---
title: "21 Read Literature Quotes by 20 authors"
description: "Browse 21 Read Literature quotes by 20 authors. Discover the best Read Literature sayings and thoughts."
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/570/charles-simic-9906_ambition_the-ambition-of-much-of-today-s-literary_453104.png"
---

> [“The ambition of much of today's literary theory seems to be to find ways to read literature without imagination.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-simic/the-ambition-of-much-of-today-s-literary-theory-seems-to-be-to-find/)

[Charles Simic](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-simic/)

[Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/570/charles-simic-9906_ambition_the-ambition-of-much-of-today-s-literary_453104.png)

> [“The best way to know the soul of another country is to read its literature.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amos-oz/the-best-way-to-know-the-soul-of-another-country-is-to-read-its/)

[Amos Oz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amos-oz/)

[Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fc1/amos-oz-1478_books_the-best-way-to-know-the-soul-of-another_1637212.png)

> [Hardly anyone about whom I deeply care at all resembles anyone else I have ever met, or heard of, or read about…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/renata-adler/hardly-anyone-about-whom-i-deeply-care-at-all-resembles-anyone-else-i/)

[Renata Adler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/renata-adler/)

[Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/daf/renata-adler-9400_books_hardly-anyone-about-whom-i-deeply-care-a_1311330.jpg)

> [As society diversifies, the number of people who read literature is decreasing. It will be difficult for readers to digest my ideas…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cao-yu/as-society-diversifies-the-number-of-people-who-read-literature-is/)

[Cao Yu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cao-yu/)

[Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/be7/cao-yu-74970_books_as-society-diversifies-the-number-of-peo_3001297.jpg)

> [If you read literature, you put yourself in somebody else's shoes. You learn from great figures in literature.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jim-leach/if-you-read-literature-you-put-yourself-in-somebody-else-s-shoes-you/)

[Jim Leach](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jim-leach/)

[Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/07f/jim-leach-27662_books_if-you-read-literature-you-put-yourself_75950.jpg)

> [“If you only read literature books, only novels, only poetry, only theatre, you are not reading a book! To read in the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mehmet-murat-ildan/if-you-only-read-literature-books-only-novels-only-poetry-only/)

[Mehmet Murat ildan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mehmet-murat-ildan/)

[Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d71/mehmet-murat-ildan-3_book_if-you-only-read-literature-books-only-n_2632388.jpg)

> [We read literature for a lot of reasons, but two of the most compelling ones are to get out of ourselves and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maureen-corrigan/we-read-literature-for-a-lot-of-reasons-but-two-of-the-most/)

[Maureen Corrigan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maureen-corrigan/)

[Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8d1/maureen-corrigan-30260_books_we-read-literature-for-a-lot-of-reasons_681406.jpg)

> [But then people don't read literature in order to understand; they read it because they want to re-live the feelings and sensations…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aldous-huxley/but-then-people-don-t-read-literature-in-order-to-understand-they/)

[Aldous Huxley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aldous-huxley/)

[Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5fb/aldous-huxley-97_alcohol_but-then-people-don-t-read-literature-in_3128635.jpg)

> [Art Objects is important not only as a plea to the public to read serious literature and to read it seriously, but…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/victoria-redel/art-objects-is-important-not-only-as-a-plea-to-the-public-to-read/)

[Victoria Redel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/victoria-redel/)

[Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/121/victoria-redel-46494_art_art-objects-is-important-not-only-as-a-p_1179747.jpg)

> [“We read literature for a number of reasons, but two of the most compelling ones are to get out of ourselves and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maureen-corrigan/we-read-literature-for-a-number-of-reasons-but-two-of-the-most/)

[Maureen Corrigan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maureen-corrigan/)

[Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0e0/maureen-corrigan-30260_books_we-read-literature-for-a-number-of-reaso_2148697.jpg)

> [Too often students are being taught to read as if literature were some kind of ethics class or civics class—or worse, some…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/francine-prose/too-often-students-are-being-taught-to-read-as-if-literature-were/)

[Francine Prose](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/francine-prose/)

[Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/269/francine-prose-9354_books_too-often-students-are-being-taught-to-r_1080289.jpg)

> [Literature, the study of literature in English in the 19th century, did not belong to literary studies, which had to do with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-hass/literature-the-study-of-literature-in-english-in-the-19th-century-did/)

[Robert Hass](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-hass/)

[Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d5b/robert-hass-3548_19th-century_literature-the-study-of-literature-in-en_2051339.png)

> [If you want to know about Africa, read our literature - and not just 'Things Fall Apart,' because that would be like…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chris-abani/if-you-want-to-know-about-africa-read-our-literature-and-not-just/)

[Chris Abani](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chris-abani/)

[Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/714/chris-abani-7393_america_if-you-want-to-know-about-africa-read-ou_444123.png)

> [“A lot of people still maintain genre prejudice. I still meet matrons who tell me kindly that their children enjoyed my books…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ursula-k-le-guin/a-lot-of-people-still-maintain-genre-prejudice-i-still-meet-matrons/)

[Ursula K. Le Guin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ursula-k-le-guin/)

[Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5af/ursula-k-le-guin-138_books_a-lot-of-people-still-maintain-genre-pre_2302028.jpg)

> [This act of empathy, that women go through from the time we're little girls - we read all of literature, all of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/meryl-streep/this-act-of-empathy-that-women-go-through-from-the-time-we-re-little/)

[Meryl Streep](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/meryl-streep/)

[Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/cad/meryl-streep-1078_becky_this-act-of-empathy-that-women-go-throug_88631.jpg)

> [With 'Ilustrado,' I set out to change the way we read literature, and I think I failed spectacularly. In fact, I know…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/miguel-syjuco/with-ilustrado-i-set-out-to-change-the-way-we-read-literature-and-i/)

[Miguel Syjuco](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/miguel-syjuco/)

[Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/937/miguel-syjuco-8046_am_with-ilustrado-i-set-out-to-change-the-w_1267628.jpg)

> [I imagine as long as people will continue to read novels, people will continue to write them, or vice versa; unless of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-faulkner/i-imagine-as-long-as-people-will-continue-to-read-novels-people-will/)

[William Faulkner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-faulkner/)

[Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/771/william-faulkner-306_atrophy_i-imagine-as-long-as-people-will-continu_1120855.png)

> [What is literature, really? Boiled down to a single sentence, I'd say it's this: an endless conversation about what it means to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicole-krauss/what-is-literature-really-boiled-down-to-a-single-sentence-i-d-say-it/)

[Nicole Krauss](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicole-krauss/)

[Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0c1/nicole-krauss-920_books_what-is-literature-really-boiled-down-to_2512466.png)

> [I ought to at least be able to read literature in French. I went to an enlightened grade school that started us…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lev-grossman/i-ought-to-at-least-be-able-to-read-literature-in-french-i-went-to-an/)

[Lev Grossman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lev-grossman/)

[Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5ee/lev-grossman-747_able_i-ought-to-at-least-be-able-to-read-lite_1833060.png)

> [Well, you sort of get out of the pool room, you get out of the Marine Corps, you get out and read…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harvey-keitel/well-you-sort-of-get-out-of-the-pool-room-you-get-out-of-the-marine/)

[Harvey Keitel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harvey-keitel/)

[Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/019/harvey-keitel-19628_books_well-you-sort-of-get-out-of-the-pool-roo_2580545.png)

> [It's really hard when you read literature in a language that's not your own. There are all these cultural references you have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chath-piersath/it-s-really-hard-when-you-read-literature-in-a-language-that-s-not/)

[Chath Piersath](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chath-piersath/)

[Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a34/chath-piersath-12764_books_it-s-really-hard-when-you-read-literatur_1145800.jpg)

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                        "text": "“A lot of people still maintain genre prejudice. I still meet matrons who tell me kindly that their children enjoyed my books but of course they never read them, and people who make sure I know they don’t read that space-ship stuff. No, no, they read Literature—realism. Like The Help, or Fifty Shades of Grey.”",
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                        "text": "This act of empathy, that women go through from the time we're little girls - we read all of literature, all of history, it's really about boys, most of it. But I can feel more like Peter Pan than Tinker Bell, or like Wendy. I wanted to be Tom Sawyer, not Becky. And we're so used to that act of empathizing with the protagonist of a male-driven plot. I mean, that's what we've done all our lives. You read history, you read great literature, Shakespeare, it's all fellas, you know?",
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                        "text": "With 'Ilustrado,' I set out to change the way we read literature, and I think I failed spectacularly. In fact, I know I failed. In reaching further than I could, I may not have produced a life- or literature-changing book, but I did produce one I am proud of.",
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                        "text": "I imagine as long as people will continue to read novels, people will continue to write them, or vice versa; unless of course the pictorial magazines and comic strips finally atrophy man's capacity to read, and literature really is on its way back to the picture writing in the Neanderthal cave.",
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                        "text": "What is literature, really? Boiled down to a single sentence, I'd say it's this: an endless conversation about what it means to be human. And to read literature is to engage in that conversation.",
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                        "text": "I ought to at least be able to read literature in French. I went to an enlightened grade school that started us on French in fifth grade, which meant that by the time I graduated high school I had been at it for eight years.",
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                        "text": "Well, you sort of get out of the pool room, you get out of the Marine Corps, you get out and read some literature, you become involved with people who also want to know and are ready to share some ideas about literature and thoughts, and it becomes nourished that way.",
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