--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: There are seventy million books in…" description: "\"There are seventy million books in American libraries, but the one you want is always out.\" — Anonymous" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3e8/anonymous-1_books_there-are-seventy-million-books-in-ameri_3027607.jpg" --- # There are seventy million books in American libraries, but… ![“There are seventy million books in American libraries, but the one you want is always out.” quote by Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3e8/anonymous-1_books_there-are-seventy-million-books-in-ameri_3027607.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3e8/anonymous-1_books_there-are-seventy-million-books-in-ameri_3027607.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3e8/anonymous-1_books_there-are-seventy-million-books-in-ameri_3027607.jpg) > “There are seventy million books in American libraries, but the one you want is always out.” [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Abundance of books contrasts with scarcity of the desired one, highlighting the paradox of choice. **In simple terms:** Many books exist, but the right one is hard to find. Key Takeaway Seek specific resources, don’t rely on quantity. Themes choice overload search information paradox Mood inquisitive thoughtful Type practical inspirational When to use this quote - research - reading - academic study - personal development Key Concepts library science cognitive bias Questions to Reflect On - What strategies help locate niche books? - Does abundance hinder satisfaction? A Different Perspective Finding the right book may require targeted searching. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Books](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/books/) [Library](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/library/) [Writer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writer/) ## Related quotes > [Seventy million books in America's libraries, but the one you want to read is always out.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-lansing-masson/seventy-million-books-in-america-s-libraries-but-the-one-you-want-to/) [Thomas Lansing Masson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-lansing-masson/) > [When I became a published writer, I said, 'Whatever I can do to help the libraries I want to do,' so all of my…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karin-slaughter/when-i-became-a-published-writer-i-said-whatever-i-can-do-to-help-the/) [Karin Slaughter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karin-slaughter/) > [The problem is huge. We've just added seventy-five million people to the already large proportion of people in the world who are malnourished all…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-atwood/the-problem-is-huge-we-ve-just-added-seventy-five-million-people-to/) [Margaret Atwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-atwood/) > [“from over seven billion to what has been estimated to be less than seventy million.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bobby-akart/from-over-seven-billion-to-what-has-been-estimated-to-be-less-than/) [Bobby Akart](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bobby-akart/) > [What I do find enormously gratifying is the reviews my books get from the American press. They are so on the ball compared to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kate-thompson/what-i-do-find-enormously-gratifying-is-the-reviews-my-books-get-from/) [Kate Thompson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kate-thompson/) > [In the English books, the American kids' books, typically, there is a problem, the characters grapple with that problem, and the problem is resolved.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pamela-druckerman/in-the-english-books-the-american-kids-books-typically-there-is-a/) [Pamela Druckerman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pamela-druckerman/) > [Authors and publishers want fair compensation and a means of protecting content through digital rights management. Vendors and technology companies want new markets for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-peters/authors-and-publishers-want-fair-compensation-and-a-means-of/) [Tom Peters](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-peters/) > [Now, many public libraries want to lend e-books, not simply to patrons who come in to download, but to anybody with a reading device,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/scott-turow/now-many-public-libraries-want-to-lend-e-books-not-simply-to-patrons/) [Scott Turow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/scott-turow/) > [Being from Russia, I respect all of the comic books American people love. We do follow it a lot.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/svetlana-khodchenkova/being-from-russia-i-respect-all-of-the-comic-books-american-people/) Svetlana Khodchenkova > [Foreigners have a complex set of associations in their minds when they think of America - from Iraq to 9/11, certainly, but also from…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shashi-tharoor/foreigners-have-a-complex-set-of-associations-in-their-minds-when/) [Shashi Tharoor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shashi-tharoor/) > [“Our house is old, and noisy, and full. when we moved into it we had two children and about five thousand books; I expect…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shirley-jackson/our-house-is-old-and-noisy-and-full-when-we-moved-into-it-we-had-two/) [Shirley Jackson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shirley-jackson/) > [“Over a million? A million books?” Her heart leapt and danced, and she cracked a smile. “I’d die before I even got through half…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sarah-j-maas/over-a-million-a-million-books-her-heart-leapt-and-danced-and-she/) [Sarah J. Maas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sarah-j-maas/) > [“From the days of Sumerian clay tablets until now, humans have “published” at least 310 million books, 1.4 billion articles and essays, 180 million…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kevin-kelly/from-the-days-of-sumerian-clay-tablets-until-now-humans-have/) [Kevin Kelly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kevin-kelly/) > [There are 20,000 million books I could have to read, but I can pick the ones and know that I'm learning something that I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/doris-kearns-goodwin/there-are-20-000-million-books-i-could-have-to-read-but-i-can-pick/) [Doris Kearns Goodwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/doris-kearns-goodwin/) > [“A million books’ worth of theoretical knowledge couldn’t equal one direct experience of the self.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/omar-delawar/a-million-books-worth-of-theoretical-knowledge-couldn-t-equal-one/) [Omar Delawar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/omar-delawar/) ## More by Anonymous > [And a tear rolled down her cheek, as she said goodbye; because she's walking away, and she's never looking back](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/and-a-tear-rolled-down-her-cheek-as-she-said-goodbye-because-she-s/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Life is full of change. That's how we learn and grow.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/life-is-full-of-change-that-s-how-we-learn-and-grow/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [You'll seldom experience regret for anything that you've done. It is what you haven't done that will torment you. The message, therefore, is clear.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/you-ll-seldom-experience-regret-for-anything-that-you-ve-done-it-is/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Scrabble - The game is available in Braille. That’s a nice fact. This makes me feel better about humanity for some reason. I can’t…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/scrabble-the-game-is-available-in-braille-that-s-a-nice-fact-this/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Everyone needs someone to love, and I choose you.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/everyone-needs-someone-to-love-and-i-choose-you/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“THIS tale of my sore-troubled life I write,    To thank the God of nature, who conveyed    My soul to me, and with such care…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/this-tale-of-my-sore-troubled-life-i-write-to-thank-the-god-of-nature/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Put on my J's and dance the whole night away Im naughty by nature like Im hip-hop hooray With my hands in the sky,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/put-on-my-j-s-and-dance-the-whole-night-away-im-naughty-by-nature/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Me.. I have been through a lot, but I still manage to have a smile on my face. Im not worried about the past…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/me-i-have-been-through-a-lot-but-i-still-manage-to-have-a-smile-on-my/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Distance is a test of love. many will fail for those who can't withstand it, but for those who can, theres only one answer…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/distance-is-a-test-of-love-many-will-fail-for-those-who-can-t/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Im sorry I ever tried...](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/im-sorry-i-ever-tried/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Being betrayed by the one you love is the worst feeling in the world...](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/being-betrayed-by-the-one-you-love-is-the-worst-feeling-in-the-world/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Let children support their parents or be imprisoned.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/let-children-support-their-parents-or-be-imprisoned/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [The only person I've ever purposely caused pain here is myself...By simply sharing, caring too much.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/the-only-person-i-ve-ever-purposely-caused-pain-here-is-myself-by/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“Start a business, not a startup”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/start-a-business-not-a-startup/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [The truth is, of course, that the curtness of the Ten Commandments is an evidence, not of the gloom and narrowness of a religion,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/the-truth-is-of-course-that-the-curtness-of-the-ten-commandments-is/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) [Explore all 162,899 Anonymous quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) ## More Books quotes > [I think a new world will arise out of the religious mists when we approach our Bible with the idea that it is not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aiden-wilson-tozer/i-think-a-new-world-will-arise-out-of-the-religious-mists-when-we/) [Aiden Wilson Tozer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aiden-wilson-tozer/) > [If I had a dollar for every time I couldn’t sleep, I could buy a billion locks and finally read a book in peace.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aesop-rock/if-i-had-a-dollar-for-every-time-i-couldn-t-sleep-i-could-buy-a/) [Aesop Rock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aesop-rock/) > [If what I write is literature, I guess you'd better emphasize the 'litter.'](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lydia-lunch/if-what-i-write-is-literature-i-guess-you-d-better-emphasize-the/) [Lydia Lunch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lydia-lunch/) > [My sentences got sharper and my stories more efficient, and I gradually learned to imagine the reader more clearly and to empathize with that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karen-thompson-walker/my-sentences-got-sharper-and-my-stories-more-efficient-and-i/) [Karen Thompson Walker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karen-thompson-walker/) > [Young men, especially in America, write to me and ask me to recommend “a course of reading.” Distrust a course of reading! People who…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andrew-lang/young-men-especially-in-america-write-to-me-and-ask-me-to-recommend-a/) [Andrew Lang](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andrew-lang/) > [“Within the pages of books, I've journeyed to Mandalay, the Milky Way and Santa Fe, without once having to leave my armchair.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kevin-ansbro/within-the-pages-of-books-i-ve-journeyed-to-mandalay-the-milky-way/) [Kevin Ansbro](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kevin-ansbro/) > [The Rosary is the book of the blind.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fulton-j-sheen/the-rosary-is-the-book-of-the-blind/) [Fulton J. Sheen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fulton-j-sheen/) > [“Tacitus did not write a most dangerous book. His readers made it so.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-k-krebs/tacitus-did-not-write-a-most-dangerous-book-his-readers-made-it-so/) Christopher K. Krebs > [“Take some books and read; that’s an immense help; and books are always good company if you have the right sort.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louisa-may-alcott/take-some-books-and-read-that-s-an-immense-help-and-books-are-always/) [Louisa May Alcott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louisa-may-alcott/) > [Reader, if you are gifted with nerves like mine, aspire to any character but that of a wit.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-lamb/reader-if-you-are-gifted-with-nerves-like-mine-aspire-to-any/) [Charles Lamb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-lamb/) > [I have many who keep me going, I am very fortunate in this sense. There is nothing like a child who knows more about…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/floyd-cooper/i-have-many-who-keep-me-going-i-am-very-fortunate-in-this-sense-there/) [Floyd Cooper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/floyd-cooper/) > [I think books in which people are really happy and things are going well are probably the most challenging novels there are to write,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anna-quindlen/i-think-books-in-which-people-are-really-happy-and-things-are-going/) [Anna Quindlen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anna-quindlen/) > [It's like the query letter problem that I just mentioned, magnified a hundredfold. You might be good at telling a story, but that doesn't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patrick-rothfuss/it-s-like-the-query-letter-problem-that-i-just-mentioned-magnified-a/) [Patrick Rothfuss](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patrick-rothfuss/) > [“Be careful about reading health books. Some fine day you'll die of a misprint.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/markus-herz/be-careful-about-reading-health-books-some-fine-day-you-ll-die-of-a/) Markus Herz > [But editors are still the world's readers. And thus the eyes of the world.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/betsy-lerner/but-editors-are-still-the-world-s-readers-and-thus-the-eyes-of-the/) [Betsy Lerner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/betsy-lerner/) [Browse all 59,485 Books quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/books/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "There are seventy million books in American libraries, but the one you want is always out.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Anonymous" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/there-are-seventy-million-books-in-american-libraries-but-the-one-you/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Books" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/there-are-seventy-million-books-in-american-libraries-but-the-one-you/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3e8/anonymous-1_books_there-are-seventy-million-books-in-ameri_3027607.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3e8/anonymous-1_books_there-are-seventy-million-books-in-ameri_3027607.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3e8/anonymous-1_books_there-are-seventy-million-books-in-ameri_3027607.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“There are seventy million books in American libraries, but the one you want is always out.” — Anonymous", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Anonymous", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "There are seventy million books in...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/there-are-seventy-million-books-in-american-libraries-but-the-one-you/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/there-are-seventy-million-books-in-american-libraries-but-the-one-you/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```