--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: He loves books,’ said Perdita. ‘Yeah. He…" description: "\"“He loves books,’ said Perdita. ‘Yeah. He does. When you’ve finished a book you can put it away and it doesn’t ask to see you again.”\" — Jeanette Winte..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8d9/jeanette-winterson-166_book_he-loves-books-said-perdita-yeah-he-does_2588166.png" --- # He loves books,’ said Perdita. ‘Yeah. He does. When you’ve… ![“He loves books,’ said Perdita. ‘Yeah. He does. When you’ve finished a book you can put it away and it doesn’t ask to see you again.” quote by Jeanette Winterson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8d9/jeanette-winterson-166_book_he-loves-books-said-perdita-yeah-he-does_2588166.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8d9/jeanette-winterson-166_book_he-loves-books-said-perdita-yeah-he-does_2588166.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8d9/jeanette-winterson-166_book_he-loves-books-said-perdita-yeah-he-does_2588166.png) > ““He loves books,’ said Perdita. ‘Yeah. He does. When you’ve finished a book you can put it away and it doesn’t ask to see you again.”” [Jeanette Winterson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeanette-winterson/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Reading offers closure; books don’t demand ongoing attention, allowing personal freedom **In simple terms:** Books can be finished and set aside without lingering demands Key Takeaway Read for growth, then move on Themes literature freedom closure Mood reflective calm Type philosophical inspirational When to use this quote - self‑development - education - mental health Key Concepts existentialism personal autonomy reading habits Questions to Reflect On - How does finishing a book affect you? - When do you revisit a story? A Different Perspective Some may view finishing a book as loss of companionship ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Book](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/book/) [Books](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/books/) [Writer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writer/) ## Related quotes > [One must always be careful of books," said Tessa, "and what is inside them, for words have the power to change us.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cassandra-clare/one-must-always-be-careful-of-books-said-tessa-and-what-is-inside/) [Cassandra Clare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cassandra-clare/) > [“Also, how could anyone who loves books not love a book that is itself so in love with books?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/will-schwalbe/also-how-could-anyone-who-loves-books-not-love-a-book-that-is-itself/) [Will Schwalbe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/will-schwalbe/) > [“-It was my library, now it's yours. Only yours. I want to cry and I can stand it. I know how much he loves…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benito-taibo/it-was-my-library-now-it-s-yours-only-yours-i-want-to-cry-and-i-can/) [Benito Taibo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benito-taibo/) > [I LOVE YOU LIKE HERMIONE LOVES BOOKS](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arashi/i-love-you-like-hermione-loves-books/) [Arashi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arashi/) > [“Despite the fact that he loves books and owns a bookstore, A.J. does not particularly care for writers. He finds them to be unkempt,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gabrielle-zevin/despite-the-fact-that-he-loves-books-and-owns-a-bookstore-a-j-does/) [Gabrielle Zevin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gabrielle-zevin/) > [And what would happen if we never read the classics? There comes a point in life, it seems to me, where you have to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nick-hornby/and-what-would-happen-if-we-never-read-the-classics-there-comes-a/) [Nick Hornby](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nick-hornby/) > [But he who truly loves books loves all books alike, and not only this, but it grieves him that all other men do not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eugene-field/but-he-who-truly-loves-books-loves-all-books-alike-and-not-only-this/) [Eugene Field](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eugene-field/) > [“I can’t see any other reason he would shut down the bookshop, unless it was to help you somehow. He loves books.' She gives…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jessica-spotswood/i-can-t-see-any-other-reason-he-would-shut-down-the-bookshop-unless/) [Jessica Spotswood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jessica-spotswood/) > [“Sidda can't help herself, She just loves books. Loves the way they feel, the way they smell, loves those black letters marching across the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rebecca-wells/sidda-can-t-help-herself-she-just-loves-books-loves-the-way-they-feel/) [Rebecca Wells](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rebecca-wells/) > [“Of course anyone who loves books buys more of them than she or he can hope to read in a lifetime. A good book,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/boilerplate-rino/of-course-anyone-who-loves-books-buys-more-of-them-than-she-or-he-can/) Boilerplate Rino > [A woman who loves books has a dreamer's soul, with each story she has read woven into her own.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alyson-richman/a-woman-who-loves-books-has-a-dreamer-s-soul-with-each-story-she-has/) [Alyson Richman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alyson-richman/) > [“Anyone who loves books the way Homer does, loves libraries, too. It doesn't matter if the library has fancy red leather chairs and gold-plated…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/suzanne-selfors/anyone-who-loves-books-the-way-homer-does-loves-libraries-too-it/) [Suzanne Selfors](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/suzanne-selfors/) > [When I look at my room, I see a girl who loves books.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-green/when-i-look-at-my-room-i-see-a-girl-who-loves-books/) [John Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-green/) > [“Every writer at least once in his/er lifetime creates a character who loves books.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/himanshu-chhabra/every-writer-at-least-once-in-his-er-lifetime-creates-a-character-who/) [Himanshu Chhabra](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/himanshu-chhabra/) > [Of course anyone who truly loves books buys more of them than he or she can hope to read in one fleeting lifetime. A…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-quammen/of-course-anyone-who-truly-loves-books-buys-more-of-them-than-he-or/) [David Quammen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-quammen/) ## More by Jeanette Winterson > [“After nine nights must come ten and every desperate meeting only leaves you desperate for another. There is never enough to eat, never enough…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeanette-winterson/after-nine-nights-must-come-ten-and-every-desperate-meeting-only/) [Jeanette Winterson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeanette-winterson/) > [You never give away your heart; you lend it from time to time. If it were not so, how could we take it back…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeanette-winterson/you-never-give-away-your-heart-you-lend-it-from-time-to-time-if-it/) [Jeanette Winterson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeanette-winterson/) > [I have found that I am not a space where people want to live, at least not without decorating first.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeanette-winterson/i-have-found-that-i-am-not-a-space-where-people-want-to-live-at-least/) [Jeanette Winterson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeanette-winterson/) > [“Yes. Just pass me my leg will you? It's on top of the wardrobe where he threw it, and I think my right arm…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeanette-winterson/yes-just-pass-me-my-leg-will-you-it-s-on-top-of-the-wardrobe-where-he/) [Jeanette Winterson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeanette-winterson/) > [Every second the Universe divides into possibilities and most of those possibilities never happen. It is not a uni-verse -- there is more than…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeanette-winterson/every-second-the-universe-divides-into-possibilities-and-most-of/) [Jeanette Winterson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeanette-winterson/) > [You are a pool of clear water where the light plays](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeanette-winterson/you-are-a-pool-of-clear-water-where-the-light-plays/) [Jeanette Winterson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeanette-winterson/) > [“It's the cliches that cause the trouble. A precise emotion seeks a precise expression. If what I feel is not precise than how should…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeanette-winterson/it-s-the-cliches-that-cause-the-trouble-a-precise-emotion-seeks-a/) [Jeanette Winterson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeanette-winterson/) > [What would it have meant to be happy? What would it have meant if things had been bright, clear, good between us?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeanette-winterson/what-would-it-have-meant-to-be-happy-what-would-it-have-meant-if/) [Jeanette Winterson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeanette-winterson/) > [“Mrs Ratlow was a widow, and she was head of English, but she still did all the cooking and cleaning for her two sons,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeanette-winterson/mrs-ratlow-was-a-widow-and-she-was-head-of-english-but-she-still-did/) [Jeanette Winterson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeanette-winterson/) > [“I shall have nowt to talk to now the baby is boiled.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeanette-winterson/i-shall-have-nowt-to-talk-to-now-the-baby-is-boiled/) [Jeanette Winterson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeanette-winterson/) > [“What art does is to coax us away from the mechanical and towards the miraculous. The so-called uselessness of art is a clue to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeanette-winterson/what-art-does-is-to-coax-us-away-from-the-mechanical-and-towards-the/) [Jeanette Winterson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeanette-winterson/) > [Happy Valentines Day to those who have found love, in whatever shape or form, and to those who are still hunting, don’t give up.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeanette-winterson/happy-valentines-day-to-those-who-have-found-love-in-whatever-shape/) [Jeanette Winterson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeanette-winterson/) > [“It took me a long time to realise that there are two kinds of writing: the one you write and the one that writes…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeanette-winterson/it-took-me-a-long-time-to-realise-that-there-are-two-kinds-of-writing/) [Jeanette Winterson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeanette-winterson/) > [A curse on this game. How can you stick at a game when the rules keep on changing? I shall call myself Alice and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeanette-winterson/a-curse-on-this-game-how-can-you-stick-at-a-game-when-the-rules-keep/) [Jeanette Winterson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeanette-winterson/) > [“He turned away and I turned to him in vivid heat to look on the sun-dried world. The groves and towers were gone. The…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeanette-winterson/he-turned-away-and-i-turned-to-him-in-vivid-heat-to-look-on-the-sun/) [Jeanette Winterson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeanette-winterson/) [Explore all 1,016 Jeanette Winterson quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeanette-winterson/) ## More Book 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/) > [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/) > [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/) > [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/) > [I don't think I have made as much of my life as I should have. I should have written more books.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-m-schlesinger-jr/i-don-t-think-i-have-made-as-much-of-my-life-as-i-should-have-i/) [Arthur M. Schlesinger, Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-m-schlesinger-jr/) > [Some books are not read in the right way because they have skipped a stage of opinion, assume a crystallization of information in society…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/doris-lessing/some-books-are-not-read-in-the-right-way-because-they-have-skipped-a/) [Doris Lessing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/doris-lessing/) > [“People talk about books that write themselves, and it's a lie. Books don't write themselves. It takes thought and research and a backache and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-gaiman/people-talk-about-books-that-write-themselves-and-it-s-a-lie-books/) [Neil Gaiman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-gaiman/) > [There are great books in this world and great worlds in books.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-bronte/there-are-great-books-in-this-world-and-great-worlds-in-books/) [Anne Bronte](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-bronte/) > [The purpose of this book is to supply, in the form suitable for laymen, guidance in the adoption and execution of an investment policy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benjamin-graham/the-purpose-of-this-book-is-to-supply-in-the-form-suitable-for-laymen/) [Benjamin Graham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benjamin-graham/) > [But I think that of all the literature that I studied, the book that did more than any other to fire my enthusiasm was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kwame-nkrumah/but-i-think-that-of-all-the-literature-that-i-studied-the-book-that/) [Kwame Nkrumah](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kwame-nkrumah/) > [It's amazing to see things that are suggested in the book fully developed and so brilliantly realized through the artistry of the designers.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/suzanne-collins/it-s-amazing-to-see-things-that-are-suggested-in-the-book-fully/) [Suzanne Collins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/suzanne-collins/) > [“But I’ve developed a great reputation for wisdom by ordering more books than I ever had time to read, and reading more books, by…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marilynne-robinson/but-i-ve-developed-a-great-reputation-for-wisdom-by-ordering-more/) [Marilynne Robinson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marilynne-robinson/) [Browse all 29,378 Book quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/book/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“He loves books,’ said Perdita. ‘Yeah. He does. When you’ve finished a book you can put it away and it doesn’t ask to see you again.”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Jeanette Winterson" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeanette-winterson/he-loves-books-said-perdita-yeah-he-does-when-you-ve-finished-a-book/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Book" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeanette-winterson/he-loves-books-said-perdita-yeah-he-does-when-you-ve-finished-a-book/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8d9/jeanette-winterson-166_book_he-loves-books-said-perdita-yeah-he-does_2588166.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8d9/jeanette-winterson-166_book_he-loves-books-said-perdita-yeah-he-does_2588166.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8d9/jeanette-winterson-166_book_he-loves-books-said-perdita-yeah-he-does_2588166.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“He loves books,’ said Perdita. ‘Yeah. He does. When you’ve finished a book you can put it away and it…” — Jeanette Winterson", "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": "Jeanette Winterson", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeanette-winterson/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "“He loves books,’ said Perdita. ‘Yeah....", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeanette-winterson/he-loves-books-said-perdita-yeah-he-does-when-you-ve-finished-a-book/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeanette-winterson/he-loves-books-said-perdita-yeah-he-does-when-you-ve-finished-a-book/#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 } } ] } ```