--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I'm not a big Austen reader. I wouldn't…" description: "\"I'm not a big Austen reader. I wouldn't say I dislike her, but if I had to choose between her and Eliot to bring to a desert island, it would definitel..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5b7/elizabeth-gilbert-131_austen_i-m-not-a-big-austen-reader-i-wouldn-t-s_3008456.jpg" --- # I'm not a big Austen reader. I wouldn't say I dislike her… ![“I'm not a big Austen reader. I wouldn't say I dislike her, but if I had to choose between her and Eliot to bring to a desert island, it would definitely be Eliot.” quote by Elizabeth Gilbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5b7/elizabeth-gilbert-131_austen_i-m-not-a-big-austen-reader-i-wouldn-t-s_3008456.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5b7/elizabeth-gilbert-131_austen_i-m-not-a-big-austen-reader-i-wouldn-t-s_3008456.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5b7/elizabeth-gilbert-131_austen_i-m-not-a-big-austen-reader-i-wouldn-t-s_3008456.jpg) > “I'm not a big Austen reader. I wouldn't say I dislike her, but if I had to choose between her and Eliot to bring to a desert island, it would definitely be Eliot.” [Elizabeth Gilbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-gilbert/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Austen’s style is less appealing to the speaker than Eliot’s, reflecting personal literary taste. **In simple terms:** Personal taste varies. Key Takeaway Explore diverse authors. Themes literature preference travel choice Mood curious reflective Type literary personal When to use this quote - book clubs - reading challenges - travel planning Key Concepts literary criticism psychology Questions to Reflect On - What does your favorite author reveal about you? - How can you broaden your reading? A Different Perspective Taste is subjective and can limit exposure. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Books](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/books/) [Desert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/desert/) [Desert island](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/desert-island/) [Islands](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/islands/) ## Related quotes > [“Imagine fifty thousand men trapped on a desert island, deprived of food and water and sex but somehow kept alive for fifty thousand years.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-wong/imagine-fifty-thousand-men-trapped-on-a-desert-island-deprived-of/) [David Wong](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-wong/) > [“All human activity is subject to habitualization. Any action that is repeated frequently becomes cast into a pattern, which can then be reproduced with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-l-berger/all-human-activity-is-subject-to-habitualization-any-action-that-is/) [Peter L. Berger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-l-berger/) > [You can see when an actor gets bored: Their eyes go dead. I promised myself I'd never let that happen. If it does, I'll…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anna-friel/you-can-see-when-an-actor-gets-bored-their-eyes-go-dead-i-promised/) [Anna Friel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anna-friel/) > [If I had to live on a desert island, and somebody gave me a chicken, there's no way I'd kill it - I'd call…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anita-dobson/if-i-had-to-live-on-a-desert-island-and-somebody-gave-me-a-chicken/) [Anita Dobson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anita-dobson/) > [A book I would take with me to a desert island is 'Paradise Lost,' which I studied in college and hated so much by…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karin-slaughter/a-book-i-would-take-with-me-to-a-desert-island-is-paradise-lost-which/) [Karin Slaughter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karin-slaughter/) > [When I see the blind and wretched state of men, when I survey the whole universe in its deadness, and man left to himself…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/blaise-pascal/when-i-see-the-blind-and-wretched-state-of-men-when-i-survey-the/) [Blaise Pascal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/blaise-pascal/) > [It was ironic, but when you scratched the surface, most successful men were working for one thing only--to retire--and the sooner the better. Whereas…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/candace-bushnell/it-was-ironic-but-when-you-scratched-the-surface-most-successful-men/) [Candace Bushnell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/candace-bushnell/) > [Bod said, 'I want to see life. I want to hold it in my hands. I want to leave a footprint on the sand…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-gaiman/bod-said-i-want-to-see-life-i-want-to-hold-it-in-my-hands-i-want-to/) [Neil Gaiman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-gaiman/) > [“A sunset, almost formidable in its splendor, would be lingering in the fully exposed sky. Among its imperceptibly changing amassments, one could pick out…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vladimir-nabokov/a-sunset-almost-formidable-in-its-splendor-would-be-lingering-in-the/) [Vladimir Nabokov](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vladimir-nabokov/) > [Living in a society, instead of on a desert island, does not relieve a man of the responsibility of supporting his own life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ayn-rand/living-in-a-society-instead-of-on-a-desert-island-does-not-relieve-a/) [Ayn Rand](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ayn-rand/) > [“For a desert island, one would choose a good dictionary rather than the greatest literary masterpiece imaginable, for, in relation to its readers, a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/w-h-auden-2/for-a-desert-island-one-would-choose-a-good-dictionary-rather-than/) [W.H. Auden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/w-h-auden-2/) > [Here, beside this great black surface that is my desk, I feel as though I am on a desert island.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/etty-hillesum/here-beside-this-great-black-surface-that-is-my-desk-i-feel-as-though/) [Etty Hillesum](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/etty-hillesum/) > [If I had to pick one guitar to take to a desert island, I'd pick my '67 Rickenbacker 12-string, which I bought a couple…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mike-campbell/if-i-had-to-pick-one-guitar-to-take-to-a-desert-island-i-d-pick-my-67/) [Mike Campbell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mike-campbell/) > [Corinne Bailey Rae I listen to a lot, and I'll hear Desert Island Discs and quickly write down the name of a song, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lesley-manville/corinne-bailey-rae-i-listen-to-a-lot-and-i-ll-hear-desert-island/) [Lesley Manville](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lesley-manville/) > [Someone asked me, if I were stranded on a desert island what book would I bring... 'How to Build a Boat.'](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-wright/someone-asked-me-if-i-were-stranded-on-a-desert-island-what-book/) [Steven Wright](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-wright/) ## More by Elizabeth Gilbert > [That's your friend. My husband is my best friend. He's not the mirror that holds up my flaws. He's just the guy who's like,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-gilbert/that-s-your-friend-my-husband-is-my-best-friend-he-s-not-the-mirror/) [Elizabeth Gilbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-gilbert/) > [“Not to mention that I have finally arrived at that age where a woman starts to question whether the wisest way to get over…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-gilbert/not-to-mention-that-i-have-finally-arrived-at-that-age-where-a-woman/) [Elizabeth Gilbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-gilbert/) > [“The Buddha taught that all human suffering is rooted in desire. Don't we all know this to be true? Any of us who have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-gilbert/the-buddha-taught-that-all-human-suffering-is-rooted-in-desire-don-t/) [Elizabeth Gilbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-gilbert/) > [ “And while \[we\] do have possibilities that are vast and magnificent and almost infinite in scope, it's important to remember that our choice-rich lives… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-gilbert/and-while-we-do-have-possibilities-that-are-vast-and-magnificent-and/) [Elizabeth Gilbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-gilbert/) > [Learn your way around loneliness. Make a map of it. Sit with it, for once in your life. Welcome to the human experience.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-gilbert/learn-your-way-around-loneliness-make-a-map-of-it-sit-with-it-for/) [Elizabeth Gilbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-gilbert/) > [If we never leave our house except to drive to work, do we need to be even remotely aware of this powerful, humbling, extraordinary…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-gilbert/if-we-never-leave-our-house-except-to-drive-to-work-do-we-need-to-be/) [Elizabeth Gilbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-gilbert/) > [I will tell you why we have these extraordinary minds and souls, Miss Whittaker," he continued, as though he had not heard her. "We…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-gilbert/i-will-tell-you-why-we-have-these-extraordinary-minds-and-souls-miss/) [Elizabeth Gilbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-gilbert/) > [Both the five-year-olds looked at me with bewilderment and a bit of fearful uncertainty. I had a sudden horrifying image of the woman I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-gilbert/both-the-five-year-olds-looked-at-me-with-bewilderment-and-a-bit-of/) [Elizabeth Gilbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-gilbert/) > [“Clearing out all your misery gets you out of the way. You cease being an obstacle, not only to yourself but to anyone else.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-gilbert/clearing-out-all-your-misery-gets-you-out-of-the-way-you-cease-being/) [Elizabeth Gilbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-gilbert/) > [The ingredients of both darkness and light are equally present in all of us,...The madness of this planet is largely a result of the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-gilbert/the-ingredients-of-both-darkness-and-light-are-equally-present-in-all/) [Elizabeth Gilbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-gilbert/) > [I was full of a hot, powerful sadness and would have loved to burst into the comfort of tears, but tried hard not to,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-gilbert/i-was-full-of-a-hot-powerful-sadness-and-would-have-loved-to-burst/) [Elizabeth Gilbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-gilbert/) > [“I live in nature where everything is connected, circular. The seasons are circular. The planet is circular, and so is the planet around the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-gilbert/i-live-in-nature-where-everything-is-connected-circular-the-seasons/) [Elizabeth Gilbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-gilbert/) > [“His spelling was several degrees beyond arbitrary, and his punctuation brought reason to sigh with unhappiness. But”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-gilbert/his-spelling-was-several-degrees-beyond-arbitrary-and-his-punctuation/) [Elizabeth Gilbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-gilbert/) > [Before you realize this truth, say the Yogis, you will always be in despair, a notion nicely expressed in this exasperated line from the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-gilbert/before-you-realize-this-truth-say-the-yogis-you-will-always-be-in/) [Elizabeth Gilbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-gilbert/) > [I actually have a great deal of respect for antidepressants; I think they can be enormously mighty tools toward recovery.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-gilbert/i-actually-have-a-great-deal-of-respect-for-antidepressants-i-think/) [Elizabeth Gilbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-gilbert/) [Explore all 1,156 Elizabeth Gilbert quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-gilbert/) ## More Austen quotes > [The difficulty with poetry is that it doesn't have the life that Shakespeare or Jane Austen have beyond the page. You can't make a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simon-schama/the-difficulty-with-poetry-is-that-it-doesn-t-have-the-life-that/) [Simon Schama](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simon-schama/) > [Look at Jane Austen. Her characters derive in a reasonably straight line from fairy tales.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andrew-davies/look-at-jane-austen-her-characters-derive-in-a-reasonably-straight/) [Andrew Davies](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andrew-davies/) > [“The celestial brightness of Pride and Prejudice is unequalled even in Jane Austen's other work; after a life of much disappointment and grief, in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-jenkins/the-celestial-brightness-of-pride-and-prejudice-is-unequalled-even-in/) [Elizabeth Jenkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-jenkins/) > [It has been suggested that Tiptree is female, a theory that I find absurd, for there is to me something ineluctably masculine about Tiptree’s…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-silverberg/it-has-been-suggested-that-tiptree-is-female-a-theory-that-i-find/) [Robert Silverberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-silverberg/) > [Had Elizabeth Bennet known how wildly Darcy's heart beat for her, 'Pride and Prejudice' would barely have made it into a short story. Their…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mariella-frostrup/had-elizabeth-bennet-known-how-wildly-darcy-s-heart-beat-for-her/) [Mariella Frostrup](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mariella-frostrup/) > [ “\[Jane\] Austen was not a novelist for nothing: she knew that our stories are what make us human, and that listening to someone else's… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-deresiewicz/jane-austen-was-not-a-novelist-for-nothing-she-knew-that-our-stories/) [William Deresiewicz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-deresiewicz/) > [I'm kind of a mash-up of taste - Graham Greene and Jane Austen; W.G. Sebald and Alice Munro.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amy-waldman/i-m-kind-of-a-mash-up-of-taste-graham-greene-and-jane-austen-w-g/) [Amy Waldman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amy-waldman/) > [I'm sure I've been influenced by every fine writer I've ever read, from Dickens and Austen to Auden and Jane Hirshfield. And also, the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amy-bloom/i-m-sure-i-ve-been-influenced-by-every-fine-writer-i-ve-ever-read/) [Amy Bloom](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amy-bloom/) > [“You know, somewhere a Jane Austen angel just lost her wings over you saying that.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nichole-van/you-know-somewhere-a-jane-austen-angel-just-lost-her-wings-over-you/) Nichole Van > [Great books are readable anyway. Dickens is readable. Jane Austen is readable. John Updike's readable. Hawthorne's readable. It's a meaningless term. You have to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julian-barnes/great-books-are-readable-anyway-dickens-is-readable-jane-austen-is/) [Julian Barnes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julian-barnes/) > [“Gratitude, not merely for having once loved her, but for loving her still well enough, to forgive all the petulance and acrimony of her…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-austen/gratitude-not-merely-for-having-once-loved-her-but-for-loving-her/) [Jane Austen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-austen/) > [I grew up on Jane Austen novels and was a massive literature fanatic when I was a kid - I read everything I could…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/georgia-king/i-grew-up-on-jane-austen-novels-and-was-a-massive-literature-fanatic/) [Georgia King](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/georgia-king/) > [“I don't care a whit for Society. I think people should only marry someone who can offer them some bit of affection. I am…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harper-st-george/i-don-t-care-a-whit-for-society-i-think-people-should-only-marry/) Harper St. George > [“Does everybody know everything in this town!”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vaishnavi-nair-k/does-everybody-know-everything-in-this-town/) [Vaishnavi Nair K](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vaishnavi-nair-k/) > [“People don't say what they mean very often. You have to read between the lines of their behavior, of what they say, to get…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/m-c-frank/people-don-t-say-what-they-mean-very-often-you-have-to-read-between/) [M.C. Frank](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/m-c-frank/) Browse all 292 Austen quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "I'm not a big Austen reader. 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