--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Our house was littered with books- in the…" description: "\"Our house was littered with books- in the kitchen, under the beds, stuck between the couch pillows--far too many for her the ever finish. I suppose I t..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/516/alice-hoffman-427_bed_our-house-was-littered-with-books-in-the_1010128.png" --- # Our house was littered with books- in the kitchen, under… ![“Our house was littered with books- in the kitchen, under the beds, stuck between the couch pillows--far too many for her the ever finish. I suppose I thought if my grandmother kept up her interests, she wouldn't die; she'd have to stay around to finish the books she was so fond of. "I've got to…” quote by Alice Hoffman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/516/alice-hoffman-427_bed_our-house-was-littered-with-books-in-the_1010128.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/516/alice-hoffman-427_bed_our-house-was-littered-with-books-in-the_1010128.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/516/alice-hoffman-427_bed_our-house-was-littered-with-books-in-the_1010128.png) > “Our house was littered with books- in the kitchen, under the beds, stuck between the couch pillows--far too many for her the ever finish. I suppose I thought if my grandmother kept up her interests, she wouldn't die; she'd have to stay around to finish the books she was so fond of. "I've got to get to the bottom of this one," she'd say, as if a book were no different from a pond or a lake. I thought she'd go on reading forever but it didn't work out that way.” [Alice Hoffman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-hoffman/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. A grandmother fills her home with books, hoping reading will keep her alive, but life’s finite nature shows that endless reading isn’t possible; we must accept limits. **In simple terms:** Reading can’t stop death, but it enriches life. Key Takeaway Cherish reading while recognizing life’s limits. Themes legacy reading mortality family memory Mood nostalgic melancholic Type literary reflective When to use this quote - personal growth - counseling - elder care - book clubs Key Concepts existentialism literary devotion intergenerational bonds Questions to Reflect On - What does the grandmother’s habit say about coping with mortality? - How can we balance passion with practicality? A Different Perspective Obsessive accumulation can hinder living in the present. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Book](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/book/) [Books](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/books/) [Couches](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/couches/) [Grandmother](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/grandmother/) [Interest](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/interest/) [Lakes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/lakes/) [Reading](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/reading/) [Work out](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/work-out/) [Writer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writer/) ## Related quotes > [It was just how my parents treated me. It was the world they decided to show me. I was really sheltered. My grandmother kept…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/trevor-noah/it-was-just-how-my-parents-treated-me-it-was-the-world-they-decided/) [Trevor Noah](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/trevor-noah/) > [ My grandmother has kept all of his stuff in a drawer. This one notebook was particularly chilling. He's \[howard Brookner\] writing to his parents… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aaron-brookner/my-grandmother-has-kept-all-of-his-stuff-in-a-drawer-this-one/) [Aaron Brookner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aaron-brookner/) > [“Like my grandmother he kept secrets the way other people kept fish. They were a hobby, a fascination, his underwater collection of the rare…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeanette-winterson/like-my-grandmother-he-kept-secrets-the-way-other-people-kept-fish/) [Jeanette Winterson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeanette-winterson/) > [“Did Gran go to a gynecologist? That is totally weird. I never thought about my grandmother's vagina before. I don't want to be thinking…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/meg-cabot/did-gran-go-to-a-gynecologist-that-is-totally-weird-i-never-thought/) [Meg Cabot](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/meg-cabot/) > [My sister and I thought my grandmother was not very grandmotherly compared to all of the church ladies that we knew. She was making…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lee-isaac-chung/my-sister-and-i-thought-my-grandmother-was-not-very-grandmotherly/) [Lee Isaac Chung](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lee-isaac-chung/) > [“The last clear thought I have is of my grandmother’s rust-colored wall clock ticking away in the darkness of my apartment—my sanctuary where I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-tonzelli/the-last-clear-thought-i-have-is-of-my-grandmother-s-rust-colored/) [J. Tonzelli](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-tonzelli/) > [“I liked his attention. But I also felt like there was something sick and wrong about it. Like it might make me sick later.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/augusten-burroughs/i-liked-his-attention-but-i-also-felt-like-there-was-something-sick/) [Augusten Burroughs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/augusten-burroughs/) > [“Willa had always thought her grandmother was sweet, but she'd been one of those people with invisible thorns, preventing others from getting too close.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sarah-addison-allen/willa-had-always-thought-her-grandmother-was-sweet-but-she-d-been-one/) [Sarah Addison Allen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sarah-addison-allen/) > [I only read the left-hand pages, so I finish books twice as fast.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martellus-bennett/i-only-read-the-left-hand-pages-so-i-finish-books-twice-as-fast/) [Martellus Bennett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martellus-bennett/) > [Grown-ups shouldn’t finish books they’re not enjoying. When you’re no longer a child, and you no longer live at home, you don’t have to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-irving/grown-ups-shouldn-t-finish-books-they-re-not-enjoying-when-you-re-no/) [John Irving](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-irving/) > [I try to craft books that are fun, that are sort of subversively educational so kids learn but they don't really feel like they're…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rick-riordan/i-try-to-craft-books-that-are-fun-that-are-sort-of-subversively/) [Rick Riordan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rick-riordan/) > [I've never been a fast reader. I'm fickle; I don't finish books I start; I put a book aside for five, ten years and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicholson-baker/i-ve-never-been-a-fast-reader-i-m-fickle-i-don-t-finish-books-i-start/) [Nicholson Baker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicholson-baker/) > [The vast majority of writers out there, they finish their books, and no one cares whether their book is late or ever comes out…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-r-r-martin-2/the-vast-majority-of-writers-out-there-they-finish-their-books-and-no/) [George R. R. Martin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-r-r-martin-2/) > [I finish so many books it's amazing. I'm also doing Rosetta Stone, learning some French.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kellan-lutz/i-finish-so-many-books-it-s-amazing-i-m-also-doing-rosetta-stone/) [Kellan Lutz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kellan-lutz/) > [I finish two books a week, mostly nonfiction.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ann-marie-campbell/i-finish-two-books-a-week-mostly-nonfiction/) [Ann-Marie Campbell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ann-marie-campbell/) ## More by Alice Hoffman > [Women know things that men will never know. We keep the best secrets. We tell the best stories.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-hoffman/women-know-things-that-men-will-never-know-we-keep-the-best-secrets/) [Alice Hoffman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-hoffman/) > [“All of the quarters in his hand were tarnished. He had no idea that the silver in a man’s pockets always turns black if…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-hoffman/all-of-the-quarters-in-his-hand-were-tarnished-he-had-no-idea-that/) [Alice Hoffman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-hoffman/) > [But most important of all, she explained that it was all right to say 'No. I disagree.' that was a gift. I understood it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-hoffman/but-most-important-of-all-she-explained-that-it-was-all-right-to-say/) [Alice Hoffman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-hoffman/) > [“It was after dark when the woods were most filled with magic, when there were fireflies and the mist was rising from the streams.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-hoffman/it-was-after-dark-when-the-woods-were-most-filled-with-magic-when/) [Alice Hoffman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-hoffman/) > [“Never look back, that's what she's told herself. Don't think about swans or being alone in the dark. Don't think of storms, or lightning…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-hoffman/never-look-back-that-s-what-she-s-told-herself-don-t-think-about/) [Alice Hoffman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-hoffman/) > [This was what it meant to be human, to know that time moved and all things changed.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-hoffman/this-was-what-it-meant-to-be-human-to-know-that-time-moved-and-all/) [Alice Hoffman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-hoffman/) > [“She preferred cats to human beings and turned down every offer from the men who fell in love with her.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-hoffman/she-preferred-cats-to-human-beings-and-turned-down-every-offer-from/) [Alice Hoffman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-hoffman/) > [I'm a really eclectic reader.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-hoffman/i-m-a-really-eclectic-reader/) [Alice Hoffman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-hoffman/) > [It's not the lie that's the problem; it's the distance the lie forges between you.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-hoffman/it-s-not-the-lie-that-s-the-problem-it-s-the-distance-the-lie-forges/) [Alice Hoffman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-hoffman/) > [“Her vision was going, but she could see him, the way people see clouds-beautiful, racing by, casting shadows.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-hoffman/her-vision-was-going-but-she-could-see-him-the-way-people-see-clouds/) [Alice Hoffman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-hoffman/) > [That's why there are ten gates to pass through before you reach the garden. If life were easy there would be one gate. There…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-hoffman/that-s-why-there-are-ten-gates-to-pass-through-before-you-reach-the/) [Alice Hoffman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-hoffman/) > [“...the summer of the gypsy moths when all the trees in their yard were bare, the leaves chewed by caterpillars. You could hear crunching…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-hoffman/the-summer-of-the-gypsy-moths-when-all-the-trees-in-their-yard-were/) [Alice Hoffman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-hoffman/) > [“The best way to die is when you're living.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-hoffman/the-best-way-to-die-is-when-you-re-living/) [Alice Hoffman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-hoffman/) > [“Haylin was given a good talking-to by the headmaster and made to write a paper about workers’ rights, which he considered a privilege rather…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-hoffman/haylin-was-given-a-good-talking-to-by-the-headmaster-and-made-to/) [Alice Hoffman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-hoffman/) > [My darling girl, when are you going to realize that being normal is not necessarily a virtue? It rather denotes a lack of courage."…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-hoffman/my-darling-girl-when-are-you-going-to-realize-that-being-normal-is/) [Alice Hoffman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-hoffman/) [Explore all 571 Alice Hoffman quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-hoffman/) ## More Bed quotes > [When man of slender visits you / Nothing on earth that one can do / In well he’ll hide, or watery hole / And…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-goldstein/when-man-of-slender-visits-you-nothing-on-earth-that-one-can-do-in/) [Jack Goldstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-goldstein/) > [Your idea of fidelity is not having more than one man in bed at the same time.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederic-raphael/your-idea-of-fidelity-is-not-having-more-than-one-man-in-bed-at-the/) [Frederic Raphael](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederic-raphael/) > [The beginning of love is all about the butterflies, but the end of it is when you can't get out of bed in the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/taylor-swift/the-beginning-of-love-is-all-about-the-butterflies-but-the-end-of-it/) [Taylor Swift](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/taylor-swift/) > [Home is behind, the world ahead, And there are many paths to tread Through shadows to the edge of night, Until the stars are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/home-is-behind-the-world-ahead-and-there-are-many-paths-to-tread/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [I wish I had as much in bed as I get in the newspapers.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/linda-ronstadt/i-wish-i-had-as-much-in-bed-as-i-get-in-the-newspapers/) [Linda Ronstadt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/linda-ronstadt/) > [ Leave a cavity behind the \[wall\] facings, and on the inside build walls two feet thick, made of red dimension stone or burnt brick… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marcus-vitruvius-pollio/leave-a-cavity-behind-the-wall-facings-and-on-the-inside-build-walls/) [Marcus Vitruvius Pollio](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marcus-vitruvius-pollio/) > [Why couldn't Jesus command us to obsess over everything, to try to control and manipulate people, to try not to breathe at all, or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-lamott/why-couldn-t-jesus-command-us-to-obsess-over-everything-to-try-to/) [Anne Lamott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-lamott/) > [“To all the secret writers, late-night painters, would-be singers, lapsed and scared artists of every stripe, dig out your paintbrush, or your flute, or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shauna-niequist/to-all-the-secret-writers-late-night-painters-would-be-singers-lapsed/) [Shauna Niequist](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shauna-niequist/) > [“In the parking lot, she drove and parked in a dark area with no other cars around. She reclined her seat, and listened to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tao-lin/in-the-parking-lot-she-drove-and-parked-in-a-dark-area-with-no-other/) [Tao Lin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tao-lin/) > [It wasn't really touching to be young; it was touching not to be young, because you had less of life left. Touching to be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rose-macaulay/it-wasn-t-really-touching-to-be-young-it-was-touching-not-to-be-young/) [Rose Macaulay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rose-macaulay/) > [I have to meditate before I go to bed, always. I have to let the day go and let the eternal in.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bellamy-young/i-have-to-meditate-before-i-go-to-bed-always-i-have-to-let-the-day-go/) [Bellamy Young](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bellamy-young/) > [Sometimes by a woodland stream he watched the water rush over the pebbled bed, its tiny modulations of bounce and flow. 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