--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Wouldn't it be wonderful if every home…" description: "\"Wouldn't it be wonderful if every home had good books instead of knick-knacks and plastic flowers on the bookshelves? And wouldn't it be great if every..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/63f/ernest-l-boyer-24978_answers_wouldn-t-it-be-wonderful-if-every-home-h_1153866.jpg" --- # Wouldn't it be wonderful if every home had good books… ![“Wouldn't it be wonderful if every home had good books instead of knick-knacks and plastic flowers on the bookshelves? And wouldn't it be great if every child heard good speech and received thoughtful answers to their questions instead of 'be quiet' or 'go to bed'?” quote by Ernest L. Boyer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/63f/ernest-l-boyer-24978_answers_wouldn-t-it-be-wonderful-if-every-home-h_1153866.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/63f/ernest-l-boyer-24978_answers_wouldn-t-it-be-wonderful-if-every-home-h_1153866.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/63f/ernest-l-boyer-24978_answers_wouldn-t-it-be-wonderful-if-every-home-h_1153866.jpg) > “Wouldn't it be wonderful if every home had good books instead of knick-knacks and plastic flowers on the bookshelves? And wouldn't it be great if every child heard good speech and received thoughtful answers to their questions instead of 'be quiet' or 'go to bed'?” [Ernest L. Boyer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ernest-l-boyer/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Advocates replacing superficial décor with enriching books and encouraging thoughtful dialogue with children. **In simple terms:** Prioritize books and meaningful conversation over trivial objects. Key Takeaway Cultivate reading and listening habits. Themes education literature parenting Mood hopeful inspirational Type philosophical motivational When to use this quote - home libraries - classroom discussions - parent‑child talks Key Concepts cognitive development critical thinking Questions to Reflect On - How can communities fund books for every home? - What strategies foster respectful questioning? A Different Perspective May be idealistic in low‑resource settings. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Book](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/book/) [Books](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/books/) [Children](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/children/) [Communication](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/communication/) [Education](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/education/) [Flower](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/flower/) [Good book](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/good-book/) [Good books](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/good-books/) [Home](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/home/) [Plastic flowers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/plastic-flowers/) [Speech](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/speech/) [Thoughtful](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/thoughtful/) [Wonderful](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/wonderful/) [Writer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writer/) ## Related quotes > [“Neeley, if you had to die, wouldn't it be wonderful to die now—while you believed that everything was perfect, the way this night is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/betty-smith/neeley-if-you-had-to-die-wouldn-t-it-be-wonderful-to-die-now-while/) [Betty Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/betty-smith/) > [Wouldn't that be wonderful if I could do that? And that way, I could walk with the muse, rather than walk without her. The…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shirley-geok-lin-lim/wouldn-t-that-be-wonderful-if-i-could-do-that-and-that-way-i-could/) [Shirley Geok-lin Lim](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shirley-geok-lin-lim/) > [Besides, wouldn't it be wonderful if no one ever had to worry about the random cruelty of fatal illness or the woes of old…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joan-d-vinge/besides-wouldn-t-it-be-wonderful-if-no-one-ever-had-to-worry-about/) [Joan D. Vinge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joan-d-vinge/) > [What if we had a chance to do it again and again, until we finally did get it right? Wouldn't that be wonderful?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kate-atkinson/what-if-we-had-a-chance-to-do-it-again-and-again-until-we-finally-did/) [Kate Atkinson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kate-atkinson/) > [“You can have plastic flowers; that’s what people have—marriage, their family, their children, their relatives, everything is plastic.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/osho/you-can-have-plastic-flowers-that-s-what-people-have-marriage-their/) [Osho](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/osho/) > [I dislike landscapes. I only like people, and plastic flowers.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elliott-erwitt/i-dislike-landscapes-i-only-like-people-and-plastic-flowers/) [Elliott Erwitt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elliott-erwitt/) > [Marriage is a plastic flower - marriage is an institution. 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A thousand empty faces don't fill an empty room".](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/a-thousand-plastic-flowers-don-t-make-a-desert-bloom-a-thousand-empty/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [I was in New York, I went to a Yankees game and I called and said, 'Can I get tickets to the Knicks game?'…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-oakley/i-was-in-new-york-i-went-to-a-yankees-game-and-i-called-and-said-can/) [Charles Oakley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-oakley/) ## More by Ernest L. Boyer > [Education is a seamless web: one level of learning relates to every other.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ernest-l-boyer/education-is-a-seamless-web-one-level-of-learning-relates-to-every/) [Ernest L. Boyer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ernest-l-boyer/) > [The assumption of all education is that learning will be directed toward constructive ends and I'm convinced that colleges should support students in their…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ernest-l-boyer/the-assumption-of-all-education-is-that-learning-will-be-directed/) [Ernest L. Boyer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ernest-l-boyer/) > [Education must prepare students to be independent, self-reliant human beings. But education, at its best, also must help students go beyond their private interests,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ernest-l-boyer/education-must-prepare-students-to-be-independent-self-reliant-human/) [Ernest L. Boyer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ernest-l-boyer/) > [Book CoverTo have people who are well informed but not constrained by conscience is conceivably, the most dangerous outcome of education possible. 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Boyer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ernest-l-boyer/) > [An incompetent teacher is even worse than an incompetent surgeon because a surgeon can only cut up one person at a time.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ernest-l-boyer/an-incompetent-teacher-is-even-worse-than-an-incompetent-surgeon/) [Ernest L. Boyer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ernest-l-boyer/) > [A poor surgeon hurts one person at a time. A poor teacher hurts 130.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ernest-l-boyer/a-poor-surgeon-hurts-one-person-at-a-time-a-poor-teacher-hurts-130/) [Ernest L. Boyer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ernest-l-boyer/) > [Based upon the pictures, I concluded that about 60 percent of all college classes in the United States are held outside, underneath a tree,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ernest-l-boyer/based-upon-the-pictures-i-concluded-that-about-60-percent-of-all/) [Ernest L. 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