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Book Quotes

Why books work the way they do.

This page highlights what books can do that film can't, including slower pacing and quiet stretches, alongside a reminder that some things simply translate poorly to screen. For a companion collection, see Books.

I don't like to have a calm, orderly, quiet place to work. I often compose while driving, compose in my head. It is true that I wrote my little book, 'The Sounds of Poetry, A Brief Guide,' almost entirely in...

Quotes by Robert Pinsky

If I didn't have my little schedule book, I wouldn't get out of bed in the morning.

Quotes by Robert Osborne

The United States can't keep a completely open system if the rest of the world is less open. The United States may have to take a leaf out of the book of Japan, China, and Germany, and have protectionism inside...

Quotes by Robert Mundell

Only in the most unusual cases is it useful to determine whether a book is good or bad; for it is just as rare for it to be one or the other. It is usually both.

Quotes by Robert Musil

I lived with them in my studio in New York. And of course if I were doing that book today or even ten years, fifteen years later, I would have gone to where the wild ducks were and where I...

Quotes by Robert McCloskey

It was more exciting to get that first book published, I think.

Quotes by Robert McCloskey

That was the - It was an exciting time because it was as though I was sort of tied up in a paper bag or in a gunny sack with a rope around the neck of it, and all of...

Quotes by Robert McCloskey

Up until my first book was published, I had all this potential, people would say, and I screwed up. After it, I could say: 'No, I didn't screw up.'

Quotes by Robert M. Pirsig

I start every book with something that outrages me. I'm outraged by the FBI, the CIA, and computers that seem to have catalogued our lives. Power too often is accompanied by irresponsibility.

Quotes by Robert Ludlum

A wild and crazy weekend involves sitting on the front porch, smoking a cigar, reading a book.

Quotes by Robert M. Gates

Mark Twain said, 'The right word is to the nearly right word as lightning is to the lightning bug.' Fill your book with lightning.

Quotes by Robert Littell

They have increased readership, which is good, but I personally am not very turned on by e-books. The physical book has always meant something to me. I'm like the horse who goes back to the stall. I'm not that adventurous.

Quotes by Robert Loomis

I wrote my book 'The Amorous Busboy Of Decatur Avenue' completely like a writer does, writing it down, re-writing everything. But in my stand-up, I improvise initially, never questioning it too closely.

Quotes by Robert Klein

For my new book 'Pirate Hunters', I follow John Chatterton and John Mattera, two world-class scuba divers, who teach themselves to think and act as pirates while searching for what would be only the second pirate ship ever found and...

Quotes by Robert Kurson

There are all these things I want to do when I don't have to finish a book. But I have to keep writing because I keep having children.

Quotes by Robert K. Massie

I've read everything that Isaac Asimov ever wrote, for a start. I'm massively into my fantasy genre, anything by R.A. Salvatore or David Gemmell. I've read every single book those writers have written.

Quotes by Robert Kazinsky

When I was 7 years old, I announced that I was going to write a book about pollution. I didn't get around to it until I was 29, but I always recognized that pollution was a theft. That it was...

Quotes by Robert Kennedy, Jr.

I was paid more for the serialization rights for each book than I got as an advance for my first novel. In other words, there is an economic value in serialization in and of itself.

Quotes by Robert J. Sawyer

If you like 'The Nature of Things,' or if you like 'Quirks and Quarks' you'll certainly like Lee Smolin's writing, and 'Time Reborn' is his latest nonfiction book, and it's an absolutely compelling read. It's worth the time.

Quotes by Robert J. Sawyer

I frankly couldn't imagine being a series mystery-fiction writer, churning out book after book about the same viewpoint character.

Quotes by Robert J. Sawyer

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Frequently Asked Questions

Is there a quote about pacing in books versus other media?
Yes. One quote observes: "In a book, you can kind of take time and have lulls in places." It highlights something books can do that faster-paced formats often can't.
Is there a quote about the difference between books and movies?
Yes - one quote notes that things that might work in a book just do not work in the visual medium of movies. It's a useful reminder that not every story translates directly from page to screen. For more on the reading side of storytelling, browse Books quotes.
Is there a quote about why books offer escapism?
Yes. One quote calls a great book "escapism" and says the artistry and the creativity in a story are better than any drugs. It's a strong statement about the emotional pull of good writing. For more on the community side of reading, see Book Club quotes.
Is there a quote about literature guiding how kids grow up?
Yes - one quote reflects that what sort of person you grow into shouldn't happen by default, which is often exactly what happens to kids, and describes seeing literature as a method of guidance, information, and contemplation. It's a thoughtful take on the role books can play in shaping character. For more on where to find these books, check out Bookstore quotes.
What different things do these "book" quotes celebrate?
The slower pacing only a book allows, the limits of adapting books into movies, books as a form of escapism, and literature's role in shaping how people grow up. If you're touring or exploring more book-related content, Book Tour quotes round things out.

One entry treats a great book as pure escapism, while another argues literature plays a real role in guiding how young people grow up. Explore further with Book Club or Bookstore.