--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I want to know why I read as a child with…" description: "\"I want to know why I read as a child with such a frantic appetite, why I sucked the words off the page with such an edge of desperation.\" — Francis Spu..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/384/francis-spufford-12650_appetite_i-want-to-know-why-i-read-as-a-child-wit_971065.jpg" --- # I want to know why I read as a child with such a frantic… ![“I want to know why I read as a child with such a frantic appetite, why I sucked the words off the page with such an edge of desperation.” quote by Francis Spufford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/384/francis-spufford-12650_appetite_i-want-to-know-why-i-read-as-a-child-wit_971065.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/384/francis-spufford-12650_appetite_i-want-to-know-why-i-read-as-a-child-wit_971065.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/384/francis-spufford-12650_appetite_i-want-to-know-why-i-read-as-a-child-wit_971065.jpg) > “I want to know why I read as a child with such a frantic appetite, why I sucked the words off the page with such an edge of desperation.” [Francis Spufford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/francis-spufford/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Childhood reading was a desperate hunger for knowledge and escape. **In simple terms:** Reading was a desperate need. Key Takeaway Nurture curiosity early. Themes education curiosity desperation Mood reflective inquisitive Type educational personal. When to use this quote - teaching methods - parental guidance - self‑directed study Key Concepts learning motivation literary appetite Questions to Reflect On - What drives your reading? - How to balance hunger with well‑being? A Different Perspective Over‑emphasis can cause burnout. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Appetite](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/appetite/) [Appetite Sucked](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/appetite-sucked-1864042/) [Child](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/child/) [Children](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/children/) [Desperation](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/desperation/) [Edge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/edge/) [Edge Desperation](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/edge-desperation-1864044/) [Frantic](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/frantic/) [Frantic Appetite](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/frantic-appetite-1864041/) [Know](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/know/) [Off](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/off/) [Page](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/page/) [Read](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/read/) [Sucked](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sucked/) [Sucked Words](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sucked-words-1864043/) [Want](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/want/) [Why](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/why/) [Words](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/words/) ## Related quotes > [“He loved the raw strength of Haris, his edge of desperation, the need he couldn’t hide.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barbara-elsborg/he-loved-the-raw-strength-of-haris-his-edge-of-desperation-the-need/) [Barbara Elsborg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barbara-elsborg/) > [Cubans are frantic when it comes to appreciating music.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/compay-segundo/cubans-are-frantic-when-it-comes-to-appreciating-music/) [Compay Segundo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/compay-segundo/) > [I like that kind of frantic schedule. It makes me feel like I have a purpose.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sara-gilbert/i-like-that-kind-of-frantic-schedule-it-makes-me-feel-like-i-have-a/) [Sara Gilbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sara-gilbert/) > [For me, London seemed to be frantic without going anywhere.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dick-strawbridge/for-me-london-seemed-to-be-frantic-without-going-anywhere/) [Dick Strawbridge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dick-strawbridge/) > [There is a frantic race to merchandise tinsel and trash under the guise of 'modernism.'](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/raymond-loewy/there-is-a-frantic-race-to-merchandise-tinsel-and-trash-under-the/) [Raymond Loewy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/raymond-loewy/) > [Mindfulness has never been more important considering how the events of the world move in such an accelerated, frantic time. Our attention goes from…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barnet-bain/mindfulness-has-never-been-more-important-considering-how-the-events/) [Barnet Bain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barnet-bain/) > [The truth is despite the hard work and juggling required to keep the different facets of the frantic life afloat, the "superwoman"has one marvelous…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bettina-arndt/the-truth-is-despite-the-hard-work-and-juggling-required-to-keep-the/) [Bettina Arndt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bettina-arndt/) > [First love, with its frantic haughty imagination, swings its object clear of the everyday, over the rut of living, making him all looks, silences,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-bowen/first-love-with-its-frantic-haughty-imagination-swings-its-object-2/) [Elizabeth Bowen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-bowen/) > [Follow me all around the planet I run the gamut on sickology. They can never manage we do damage wit no apology. Pick em…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tech-n9ne/follow-me-all-around-the-planet-i-run-the-gamut-on-sickology-they-can/) [Tech N9ne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tech-n9ne/) > [The pace at eBay was frantic and urgent. We knew that if we didn't move fast, somebody would come into the market and quash…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeffrey-skoll/the-pace-at-ebay-was-frantic-and-urgent-we-knew-that-if-we-didn-t/) [Jeffrey Skoll](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeffrey-skoll/) > [There's a fascination frantic in a ruin that's romantic.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/w-s-gilbert/there-s-a-fascination-frantic-in-a-ruin-that-s-romantic/) [W. S. Gilbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/w-s-gilbert/) > [This was the first time he had seriously confronted what he was doing, and the force of that awareness came very abruptly - with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-auster/this-was-the-first-time-he-had-seriously-confronted-what-he-was-doing/) [Paul Auster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-auster/) > [It is not proper to project our feelings onto things or to attribute our own sensations and passions to them. Can it also be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/octavio-paz/it-is-not-proper-to-project-our-feelings-onto-things-or-to-attribute/) [Octavio Paz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/octavio-paz/) > [As if goaded by a kind of frantic despair, I sketched these dirty, ragged little victims of the war with their bruised, lacerated minds…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walter-keane/as-if-goaded-by-a-kind-of-frantic-despair-i-sketched-these-dirty/) [Walter Keane](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walter-keane/) > [As all of us are only too aware, the loud and frantic voices of the outer world easily drown out the small, still loving…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marianne-williamson/as-all-of-us-are-only-too-aware-the-loud-and-frantic-voices-of-the/) [Marianne Williamson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marianne-williamson/) ## More by Francis Spufford > [If your memory was OK you could descend upon on a bookshop – a big enough one so that the staff wouldn’t hassle a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/francis-spufford/if-your-memory-was-ok-you-could-descend-upon-on-a-bookshop-a-big/) [Francis Spufford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/francis-spufford/) > [There have been low moments before, but Christianity is an incredibly adaptable organism, using different parts of its repertoire to mutate into new ecological…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/francis-spufford/there-have-been-low-moments-before-but-christianity-is-an-incredibly/) [Francis Spufford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/francis-spufford/) > [“Beyond the breakwater you can no longer touch bottom, but you are not afraid, for in this sea the harder you swim the stronger…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/francis-spufford/beyond-the-breakwater-you-can-no-longer-touch-bottom-but-you-are-not/) [Francis Spufford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/francis-spufford/) > [Self-awareness is not the same thing as self-approval, any more than imagination is the same thing as day-dreaming.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/francis-spufford/self-awareness-is-not-the-same-thing-as-self-approval-any-more-than/) [Francis Spufford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/francis-spufford/) > [What follows is more about books than it is about me, but nonetheless it is my inward autobiography, for the words we take into…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/francis-spufford/what-follows-is-more-about-books-than-it-is-about-me-but-nonetheless/) [Francis Spufford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/francis-spufford/) > [Despite the best efforts of apologists like William Lane Craig, the 'evidence' for Christianity's truth is, in truth, not the kind that science will…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/francis-spufford/despite-the-best-efforts-of-apologists-like-william-lane-craig-the/) [Francis Spufford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/francis-spufford/) > [“You do not chuse where You bestow your Heart. Your Heart bestows Itself, will-you-nill-you, in the Midst of other Business. —”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/francis-spufford/you-do-not-chuse-where-you-bestow-your-heart-your-heart-bestows/) [Francis Spufford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/francis-spufford/) > [Anyone can be self-educated if they find the loose end of something to care about passionately.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/francis-spufford/anyone-can-be-self-educated-if-they-find-the-loose-end-of-something/) [Francis Spufford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/francis-spufford/) > [You never came out the way you came in.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/francis-spufford/you-never-came-out-the-way-you-came-in/) [Francis Spufford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/francis-spufford/) > [For a believer, Christian faith is true to the human heart, not in the sense that any old thing we fancy believing in will…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/francis-spufford/for-a-believer-christian-faith-is-true-to-the-human-heart-not-in-the/) [Francis Spufford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/francis-spufford/) > [When I'm tired and therefore indecisive, it can take half an hour to choose the book I am going to have with me while…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/francis-spufford/when-i-m-tired-and-therefore-indecisive-it-can-take-half-an-hour-to/) [Francis Spufford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/francis-spufford/) > [“...what goes on inside believers is mysterious. So far as it can be guessed at - if for some reason you wanted to guess…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/francis-spufford/what-goes-on-inside-believers-is-mysterious-so-far-as-it-can-be/) [Francis Spufford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/francis-spufford/) > [I can always tell when you're reading somewhere in the house,' my mother used to say. 'There's a special silence, a reading silence.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/francis-spufford/i-can-always-tell-when-you-re-reading-somewhere-in-the-house-my/) [Francis Spufford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/francis-spufford/) > [I think I have made allowances for the kind of despair which would test my faith, but you cannot know in advance what disaster…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/francis-spufford/i-think-i-have-made-allowances-for-the-kind-of-despair-which-would/) [Francis Spufford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/francis-spufford/) > [You don't have to become an investment banker as a way of demonstrating that education has worked for you. But librarians have to believe…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/francis-spufford/you-don-t-have-to-become-an-investment-banker-as-a-way-of/) [Francis Spufford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/francis-spufford/) [Explore all 54 Francis Spufford quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/francis-spufford/) ## More Appetite quotes > [I could not limit my values and pursuits to what makes others comfortable. Being possessed by a promise I live without options. I will…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-johnson/i-could-not-limit-my-values-and-pursuits-to-what-makes-others/) [Bill Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-johnson/) > [the appetite for thinking must be regulated, as all sensible people know, for it may stifle one's life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-sontag/the-appetite-for-thinking-must-be-regulated-as-all-sensible-people/) [Susan Sontag](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-sontag/) > [The more perfect the sight is the more delightful the beautiful object. The more perfect the appetite, the sweeter the food. The more musical…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-baxter/the-more-perfect-the-sight-is-the-more-delightful-the-beautiful/) [Richard Baxter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-baxter/) > [“if you cannot control your hunger and appetite, good luck managing your blood chemistry, metabolism, waistline, and, in the bigger picture, the prospect of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-perlmutter/if-you-cannot-control-your-hunger-and-appetite-good-luck-managing/) [David Perlmutter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-perlmutter/) > [I don't think I've ever bench-pressed anything in my life. Until about two years ago I swam a mile almost every day. Then I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nick-antosca/i-don-t-think-i-ve-ever-bench-pressed-anything-in-my-life-until-about/) [Nick Antosca](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nick-antosca/) > [If I had been an Italian I am sure that I should have been whole-heartedly with you from the start to finish in your…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/winston-churchill/if-i-had-been-an-italian-i-am-sure-that-i-should-have-been-whole/) [Winston Churchill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/winston-churchill/) > [It could be my British need for discipline that makes me admire the American appetite for freedom and passion.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steve-winwood/it-could-be-my-british-need-for-discipline-that-makes-me-admire-the/) [Steve Winwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steve-winwood/) > [My curiosity and my appetite for evolving as an actor is one of the main components of me still working today in the business.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kim-cattrall/my-curiosity-and-my-appetite-for-evolving-as-an-actor-is-one-of-the/) [Kim Cattrall](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kim-cattrall/) > [I have a strong appetite and its not for food.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/i-have-a-strong-appetite-and-its-not-for-food/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [The plain fact is that education is itself a form of propaganda - a deliberate scheme to outfit the pupil, not with the capacity…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/the-plain-fact-is-that-education-is-itself-a-form-of-propaganda-a/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“You should also eat eggs. Not “one egg per week” or some such non-physiologic restriction. Eat what your body tells you to eat, since…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-davis/you-should-also-eat-eggs-not-one-egg-per-week-or-some-such-non/) [William Davis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-davis/) > [If your desires are not great, a little will seem much to you; for small appetite makes poverty equivalent to wealth.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/democritus/if-your-desires-are-not-great-a-little-will-seem-much-to-you-for/) [Democritus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/democritus/) > [When passions and appetites are stronger than the intellect, men are savages; when the intellect governs the passions, when the passions are servants, men…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-green-ingersoll/when-passions-and-appetites-are-stronger-than-the-intellect-men-are/) [Robert Green Ingersoll](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-green-ingersoll/) > [A pivotal spiritual attribute is that of self-mastery-th e strength to place reason over appetite. Self-mastery builds a strong conscience. And your conscience determines…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/russell-m-nelson/a-pivotal-spiritual-attribute-is-that-of-self-mastery-th-e-strength/) [Russell M. Nelson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/russell-m-nelson/) > [The commonest and cheapest sounds, as the barking of a dog, produce the same effect on fresh and healthy ears that the rarest music…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-david-thoreau/the-commonest-and-cheapest-sounds-as-the-barking-of-a-dog-produce-the/) [Henry David Thoreau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-david-thoreau/) [Browse all 994 Appetite quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/appetite/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "I want to know why I read as a child with such a frantic appetite, why I sucked the words off the page with such an edge of desperation.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Francis Spufford" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/francis-spufford/i-want-to-know-why-i-read-as-a-child-with-such-a-frantic-appetite-why/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Appetite" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/francis-spufford/i-want-to-know-why-i-read-as-a-child-with-such-a-frantic-appetite-why/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/384/francis-spufford-12650_appetite_i-want-to-know-why-i-read-as-a-child-wit_971065.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/384/francis-spufford-12650_appetite_i-want-to-know-why-i-read-as-a-child-wit_971065.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/384/francis-spufford-12650_appetite_i-want-to-know-why-i-read-as-a-child-wit_971065.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“I want to know why I read as a child with such a frantic appetite, why I sucked the words off the page with…” — Francis Spufford", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Francis Spufford", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/francis-spufford/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "I want to know why I...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/francis-spufford/i-want-to-know-why-i-read-as-a-child-with-such-a-frantic-appetite-why/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/francis-spufford/i-want-to-know-why-i-read-as-a-child-with-such-a-frantic-appetite-why/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```