---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Of course I loved books more than people."
description: "\"Of course I loved books more than people.\" — Diane Setterfield"
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/905/diane-setterfield-1008_book_of-course-i-loved-books-more-than-people_852124.png"
---

#  Of course I loved books more than people.

![“Of course I loved books more than people.” quote by Diane Setterfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/905/diane-setterfield-1008_book_of-course-i-loved-books-more-than-people_852124.png)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/905/diane-setterfield-1008_book_of-course-i-loved-books-more-than-people_852124.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/905/diane-setterfield-1008_book_of-course-i-loved-books-more-than-people_852124.png)

> “Of course I loved books more than people.”

[Diane Setterfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/diane-setterfield/)

## About This Quote

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

Prefers the comfort and depth of books over social interaction, valuing stories more than people.

**In simple terms:** Books feel safer than people.

Key Takeaway

Embrace reading for emotional nourishment.

Themes

literature solitude emotional comfort

Mood

reflective melancholic

Type

literary personal

When to use this quote

- loneliness
- personal growth
- reading habit
- mental health
- cultural appreciation

Key Concepts

fiction psychology social preference

Questions to Reflect On

- How do books shape your view of people?
- Can reading replace human interaction?

A Different Perspective

May overlook real‑world connections and social skills.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[Book](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/book/) [Books](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/books/) [Books People](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/books-people/) [Course Loved](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/course-loved-479742/) [Loved](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/loved/) [Loved Books](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/loved-books/) [People](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/people/) [Writer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writer/)

## Related quotes

> [“Looking at her as if she was mad. She was, of course. But so was I. It was what I loved most about us”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tillie-cole/looking-at-her-as-if-she-was-mad-she-was-of-course-but-so-was-i-it/)

[Tillie Cole](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tillie-cole/)

> [Would I work in Scotland again? Of course I would. I loved every single second of being there.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brendan-rodgers/would-i-work-in-scotland-again-of-course-i-would-i-loved-every-single/)

[Brendan Rodgers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brendan-rodgers/)

> [“Of course I was enough, because he loved me. That was the whole point.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/n-k-jemisin/of-course-i-was-enough-because-he-loved-me-that-was-the-whole-point/)

[N.K. Jemisin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/n-k-jemisin/)

> [“An industrious mother is an initiator of a good course; always charting new course for her loved ones.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/agu-jaachynma-n-e/an-industrious-mother-is-an-initiator-of-a-good-course-always/)

[Agu Jaachynma N.E](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/agu-jaachynma-n-e/)

> [In my junior year in college, I was getting kind of tired of French. So, I took an economics course, and I loved it.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eugene-fama/in-my-junior-year-in-college-i-was-getting-kind-of-tired-of-french-so/)

[Eugene Fama](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eugene-fama/)

> [There were books everywhere in my house. Books were very present. I just loved books. I never understood reading as anything but a pleasurable…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lisa-lucas/there-were-books-everywhere-in-my-house-books-were-very-present-i/)

[Lisa Lucas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lisa-lucas/)

> [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/)

> [“Try to avoid your house catching fire, as this does no good at all. And while your house is still intact, it is a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-connolly/try-to-avoid-your-house-catching-fire-as-this-does-no-good-at-all-and/)

[Joseph Connolly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-connolly/)

> [I care more about the people in books than the people I see every day.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jo-walton/i-care-more-about-the-people-in-books-than-the-people-i-see-every-day/)

[Jo Walton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jo-walton/)

> [I have a very low tolerance for boredom and often think I would have missed out on books entirely if Id grown up in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rick-yancey/i-have-a-very-low-tolerance-for-boredom-and-often-think-i-would-have/)

[Rick Yancey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rick-yancey/)

> [“Before Isabel could read, she loved books.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexis-m-smith/before-isabel-could-read-she-loved-books/)

[Alexis M. Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexis-m-smith/)

> [I have consistently loved books that I've read when I've been sick in bed.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tracy-chevalier/i-have-consistently-loved-books-that-i-ve-read-when-i-ve-been-sick-in/)

[Tracy Chevalier](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tracy-chevalier/)

> [We live and breathe words. It was books that kept me from taking my own life after I thought I could never love anyone,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cassandra-clare/we-live-and-breathe-words-it-was-books-that-kept-me-from-taking-my/)

[Cassandra Clare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cassandra-clare/)

> [“But I loved those books or at least that first one. And I felt somewhere down deep inside him the person who wrote it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gabrielle-zevin/but-i-loved-those-books-or-at-least-that-first-one-and-i-felt/)

[Gabrielle Zevin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gabrielle-zevin/)

> [I have loved books all my life. There is nothing more beautiful in our material world than the book.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patti-smith/i-have-loved-books-all-my-life-there-is-nothing-more-beautiful-in-our/)

[Patti Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patti-smith/)

## More by Diane Setterfield

> [“They are more real than the books on the shelves, books that are sketched with the barest hint of a line here and there,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/diane-setterfield/they-are-more-real-than-the-books-on-the-shelves-books-that-are/)

[Diane Setterfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/diane-setterfield/)

> [“Margaret Lea.” “The biographer.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/diane-setterfield/margaret-lea-the-biographer/)

[Diane Setterfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/diane-setterfield/)

> [“He was the first of my ghosts.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/diane-setterfield/he-was-the-first-of-my-ghosts/)

[Diane Setterfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/diane-setterfield/)

> [“It was like living entirely inside a book.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/diane-setterfield/it-was-like-living-entirely-inside-a-book/)

[Diane Setterfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/diane-setterfield/)

> [“Then something rang a bell in his mind. What”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/diane-setterfield/then-something-rang-a-bell-in-his-mind-what/)

[Diane Setterfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/diane-setterfield/)

> [What better way to get to know someone than through her choice and treatment of books?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/diane-setterfield/what-better-way-to-get-to-know-someone-than-through-her-choice-and/)

[Diane Setterfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/diane-setterfield/)

> [“I have always been a reader; I have read at every stage of my life, and there has never been a time when reading…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/diane-setterfield/i-have-always-been-a-reader-i-have-read-at-every-stage-of-my-life-and/)

[Diane Setterfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/diane-setterfield/)

> [“Yesterday or the day before, while I had been going about my business, quietly and in private, some unknown person—some stranger—had gone to the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/diane-setterfield/yesterday-or-the-day-before-while-i-had-been-going-about-my-business/)

[Diane Setterfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/diane-setterfield/)

> [“the Missus stood like a ghost.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/diane-setterfield/the-missus-stood-like-a-ghost/)

[Diane Setterfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/diane-setterfield/)

> [“But perhaps the answer is to stop writing altogether, for when I do write, even now as I write this very sentence, this very…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/diane-setterfield/but-perhaps-the-answer-is-to-stop-writing-altogether-for-when-i-do/)

[Diane Setterfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/diane-setterfield/)

> [Our clients' faces, with the customary outward paleness and inner glow of the book lover.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/diane-setterfield/our-clients-faces-with-the-customary-outward-paleness-and-inner-glow/)

[Diane Setterfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/diane-setterfield/)

> [“He felt something move in his chest, as though an organ had been removed and something unfamiliar left in its place. A sentiment he…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/diane-setterfield/he-felt-something-move-in-his-chest-as-though-an-organ-had-been/)

[Diane Setterfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/diane-setterfield/)

> [Still in my coat and hat, I sank onto the stair to read the letter. (I never read without making sure I am in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/diane-setterfield/still-in-my-coat-and-hat-i-sank-onto-the-stair-to-read-the-letter-i/)

[Diane Setterfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/diane-setterfield/)

> [I still believe in stories. I still forget myself when I am in the middle of a good book. Books are for me, it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/diane-setterfield/i-still-believe-in-stories-i-still-forget-myself-when-i-am-in-the/)

[Diane Setterfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/diane-setterfield/)

> [Of course I loved books more than people. Of course I valued "Jane Eyre" over the anonymous stranger...Of course all of Shakespeare was worth…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/diane-setterfield/of-course-i-loved-books-more-than-people-of-course-i-valued-jane-eyre/)

[Diane Setterfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/diane-setterfield/)

[Explore all 292 Diane Setterfield quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/diane-setterfield/)

## 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! 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/)

> [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/)

> [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/)

> [I don't think I have made as much of my life as I should have. 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": "Of course I loved books more than people.",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "Diane Setterfield"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/diane-setterfield/of-course-i-loved-books-more-than-people/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "Book"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/diane-setterfield/of-course-i-loved-books-more-than-people/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/905/diane-setterfield-1008_book_of-course-i-loved-books-more-than-people_852124.png",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/905/diane-setterfield-1008_book_of-course-i-loved-books-more-than-people_852124.png",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/905/diane-setterfield-1008_book_of-course-i-loved-books-more-than-people_852124.png",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“Of course I loved books more than people.” — Diane Setterfield",
                "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": "Diane Setterfield",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/diane-setterfield/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 4,
                    "name": "Of course I loved books more...",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/diane-setterfield/of-course-i-loved-books-more-than-people/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/diane-setterfield/of-course-i-loved-books-more-than-people/#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
            }
        }
    ]
}
```
