--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: buying books would be a good thing if we…" description: "\"“buying books would be a good thing if we also could buy the time to read them.”\" — arthur schopenhauer" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2b8/arthur-schopenhauer-226_book_buying-books-would-be-a-good-thing-if-we_466373.jpg" --- # buying books would be a good thing if we also could buy… ![“buying books would be a good thing if we also could buy the time to read them.” quote by arthur schopenhauer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2b8/arthur-schopenhauer-226_book_buying-books-would-be-a-good-thing-if-we_466373.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2b8/arthur-schopenhauer-226_book_buying-books-would-be-a-good-thing-if-we_466373.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2b8/arthur-schopenhauer-226_book_buying-books-would-be-a-good-thing-if-we_466373.jpg) > ““buying books would be a good thing if we also could buy the time to read them.”” [arthur schopenhauer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-schopenhauer/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Reading requires time; without it, acquiring books is futile. **In simple terms:** Books are useless without time to read. Key Takeaway Prioritize time for reading. Themes reading time value Mood thoughtful inspirational Type advice philosophical When to use this quote - personal growth - education - leisure planning Key Concepts philosophy productivity literature Questions to Reflect On - What habits can free up reading time? - How does reading enrich your life? A Different Perspective Time scarcity limits knowledge acquisition. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Book](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/book/) [Books](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/books/) [Buying books](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/buying-books/) [Time](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/time/) [Writer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writer/) ## Related quotes > [To buy books would be a good thing if we also could buy the time to read them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-schopenhauer/to-buy-books-would-be-a-good-thing-if-we-also-could-buy-the-time-to/) [Arthur Schopenhauer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-schopenhauer/) > [To buy books would be a good thing if we could also buy the time to read them; but the purchase of books is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-schopenhauer/to-buy-books-would-be-a-good-thing-if-we-could-also-buy-the-time-to/) [Arthur Schopenhauer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-schopenhauer/) > [The only thing we can't buy more of is time." she said. "And dodo birds. We can't buy any more of them. they're extinct.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dean-koontz/the-only-thing-we-can-t-buy-more-of-is-time-she-said-and-dodo-birds/) [Dean Koontz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dean-koontz/) > [For every book you buy, you should buy the time to read it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karl-lagerfeld/for-every-book-you-buy-you-should-buy-the-time-to-read-it/) [Karl Lagerfeld](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karl-lagerfeld/) > [For money, I can buy one thing: I buy freedom.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/svetlana-alexievich/for-money-i-can-buy-one-thing-i-buy-freedom/) [Svetlana Alexievich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/svetlana-alexievich/) > [The one thing you can't buy, find, or create is time.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michele-bachmann/the-one-thing-you-can-t-buy-find-or-create-is-time/) [Michele Bachmann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michele-bachmann/) > [“You’re paid a lot and you’re not happy, so the first thing you do is buy stuff that you don’t want or need—for which…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/douglas-adams/you-re-paid-a-lot-and-you-re-not-happy-so-the-first-thing-you-do-is/) [Douglas Adams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/douglas-adams/) > [Time is the only thing you can't buy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicole-lapin/time-is-the-only-thing-you-can-t-buy/) [Nicole Lapin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicole-lapin/) > [“The most dangerous thing is to buy something at the peak of its popularity. At that point, all favourable facts and opinions are already…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-marks/the-most-dangerous-thing-is-to-buy-something-at-the-peak-of-its/) [Howard Marks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howard-marks/) > [There's Beatles books and T-shirts and rings, and one thing and another. To buy my daughter all these things, I had to sell her…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/allan-sherman/there-s-beatles-books-and-t-shirts-and-rings-and-one-thing-and/) [Allan Sherman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/allan-sherman/) > [“Every thing's for sale out here. Anything you want. 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You have to pay for it and you have to pay for it with your life,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-doisneau/chance-is-the-one-thing-you-can-t-buy-you-have-to-pay-for-it-and-you/) [Robert Doisneau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-doisneau/) > [I havent bought anything that expensive in a really long time. The only thing I buy is, like, food and skateboards.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jaden-smith/i-havent-bought-anything-that-expensive-in-a-really-long-time-the/) [Jaden Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jaden-smith/) ## More by arthur schopenhauer > [Virtue is as little to be acquired by learning as genius; nay, the idea is barren, and is only to be employed as an…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-schopenhauer/virtue-is-as-little-to-be-acquired-by-learning-as-genius-nay-the-idea/) [Arthur Schopenhauer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-schopenhauer/) > [“In accordance with such zeal, by reducing the external world to a matter of faith, he wanted merely to open a little door for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-schopenhauer/in-accordance-with-such-zeal-by-reducing-the-external-world-to-a/) [Arthur Schopenhauer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-schopenhauer/) > [That human life must be some kind of mistake is sufficiently proved by the simple observation that man is a compound of needs which…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-schopenhauer/that-human-life-must-be-some-kind-of-mistake-is-sufficiently-proved/) [Arthur Schopenhauer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-schopenhauer/) > [“Imitation and custom are the spring of almost all human action. The cause of it is that men fight shy of all and any…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-schopenhauer/imitation-and-custom-are-the-spring-of-almost-all-human-action-the/) [Arthur Schopenhauer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-schopenhauer/) > [ \[T\]he appropriate form of address between man and man ought to be, not monsieur, sir, but fellow sufferer, compagnon de miseres. ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-schopenhauer/t-he-appropriate-form-of-address-between-man-and-man-ought-to-be-not/) [Arthur Schopenhauer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-schopenhauer/) > [The eternal being..., as it lives in us, also lives in every animal.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-schopenhauer/the-eternal-being-as-it-lives-in-us-also-lives-in-every-animal/) [Arthur Schopenhauer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-schopenhauer/) > [there are very few who can think, but every man wants to have an opinion; and what remains but to take it ready-made from…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-schopenhauer/there-are-very-few-who-can-think-but-every-man-wants-to-have-an/) [Arthur Schopenhauer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-schopenhauer/) > [It is not what things are objectively and in themselves, but what they are for us, in our way of looking at them, that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-schopenhauer/it-is-not-what-things-are-objectively-and-in-themselves-but-what-they/) [Arthur Schopenhauer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-schopenhauer/) > [ “\[Materialism\] seeks the primary and most simple state of matter, and then tries to develop all the others from it; ascending from mere mechanism,… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-schopenhauer/materialism-seeks-the-primary-and-most-simple-state-of-matter-and/) [Arthur Schopenhauer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-schopenhauer/) > [In order to increase his pleasures, man has intentionally added to the number and pressure of his needs, which in their original state were…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-schopenhauer/in-order-to-increase-his-pleasures-man-has-intentionally-added-to-the/) [Arthur Schopenhauer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-schopenhauer/) > [“For the will, as that which is common to all, is for that reason also common: consequently, every vehement emergence of will is common,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-schopenhauer/for-the-will-as-that-which-is-common-to-all-is-for-that-reason-also/) [Arthur Schopenhauer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-schopenhauer/) > [“Alles Urdenken geschieht in Bildern: darum ist die Phantasie ein so nothwendiges Werkzeug desselben, und werden phantasielose Köpfe nie etwas Großes leisten, - es…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-schopenhauer/alles-urdenken-geschieht-in-bildern-darum-ist-die-phantasie-ein-so/) [Arthur Schopenhauer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-schopenhauer/) > [Intellect is invisible to the man who has none.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-schopenhauer/intellect-is-invisible-to-the-man-who-has-none/) [Arthur Schopenhauer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-schopenhauer/) > [Newspapers are the second hand of history.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-schopenhauer/newspapers-are-the-second-hand-of-history/) [Arthur Schopenhauer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-schopenhauer/) > [“In travelling where novelties of all kinds press in upon us, mental food is often supplied so rapidly from without that there is no…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-schopenhauer/in-travelling-where-novelties-of-all-kinds-press-in-upon-us-mental/) [Arthur Schopenhauer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-schopenhauer/) [Explore all 791 arthur schopenhauer quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-schopenhauer/) ## More Book 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/) > [Young men, especially in America, write to me and ask me to recommend “a course of reading.” Distrust a course of reading! 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I should have written more books.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-m-schlesinger-jr/i-don-t-think-i-have-made-as-much-of-my-life-as-i-should-have-i/) [Arthur M. Schlesinger, Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-m-schlesinger-jr/) > [Some books are not read in the right way because they have skipped a stage of opinion, assume a crystallization of information in society…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/doris-lessing/some-books-are-not-read-in-the-right-way-because-they-have-skipped-a/) [Doris Lessing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/doris-lessing/) > [“People talk about books that write themselves, and it's a lie. Books don't write themselves. It takes thought and research and a backache and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-gaiman/people-talk-about-books-that-write-themselves-and-it-s-a-lie-books/) [Neil Gaiman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-gaiman/) > [There are great books in this world and great worlds in books.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-bronte/there-are-great-books-in-this-world-and-great-worlds-in-books/) [Anne Bronte](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-bronte/) > [The purpose of this book is to supply, in the form suitable for laymen, guidance in the adoption and execution of an investment policy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benjamin-graham/the-purpose-of-this-book-is-to-supply-in-the-form-suitable-for-laymen/) [Benjamin Graham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benjamin-graham/) > [But I think that of all the literature that I studied, the book that did more than any other to fire my enthusiasm was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kwame-nkrumah/but-i-think-that-of-all-the-literature-that-i-studied-the-book-that/) [Kwame Nkrumah](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kwame-nkrumah/) > [It's amazing to see things that are suggested in the book fully developed and so brilliantly realized through the artistry of the designers.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/suzanne-collins/it-s-amazing-to-see-things-that-are-suggested-in-the-book-fully/) [Suzanne Collins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/suzanne-collins/) > [“But I’ve developed a great reputation for wisdom by ordering more books than I ever had time to read, and reading more books, by…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marilynne-robinson/but-i-ve-developed-a-great-reputation-for-wisdom-by-ordering-more/) [Marilynne Robinson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marilynne-robinson/) [Browse all 29,378 Book quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/book/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“buying books would be a good thing if we also could buy the time to read them.”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "arthur schopenhauer" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-schopenhauer/buying-books-would-be-a-good-thing-if-we-also-could-buy-the-time-to/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Book" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-schopenhauer/buying-books-would-be-a-good-thing-if-we-also-could-buy-the-time-to/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2b8/arthur-schopenhauer-226_book_buying-books-would-be-a-good-thing-if-we_466373.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2b8/arthur-schopenhauer-226_book_buying-books-would-be-a-good-thing-if-we_466373.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2b8/arthur-schopenhauer-226_book_buying-books-would-be-a-good-thing-if-we_466373.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“buying books would be a good thing if we also could buy the time to read them.” — arthur schopenhauer", "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": "arthur schopenhauer", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-schopenhauer/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "“buying books would be a good...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-schopenhauer/buying-books-would-be-a-good-thing-if-we-also-could-buy-the-time-to/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-schopenhauer/buying-books-would-be-a-good-thing-if-we-also-could-buy-the-time-to/#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 } } ] } ```