--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I remember World War II when there were…" description: "\"I remember World War II when there were very few books, very little paper available. For me to walk into a shop or look at a list and see anything that..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/93b/doris-lessing-501_almost_i-remember-world-war-ii-when-there-were_60831.png" --- # I remember World War II when there were very few books… ![“I remember World War II when there were very few books, very little paper available. For me to walk into a shop or look at a list and see anything that I want, or almost anything, is like a kind of miracle.” quote by Doris Lessing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/93b/doris-lessing-501_almost_i-remember-world-war-ii-when-there-were_60831.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/93b/doris-lessing-501_almost_i-remember-world-war-ii-when-there-were_60831.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/93b/doris-lessing-501_almost_i-remember-world-war-ii-when-there-were_60831.png) > “I remember World War II when there were very few books, very little paper available. For me to walk into a shop or look at a list and see anything that I want, or almost anything, is like a kind of miracle.” [Doris Lessing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/doris-lessing/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The speaker reflects on the scarcity of printed material during WWII, marveling at the ability to find desired books as a remarkable occurrence. **In simple terms:** Scarcity of books during wartime felt miraculous when overcome. Key Takeaway Appreciate access to information. Themes Historical context Scarcity Miracle Literature War Mood Nostalgic Awe Reflective Type Personal anecdote Historical observation When to use this quote - Visiting a wartime bookstore - Browsing a limited catalog - Seeking knowledge under constraints Key Concepts Publishing Supply chain Cultural resilience Practical Applications - Preserving rare books - Studying wartime publishing Questions to Reflect On - How does scarcity shape our value of information? - What modern parallels exist to wartime resource limits? ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Almost](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/almost/) [Anything](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/anything/) [Available](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/available/) [Books](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/books/) [Books Little](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/books-little-621706/) [Few](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/few/) [I remember](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/i-remember/) [Kind](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/kind/) [Kind Miracle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/kind-miracle-828235/) [Like](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/like/) [List](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/list/) [Little](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/little/) [Little Paper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/little-paper-828234/) [Look](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/look/) [Me](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/me/) [Miracle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/miracle/) [Paper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/paper/) [Remember](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/remember/) [See](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/see/) [Shop](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/shop/) [Very](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/very/) [Walk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/walk/) [Want](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/want/) [War](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/war/) [Were](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/were/) [World](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/world/) [World war](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/world-war/) [World war ii](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/world-war-ii/) [Writer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writer/) ## Related quotes > [When we were kids, you picked up a little paper and put it on a stick; and when you waved it back and forth,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julie-taymor/when-we-were-kids-you-picked-up-a-little-paper-and-put-it-on-a-stick/) [Julie Taymor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julie-taymor/) > [“Every abyss is navigable by little paper boats.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jo-o-guimar-es-rosa/every-abyss-is-navigable-by-little-paper-boats/) [João Guimarães Rosa](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jo-o-guimar-es-rosa/) > [All we want in this life is peace, prosperity and a little paper.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/q-tip/all-we-want-in-this-life-is-peace-prosperity-and-a-little-paper/) [Q-Tip](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/q-tip/) > [God gave me good people around me, and He gave me size. 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Shepherd](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/a-b-shepherd/) > [There are so few books for little kids that actually mention the word transgender and explain what it is in simple terms.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jazz-jennings/there-are-so-few-books-for-little-kids-that-actually-mention-the-word/) [Jazz Jennings](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jazz-jennings/) > [“My father had left a small collection of books in a little room upstairs, to which I had access (for it adjoined my own)…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-dickens/my-father-had-left-a-small-collection-of-books-in-a-little-room/) [Charles Dickens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-dickens/) > [Too many books, too little time...](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/too-many-books-too-little-time/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Books seem a little old-fashioned, but hey, I can do old-fashioned if it's good.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tim-tharp/books-seem-a-little-old-fashioned-but-hey-i-can-do-old-fashioned-if/) [Tim Tharp](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tim-tharp/) ## More by Doris Lessing > [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/) > [“In the morning, when she wishes me to wake, she crouches on my chest, and pats my face with her paw. 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I've been much happier unmarried than married.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/doris-lessing/i-do-not-think-that-marriage-is-one-of-my-talents-i-ve-been-much/) [Doris Lessing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/doris-lessing/) > [I haven't got the energy to write now.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/doris-lessing/i-haven-t-got-the-energy-to-write-now/) [Doris Lessing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/doris-lessing/) > [What really fascinates me is this need that is so strong now that if you read a work of the imagination you instantly have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/doris-lessing/what-really-fascinates-me-is-this-need-that-is-so-strong-now-that-if/) [Doris Lessing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/doris-lessing/) > [“The charge that the United Nations are using bacteriological warfare in Korea cannot be dismissed merely because it would be insane.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/doris-lessing/the-charge-that-the-united-nations-are-using-bacteriological-warfare/) [Doris Lessing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/doris-lessing/) > [What I did have, which others perhaps didn't, was a capacity for sticking at it, which really is the point, not the talent at…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/doris-lessing/what-i-did-have-which-others-perhaps-didn-t-was-a-capacity-for/) [Doris Lessing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/doris-lessing/) > [The human community is evolving... . We can survive anything you care to mention. We are supremely equipped to survive, to adapt and even…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/doris-lessing/the-human-community-is-evolving-we-can-survive-anything-you-care-to/) [Doris Lessing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/doris-lessing/) > [So love is rest? The cosy corner? The little nook? Sometimes it ought to be. 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