--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: In the summer you could take out ten…" description: "\"“In the summer you could take out ten books at a time, instead of three, and keep them a month, instead of two weeks. Of course you could take only fou..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/277/edward-eager-56432_books_in-the-summer-you-could-take-out-ten-boo_3136361.jpg" --- # In the summer you could take out ten books at a time… ![“In the summer you could take out ten books at a time, instead of three, and keep them a month, instead of two weeks. Of course you could take only four of the fiction books, which were the best, but Jane liked plays and they were nonfiction, and Katharine liked poetry and that was nonfiction, and…” quote by Edward Eager](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/277/edward-eager-56432_books_in-the-summer-you-could-take-out-ten-boo_3136361.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/277/edward-eager-56432_books_in-the-summer-you-could-take-out-ten-boo_3136361.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/277/edward-eager-56432_books_in-the-summer-you-could-take-out-ten-boo_3136361.jpg) > ““In the summer you could take out ten books at a time, instead of three, and keep them a month, instead of two weeks. Of course you could take only four of the fiction books, which were the best, but Jane liked plays and they were nonfiction, and Katharine liked poetry and that was nonfiction, and Martha was still the age for picture books, and they didn’t count as fiction but were often nearly as good. Mark hadn’t found out yet what kind of nonfiction he liked, but he was still trying. Each month he would carry home his ten books and read the four good fiction ones in the first four days, and then read one page each from the other six, and then give up. Next month he would take them back and try again. The nonfiction books he tried were mostly called things like “When I was a Boy in Greece,” or “Happy Days on the Prairie”—things that made them sound like stories, only they weren’t. They made Mark furious. “It’s being made to learn things not on purpose. It’s unfair,” he said. “It’s sly.” Unfairness and slyness the four children hated above all.”” [Edward Eager](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-eager/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Children juggle limited reading time, preferring fiction over nonfiction, feeling forced learning is unfair and sneaky. **In simple terms:** Kids dislike being forced to learn through nonfiction. Key Takeaway Allow kids choice in reading material. Themes reading choice fairness learning children Mood frustrated determined curious Type advice reflective inspirational When to use this quote - family reading sessions - school libraries - parental guidance - book clubs - curriculum design Key Concepts Literary preference perceived injustice reading habits Questions to Reflect On - How can nonfiction be made appealing? - What balance of fiction and nonfiction works best? A Different Perspective Nonfiction can be engaging if presented creatively. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Books](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/books/) [Happy days](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/happy-days/) [Time](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/time/) ## Related quotes > [Sometimes the very best of all summer books is a blank notebook. Get one big enough, and you can practice sketching the lemon slice…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-dirda/sometimes-the-very-best-of-all-summer-books-is-a-blank-notebook-get/) [Michael Dirda](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-dirda/) > [Books were always important. I have to thank my father, he filled my life with books. He didn't write but he always read. 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There was times when people would burn books because they didn't like what people were doing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-berryman/censorship-is-a-strange-situation-there-was-times-when-people-would/) [Michael Berryman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-berryman/) > [The parenting books didn't work for me; I got my parenting lessons from everything but the books! And it was about figuring things out.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sonali-bendre/the-parenting-books-didn-t-work-for-me-i-got-my-parenting-lessons/) [Sonali Bendre](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sonali-bendre/) > [I've always loved children's books - it's not that I didn't like them, I just didn't think I wanted to do that. But then…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brian-selznick/i-ve-always-loved-children-s-books-it-s-not-that-i-didn-t-like-them-i/) [Brian Selznick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brian-selznick/) > [I did end up becoming a drawer, a sketcher and a painter because of comic books, but I didn't read them. Not at all.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jesse-l-martin/i-did-end-up-becoming-a-drawer-a-sketcher-and-a-painter-because-of/) [Jesse L. Martin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jesse-l-martin/) ## More by Edward Eager > [“Who steals my purse steals trash,” he said, “but who steals my sword steals honor itself, and him will I harry by wood and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-eager/who-steals-my-purse-steals-trash-he-said-but-who-steals-my-sword/) [Edward Eager](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-eager/) > [“Really!” said the fat lady to Jane and Katharine and Martha, who were wedged tightly against her. “Stop shoving.” “I’m sorry, but we haven’t…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-eager/really-said-the-fat-lady-to-jane-and-katharine-and-martha-who-were/) [Edward Eager](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-eager/) > [The best kind of book," said Barnaby, "is a magic book." 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But only the Natterjack…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-eager/but-in-the-garden-the-sun-still-shone-the-innumerable-bees-hummed-the/) [Edward Eager](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-eager/) [Explore all 6 Edward Eager quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-eager/) ## 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! 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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": "“In the summer you could take out ten books at a time, instead of three, and keep them a month, instead of two weeks. Of course you could take only four of the fiction books, which were the best, but Jane liked plays and they were nonfiction, and Katharine liked poetry and that was nonfiction, and Martha was still the age for picture books, and they didn’t count as fiction but were often nearly as good. Mark hadn’t found out yet what kind of nonfiction he liked, but he was still trying. Each month he would carry home his ten books and read the four good fiction ones in the first four days, and then read one page each from the other six, and then give up. Next month he would take them back and try again. The nonfiction books he tried were mostly called things like “When I was a Boy in Greece,” or “Happy Days on the Prairie”—things that made them sound like stories, only they weren’t. They made Mark furious. “It’s being made to learn things not on purpose. 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