--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: And I remember this man who never ran out…" description: "\"“And I remember this man who never ran out of poems telling me once that 'knowing a book by heart is like carrying a house inside your chest.”\" — Hisha..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c89/hisham-matar-4118_books_and-i-remember-this-man-who-never-ran-ou_1915794.png" --- # And I remember this man who never ran out of poems telling… ![“And I remember this man who never ran out of poems telling me once that 'knowing a book by heart is like carrying a house inside your chest.” quote by Hisham Matar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c89/hisham-matar-4118_books_and-i-remember-this-man-who-never-ran-ou_1915794.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c89/hisham-matar-4118_books_and-i-remember-this-man-who-never-ran-ou_1915794.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c89/hisham-matar-4118_books_and-i-remember-this-man-who-never-ran-ou_1915794.png) > ““And I remember this man who never ran out of poems telling me once that 'knowing a book by heart is like carrying a house inside your chest.”” [Hisham Matar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hisham-matar/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Knowing a book intimately is like carrying a personal sanctuary within you. **In simple terms:** A book becomes a personal inner space. Key Takeaway Read deeply to internalize wisdom. Themes literature memory identity intimacy Mood reflective nostalgic Type philosophical inspirational When to use this quote - reading habits - education - personal reflection - writing - teaching Key Concepts cognitive mapping emotional resonance Questions to Reflect On - What does it mean to 'carry a house' inside? - How does this affect personal growth? A Different Perspective Memorization may limit fresh perspectives. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Book Heart](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/book-heart-917335/) [Books](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/books/) [Like Carrying](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/like-carrying-1004713/) [Poems](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/poems/) [Poems Telling](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/poems-telling-2912968/) [Poetry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/poetry/) [Reading](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/reading/) [Remember Man](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/remember-man-388977/) ## Related quotes > [“We're not going to die. You're with me kiddo and it just happens I know a few survival skills." "Oh yeah right. Like carrying…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/janet-evanovich/we-re-not-going-to-die-you-re-with-me-kiddo-and-it-just-happens-i/) [Janet Evanovich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/janet-evanovich/) > [Writing is like carrying a fetus.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edna-o-brien/writing-is-like-carrying-a-fetus/) [Edna O'Brien](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edna-o-brien/) > [Sometimes it felt like I was carrying pieces of human flesh back home with me, not negatives. It's as if you are carrying the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/don-mccullin/sometimes-it-felt-like-i-was-carrying-pieces-of-human-flesh-back-home/) [Don McCullin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/don-mccullin/) > [If you play a part that's been done before, on stage for instance, you feel like you're carrying a torch and staggering under the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-west/if-you-play-a-part-that-s-been-done-before-on-stage-for-instance-you/) [Samuel West](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-west/) > [“I like carrying you. It gives me the illusion that you’ll let me take care of you.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nina-croft/i-like-carrying-you-it-gives-me-the-illusion-that-you-ll-let-me-take/) [Nina Croft](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nina-croft/) > [To me, I always felt like I was carrying a torch for women of any size to be themselves - it doesn't matter whether…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/queen-latifah/to-me-i-always-felt-like-i-was-carrying-a-torch-for-women-of-any-size/) [Queen Latifah](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/queen-latifah/) > [“I did not know the work of mourning Is like carrying a bag of cement Up a mountain at night”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-hirsch/i-did-not-know-the-work-of-mourning-is-like-carrying-a-bag-of-cement-2/) [Edward Hirsch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-hirsch/) > [I'm four months along, but I feel like I'm carrying the baby in my a--, it's so big.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/drea-de-matteo/i-m-four-months-along-but-i-feel-like-i-m-carrying-the-baby-in-my-a/) [Drea de Matteo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/drea-de-matteo/) > [It's always like I am carrying a heavy cross with me on the sets. So it was important for me to try something new.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alok-nath/it-s-always-like-i-am-carrying-a-heavy-cross-with-me-on-the-sets-so/) [Alok Nath](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alok-nath/) > [I'm trying to get music ideas that come and keep them alive. It's like carrying water in your hands. I want to keep it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-waits/i-m-trying-to-get-music-ideas-that-come-and-keep-them-alive-it-s-like/) [Tom Waits](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-waits/) > [It's like carrying a bowling ball! Almost done.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jessica-simpson/it-s-like-carrying-a-bowling-ball-almost-done/) [Jessica Simpson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jessica-simpson/) > [He whose book of the heart has been opened needs no other books.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/swami-vivekananda/he-whose-book-of-the-heart-has-been-opened-needs-no-other-books/) [Swami Vivekananda](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/swami-vivekananda/) > [The book that I shall make people read is the book of the heart, which holds the key to the mystery of life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/meher-baba/the-book-that-i-shall-make-people-read-is-the-book-of-the-heart-which/) [Meher Baba](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/meher-baba/) > [The object we call a book is not the real book, but its potential, like a musical score or seed. It exists fully only…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rebecca-solnit/the-object-we-call-a-book-is-not-the-real-book-but-its-potential-like/) [Rebecca Solnit](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rebecca-solnit/) > [“A book is from your heart and mind, it is your love put to words.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-anthony/a-book-is-from-your-heart-and-mind-it-is-your-love-put-to-words/) [Michael Anthony](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-anthony/) ## More by Hisham Matar > [There and then, sitting beside her and within the strength of my adoration, I felt invincible.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hisham-matar/there-and-then-sitting-beside-her-and-within-the-strength-of-my/) [Hisham Matar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hisham-matar/) > [To be okay with not knowing is a sign of a mature person and a mature society.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hisham-matar/to-be-okay-with-not-knowing-is-a-sign-of-a-mature-person-and-a-mature/) [Hisham Matar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hisham-matar/) > [“History remembers Mussolini as the buffoonish Fascist, the ineffective silly man of Italy who led a lame military campaign in the Second World War,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hisham-matar/history-remembers-mussolini-as-the-buffoonish-fascist-the-ineffective/) [Hisham Matar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hisham-matar/) > [Grief loves the hollow; all it wants is to hear its own echo.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hisham-matar/grief-loves-the-hollow-all-it-wants-is-to-hear-its-own-echo/) [Hisham Matar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hisham-matar/) > [Dreams have consequences.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hisham-matar/dreams-have-consequences/) [Hisham Matar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hisham-matar/) > [Language is not just a code; you are writing into its history, into its tides.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hisham-matar/language-is-not-just-a-code-you-are-writing-into-its-history-into-its/) [Hisham Matar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hisham-matar/) > [My parents were fairly laid-back, but there were certain things about which they were very strict. My brother and I were told never to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hisham-matar/my-parents-were-fairly-laid-back-but-there-were-certain-things-about/) [Hisham Matar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hisham-matar/) > [I am terribly interested in the paragraph: the paragraph as an object, the construction, and the possibilities of what a paragraph can do.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hisham-matar/i-am-terribly-interested-in-the-paragraph-the-paragraph-as-an-object/) [Hisham Matar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hisham-matar/) > [My parents left Libya in 1979, escaping political repression, and settled in Cairo. I was nine.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hisham-matar/my-parents-left-libya-in-1979-escaping-political-repression-and/) [Hisham Matar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hisham-matar/) > [Libyans are deeply unsettled by Gaddafi and his regime's careless contempt for human life. The dictatorship is willing to employ any methods necessary to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hisham-matar/libyans-are-deeply-unsettled-by-gaddafi-and-his-regime-s-careless/) [Hisham Matar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hisham-matar/) > [My best hope is that Libya turns into a peaceful, sensible country that has all the things my father and lots of others have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hisham-matar/my-best-hope-is-that-libya-turns-into-a-peaceful-sensible-country/) [Hisham Matar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hisham-matar/) > [Season of Migration to the North, by Tayeb Salih, is an eloquent and restrained portrait of one man's exile. It is a rare narrative…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hisham-matar/season-of-migration-to-the-north-by-tayeb-salih-is-an-eloquent-and/) [Hisham Matar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hisham-matar/) > [Turgenev's achievement lies in how he succeeded, in spite of himself, his country, and his time, in exempting his work from public duty. This…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hisham-matar/turgenev-s-achievement-lies-in-how-he-succeeded-in-spite-of-himself/) [Hisham Matar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hisham-matar/) > [Over the centuries, close-knit tribes have played an important part in the cohesion of Libyan society.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hisham-matar/over-the-centuries-close-knit-tribes-have-played-an-important-part-in/) [Hisham Matar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hisham-matar/) > [My work is my shelter, particularly in these moments when things are happening fast.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hisham-matar/my-work-is-my-shelter-particularly-in-these-moments-when-things-are/) [Hisham Matar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hisham-matar/) [Explore all 116 Hisham Matar quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hisham-matar/) ## 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! People who…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andrew-lang/young-men-especially-in-america-write-to-me-and-ask-me-to-recommend-a/) [Andrew Lang](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andrew-lang/) > [“Within the pages of books, I've journeyed to Mandalay, the Milky Way and Santa Fe, without once having to leave my armchair.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kevin-ansbro/within-the-pages-of-books-i-ve-journeyed-to-mandalay-the-milky-way/) [Kevin Ansbro](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kevin-ansbro/) > [The Rosary is the book of the blind.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fulton-j-sheen/the-rosary-is-the-book-of-the-blind/) [Fulton J. Sheen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fulton-j-sheen/) > [“Tacitus did not write a most dangerous book. His readers made it so.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-k-krebs/tacitus-did-not-write-a-most-dangerous-book-his-readers-made-it-so/) [Christopher K. Krebs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-k-krebs/) > [“Take some books and read; that’s an immense help; and books are always good company if you have the right sort.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louisa-may-alcott/take-some-books-and-read-that-s-an-immense-help-and-books-are-always/) [Louisa May Alcott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louisa-may-alcott/) > [Reader, if you are gifted with nerves like mine, aspire to any character but that of a wit.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-lamb/reader-if-you-are-gifted-with-nerves-like-mine-aspire-to-any/) [Charles Lamb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-lamb/) > [I have many who keep me going, I am very fortunate in this sense. There is nothing like a child who knows more about…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/floyd-cooper/i-have-many-who-keep-me-going-i-am-very-fortunate-in-this-sense-there/) [Floyd Cooper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/floyd-cooper/) > [I think books in which people are really happy and things are going well are probably the most challenging novels there are to write,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anna-quindlen/i-think-books-in-which-people-are-really-happy-and-things-are-going/) [Anna Quindlen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anna-quindlen/) > [It's like the query letter problem that I just mentioned, magnified a hundredfold. You might be good at telling a story, but that doesn't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patrick-rothfuss/it-s-like-the-query-letter-problem-that-i-just-mentioned-magnified-a/) [Patrick Rothfuss](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patrick-rothfuss/) > [“Be careful about reading health books. 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](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/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": "“And I remember this man who never ran out of poems telling me once that 'knowing a book by heart is like carrying a house inside your chest.”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Hisham Matar" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hisham-matar/and-i-remember-this-man-who-never-ran-out-of-poems-telling-me-once/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Books" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hisham-matar/and-i-remember-this-man-who-never-ran-out-of-poems-telling-me-once/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c89/hisham-matar-4118_books_and-i-remember-this-man-who-never-ran-ou_1915794.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c89/hisham-matar-4118_books_and-i-remember-this-man-who-never-ran-ou_1915794.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c89/hisham-matar-4118_books_and-i-remember-this-man-who-never-ran-ou_1915794.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“And I remember this man who never ran out of poems telling me once that 'knowing a book by heart is like…” — Hisham Matar", "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": "Hisham Matar", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hisham-matar/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "“And I remember this man who...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hisham-matar/and-i-remember-this-man-who-never-ran-out-of-poems-telling-me-once/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hisham-matar/and-i-remember-this-man-who-never-ran-out-of-poems-telling-me-once/#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 } } ] } ```