---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Devorah tended to fill empty spaces with…"
description: "\"“Devorah tended to fill empty spaces with books: end tables, the tops of dressers, the edges of desks, on occasion even a chair. She would arrange and ..."
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/230/chaim-potok-2254_books_devorah-tended-to-fill-empty-spaces-with_670567.png"
---

#  Devorah tended to fill empty spaces with books: end…

![“Devorah tended to fill empty spaces with books: end tables, the tops of dressers, the edges of desks, on occasion even a chair. She would arrange and rearrange the books with exacting care, lining up the spines so none jutted out: sentinel rows of books.” quote by Chaim Potok](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/230/chaim-potok-2254_books_devorah-tended-to-fill-empty-spaces-with_670567.png)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/230/chaim-potok-2254_books_devorah-tended-to-fill-empty-spaces-with_670567.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/230/chaim-potok-2254_books_devorah-tended-to-fill-empty-spaces-with_670567.png)

> ““Devorah tended to fill empty spaces with books: end tables, the tops of dressers, the edges of desks, on occasion even a chair. She would arrange and rearrange the books with exacting care, lining up the spines so none jutted out: sentinel rows of books.””

[Chaim Potok](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chaim-potok/)

## About This Quote

This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation.

Devorah fills empty spaces with books, arranging them meticulously, reflecting a need for order and control.

**In simple terms:** She orders books to fill emptiness.

Key Takeaway

Create order in chaos.

Themes

order control solitude

Mood

contemplative nostalgic

Type

literary descriptive

When to use this quote

- home organization
- personal rituals
- creative spaces

Key Concepts

obsession materialism

Questions to Reflect On

- Why do you seek order?
- How can you balance order and flexibility?

A Different Perspective

Over‑ordering may stifle spontaneity.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[Books](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/books/) [Devorah Tended](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/devorah-tended-5324603/) [Empty space](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/empty-space/) [Rearrange Books](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/rearrange-books-5324602/) [Rows Books](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/rows-books-1569480/) [Sentinel Rows](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sentinel-rows-5324605/) [Tended Spaces](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/tended-spaces-5324604/) [Writer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writer/)

## Related quotes

> [Books everywhere. On the shelves and on the small space above the rows of books and all along the floor and under chairs, books…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edna-o-brien/books-everywhere-on-the-shelves-and-on-the-small-space-above-the-rows/)

[Edna O'Brien](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edna-o-brien/)

> [“Rows and rows of books lined the shelves and I let my eyes linger on the sturdy spines, thinking how human books were, so…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kim-edwards/rows-and-rows-of-books-lined-the-shelves-and-i-let-my-eyes-linger-on/)

[Kim Edwards](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kim-edwards/)

> [“Rows and rows of books lined the shelves...full of ideas and images, worlds imagined, worlds perceived; full of fingerprints and sudden laughter and the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kim-edwards/rows-and-rows-of-books-lined-the-shelves-full-of-ideas-and-images/)

[Kim Edwards](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kim-edwards/)

> [At the moment, I'm toying with a new idea for a book, but fully engaged with writing screenplays, so the book idea - which…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rose-tremain/at-the-moment-i-m-toying-with-a-new-idea-for-a-book-but-fully-engaged/)

[Rose Tremain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rose-tremain/)

> [Losing my daughter was a very serious pain. There was always some empty space in my heart.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yoko-ono/losing-my-daughter-was-a-very-serious-pain-there-was-always-some/)

[Yoko Ono](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yoko-ono/)

> [“She inhabited a world from which I was excluded, and she had left me in an immense empty space.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alfred-hayes/she-inhabited-a-world-from-which-i-was-excluded-and-she-had-left-me/)

[Alfred Hayes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alfred-hayes/)

> [“The thirty spokes unite in the one nave; but it is on the empty space (for the axle), that the use of the wheel…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lao-tzu/the-thirty-spokes-unite-in-the-one-nave-but-it-is-on-the-empty-space/)

[Lao Tzu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lao-tzu/)

> [“The door opened after a few moments. Sherlock was looking slightly upwards, expecting Amyus Crowe to be standing inside the doorway, and for a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andrew-lane/the-door-opened-after-a-few-moments-sherlock-was-looking-slightly/)

[Andrew Lane](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andrew-lane/)

> [“An atom is mostly made up of empty space. If you remove the empty space from every atom, the entire world's human population could…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/weike-wang/an-atom-is-mostly-made-up-of-empty-space-if-you-remove-the-empty/)

[Weike Wang](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/weike-wang/)

> [Now, almost one hundred years later, it is difficult to fully appreciate how much our picture of the universe has changed in the span…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lawrence-m-krauss/now-almost-one-hundred-years-later-it-is-difficult-to-fully/)

[Lawrence M. Krauss](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lawrence-m-krauss/)

> [Would you believe me if I said I was sorry The question wasn't mean to hurt, It was just my fear of losing you.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/every-avenue/would-you-believe-me-if-i-said-i-was-sorry-the-question-wasn-t-mean/)

[Every Avenue](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/every-avenue/)

> [It's everywhere, really. It's between the galaxies. It is in this room. We believe that everywhere that you have space, empty space, that you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adam-riess/it-s-everywhere-really-it-s-between-the-galaxies-it-is-in-this-room/)

[Adam Riess](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adam-riess/)

> [“Everything we perceive to be solid and static is made up of almost entirely empty space.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-p-kauffman/everything-we-perceive-to-be-solid-and-static-is-made-up-of-almost/)

[Joseph P. Kauffman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-p-kauffman/)

> [Our real nature is not our imaginary, limited ego. Our true nature is vast, all-comprehensive, and intangible as empty space.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anagarika-govinda/our-real-nature-is-not-our-imaginary-limited-ego-our-true-nature-is/)

[Anagarika Govinda](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anagarika-govinda/)

> [“Love. Such a sweet, simple word. A word I've been searching for my entire life - but especially since I met Eio - and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jessica-khoury/love-such-a-sweet-simple-word-a-word-i-ve-been-searching-for-my/)

[Jessica Khoury](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jessica-khoury/)

## More by Chaim Potok

> [“DW: Some critics have written that they don’t admire your so-called simple style. You have contended that your writing is a result of much…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chaim-potok/dw-some-critics-have-written-that-they-don-t-admire-your-so-called/)

[Chaim Potok](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chaim-potok/)

> [“I cannot pray. I talk to God through my sculpture and painting.' 'That's also prayer.' He smiled faintly, the morning sun on his face.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chaim-potok/i-cannot-pray-i-talk-to-god-through-my-sculpture-and-painting-that-s/)

[Chaim Potok](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chaim-potok/)

> [I don't work on my Sabbath. I write five-and-a-half or six days a week.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chaim-potok/i-don-t-work-on-my-sabbath-i-write-five-and-a-half-or-six-days-a-week/)

[Chaim Potok](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chaim-potok/)

> [And these two elements are at odds with one another because Freud is utterly adversary to almost all the ways of structuring the human…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chaim-potok/and-these-two-elements-are-at-odds-with-one-another-because-freud-is/)

[Chaim Potok](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chaim-potok/)

> [“How should a Jew feel? There we went through the seven gates of hell for matzos. Here I stand in matzos over my head.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chaim-potok/how-should-a-jew-feel-there-we-went-through-the-seven-gates-of-hell/)

[Chaim Potok](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chaim-potok/)

> [“In our time... a man whose enemies are faceless bureaucrats almost never wins. It is our equivalent to the anger of the gods in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chaim-potok/in-our-time-a-man-whose-enemies-are-faceless-bureaucrats-almost-never/)

[Chaim Potok](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chaim-potok/)

> [Seeds must be sown everywhere. Only some will bear fruit. But there would not be the fruit from the few had the many not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chaim-potok/seeds-must-be-sown-everywhere-only-some-will-bear-fruit-but-there/)

[Chaim Potok](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chaim-potok/)

> [“Basically it’s none of our business how somebody manages to grow, if only he does grow, if only we’re on the trail of the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chaim-potok/basically-it-s-none-of-our-business-how-somebody-manages-to-grow-if/)

[Chaim Potok](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chaim-potok/)

> [“I walked the streets and tasted the golden sun that lay across the city.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chaim-potok/i-walked-the-streets-and-tasted-the-golden-sun-that-lay-across-the/)

[Chaim Potok](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chaim-potok/)

> [What I have in advance are people I want to write about and a problem or problems that I see those people encountering and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chaim-potok/what-i-have-in-advance-are-people-i-want-to-write-about-and-a-problem/)

[Chaim Potok](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chaim-potok/)

> [“Millions of people can draw. Art is whether there is a scream in you wanting to get out in a special way.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chaim-potok/millions-of-people-can-draw-art-is-whether-there-is-a-scream-in-you/)

[Chaim Potok](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chaim-potok/)

> [“When the alternative is possible disaster, a man must gamble.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chaim-potok/when-the-alternative-is-possible-disaster-a-man-must-gamble/)

[Chaim Potok](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chaim-potok/)

> [I will go wherever the truth leads me. It is secular scholarship, Rebbe; it is not the scholarship of tradition. In secular scholarship there…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chaim-potok/i-will-go-wherever-the-truth-leads-me-it-is-secular-scholarship-rebbe/)

[Chaim Potok](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chaim-potok/)

> [… the world will indulge you just so long Asher Lev. Then it will stop. You will simply have to grow accustomed to that truth.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chaim-potok/the-world-will-indulge-you-just-so-long-asher-lev-then-it-will-stop/)

[Chaim Potok](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chaim-potok/)

> [No one knows he is fortunate until he becomes unfortunate, that's the way the world is.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chaim-potok/no-one-knows-he-is-fortunate-until-he-becomes-unfortunate-that-s-the/)

[Chaim Potok](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chaim-potok/)

[Explore all 175 Chaim Potok quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chaim-potok/)

## 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](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/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](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/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": "“Devorah tended to fill empty spaces with books: end tables, the tops of dressers, the edges of desks, on occasion even a chair. She would arrange and rearrange the books with exacting care, lining up the spines so none jutted out: sentinel rows of books.”",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "Chaim Potok"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chaim-potok/devorah-tended-to-fill-empty-spaces-with-books-end-tables-the-tops-of/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "Books"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chaim-potok/devorah-tended-to-fill-empty-spaces-with-books-end-tables-the-tops-of/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/230/chaim-potok-2254_books_devorah-tended-to-fill-empty-spaces-with_670567.png",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/230/chaim-potok-2254_books_devorah-tended-to-fill-empty-spaces-with_670567.png",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/230/chaim-potok-2254_books_devorah-tended-to-fill-empty-spaces-with_670567.png",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“Devorah tended to fill empty spaces with books: end tables, the tops of dressers, the edges of desks, on…” — Chaim Potok",
                "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": "Chaim Potok",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chaim-potok/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 4,
                    "name": "“Devorah tended to fill empty spaces...",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chaim-potok/devorah-tended-to-fill-empty-spaces-with-books-end-tables-the-tops-of/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chaim-potok/devorah-tended-to-fill-empty-spaces-with-books-end-tables-the-tops-of/#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
            }
        }
    ]
}
```
