book, a beautiful poem. It doesn't matter whether it's Shakespeare who wrote it or whether it is an African poet – it is communicating with all of us, regardless of who you are, your colour, your social structure.”
Graça Machel (born 1945) wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“It seems to me to be fully alive is to seek justice. Otherwise, what's the point?...Why should anyone read a book by someone who doesn't care about justice?”
Melanie Kaye/Kantrowitz (1945–2018) said by 2018 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“I am only after people who hurt my reputation. They have talked bad about me already. They believe I am bad, so, I am showing them how bad I can be. Other people are involved, in fact, plenty. I have revealed a bit but the rest they can read in my book.”
Cossy Orjiakor (born 1984) wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“If you borrow dresses like you borrow time, If you dream all day and drink all night, If you're looking for love but willing to fight Over men and mama's and Miller Lites, Well then, we should be friends.I don't know you well but I know that look. And I can judge the cover 'cause I read the book On losing sleep and gaining weight, On pain and shame and crazy trains.”
Miranda Lambert (born 1983) wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“If somebody could write a book for people who never read they would make a fortune.”
Nancy Mitford (1904–1973) said by 1973 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: Love from Nancy (Houghton Mifflin, 1993).
“The humor was always there also, because even in desperate situations people are human. They still do funny things, and they still have their obsessions and habits. It bothers me when I read a book where everything is clear-cut and there isn't anything human about or in it. One of the things that often happens between cultures is the denial of common humanity.”
Linda Hogan (writer) wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“Seymour Hersh I respect a lot. He broke the My Lai story. I know him, and he’s got great intelligence. People talk to him from all over the world. It’s like the JFK killing. You cover this sh*t up, man...There’s a lot of other lies going on. Read the book, The Killing of Bin Laden by Seymour Hersh.”
Seymour Hersh (born 1937) first seen 2016 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: Oliver Stone, quoted in Oliver Stone On ‘Snowden’ And How Spy Movies Today Are Glorified Propaganda, Mike Fleming Jr, Deadline, September 16, 2016