--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Hilmar owns many books, even by Icelandic…" description: "\"“Hilmar owns many books, even by Icelandic standards. The other day, when he came home with a wheelbarrowful, his five-year-old daughter looked him in ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c41/eric-weiner-1843_books_hilmar-owns-many-books-even-by-icelandic_1299646.png" --- # Hilmar owns many books, even by Icelandic standards. The… ![“Hilmar owns many books, even by Icelandic standards. The other day, when he came home with a wheelbarrowful, his five-year-old daughter looked him in the eye and implored, “Please, Daddy, please, no more books!” Hilmar has a stock answer to those who criticize his excessive book buying. “It is…” quote by Eric Weiner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c41/eric-weiner-1843_books_hilmar-owns-many-books-even-by-icelandic_1299646.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c41/eric-weiner-1843_books_hilmar-owns-many-books-even-by-icelandic_1299646.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c41/eric-weiner-1843_books_hilmar-owns-many-books-even-by-icelandic_1299646.png) > ““Hilmar owns many books, even by Icelandic standards. The other day, when he came home with a wheelbarrowful, his five-year-old daughter looked him in the eye and implored, “Please, Daddy, please, no more books!” Hilmar has a stock answer to those who criticize his excessive book buying. “It is never a waste of time to study how other people wasted time.”” [Eric Weiner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-weiner/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Collecting books can be a way to explore how others lived, turning perceived waste into learning. **In simple terms:** Books are study of others’ wasted time. Key Takeaway Read to learn from others’ mistakes. Themes learning curiosity materialism Mood thoughtful analytical Type reflective inspirational When to use this quote - personal development - library curation - parent‑child discussions - budgeting for hobbies Key Concepts education literature value of time Questions to Reflect On - What do you gain from each new book? - How to you balance curiosity with practicality? A Different Perspective Excessive buying may still strain resources. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Books](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/books/) [Time](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/time/) [Waste of time](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/waste-of-time/) ## Related quotes > [“He who owns Books and loves them is wise.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roger-duvoisin/he-who-owns-books-and-loves-them-is-wise/) Roger Duvoisin > [Evelyn Waugh was in error when he said that in New York there was a neurosis in the air which the inhabitants mistook for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-hitchens/evelyn-waugh-was-in-error-when-he-said-that-in-new-york-there-was-a/) [Christopher Hitchens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-hitchens/) > [“It is easy to mistake the fallowness of winter for wasted time and space. 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Only time wasted on resentment and daydreaming can do that.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dorothy-dunnett/lack-of-genius-never-held-anyone-back-only-time-wasted-on-resentment/) [Dorothy Dunnett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dorothy-dunnett/) > [“Anytime that cannot be accounted for is a wasted time.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sunday-adelaja/anytime-that-cannot-be-accounted-for-is-a-wasted-time/) [Sunday Adelaja](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sunday-adelaja/) > [You WASTED my time, soo therefore YOU AINT WORTH MY TIME LIFE GOES ON!!!!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ty/you-wasted-my-time-soo-therefore-you-aint-worth-my-time-life-goes-on/) Ty > [“She had to defend him in order to defend herself. That was why people were so prickly about their partners, even their ex-partners. 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Priests,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-dietrich/mystics-love-to-make-things-as-obscure-as-possible-i-ve-learned-and/) [William Dietrich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-dietrich/) > [If I loved myself as much as I loved you, I would realize, I wasted all this time loving someone, who no longer loved…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rashida-rowe/if-i-loved-myself-as-much-as-i-loved-you-i-would-realize-i-wasted-all/) [Rashida Rowe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rashida-rowe/) > [I wasted my time on your childish games. But don't worry I will not even try to hate you.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cynthia-f-b-mora/i-wasted-my-time-on-your-childish-games-but-don-t-worry-i-will-not/) Cynthia F B Mora ## More by Eric Weiner > [We can't love a place or a person if we always have one foot out the door.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-weiner/we-can-t-love-a-place-or-a-person-if-we-always-have-one-foot-out-the/) [Eric Weiner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-weiner/) > [“Money sometimes buys happiness. You have to break it down, though. Money is a means to an end. The problem is when you think…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-weiner/money-sometimes-buys-happiness-you-have-to-break-it-down-though-money/) [Eric Weiner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-weiner/) > [“My way of thinking is completely different,” he says. “I have no such mountains to scale; basically, I find that living itself is a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-weiner/my-way-of-thinking-is-completely-different-he-says-i-have-no-such/) [Eric Weiner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-weiner/) > [“Social scientists estimate that about 70 percent of our happiness stems from our relationships, both quantity and quality, with friends, family, coworkers, and neighbors.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-weiner/social-scientists-estimate-that-about-70-percent-of-our-happiness/) [Eric Weiner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-weiner/) > [“It is not the skills we actually have that determine how we feel but the ones we think we have" ... we experience flow,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-weiner/it-is-not-the-skills-we-actually-have-that-determine-how-we-feel-but/) [Eric Weiner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-weiner/) > [“In a nutshell, Gross National Happiness seeks to measure a nation’s progress not by its balance sheet but rather by the happiness—or unhappiness—of its…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-weiner/in-a-nutshell-gross-national-happiness-seeks-to-measure-a-nation-s/) [Eric Weiner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-weiner/) > [You look around the world at geniuses, and they don't appear randomly, they appear in genius clusters. 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