--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: In the end, what makes a book valuable is…" description: "\"In the end, what makes a book valuable is not the paper it's printed on, but the thousands of hours of work by dozens of people who are dedicated to cr..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9f7/john-green-12_book_in-the-end-what-makes-a-book-valuable-is_1304708.jpg" --- # In the end, what makes a book valuable is not the paper… ![“In the end, what makes a book valuable is not the paper it's printed on, but the thousands of hours of work by dozens of people who are dedicated to creating the best possible reading experience for you.” quote by John Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9f7/john-green-12_book_in-the-end-what-makes-a-book-valuable-is_1304708.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9f7/john-green-12_book_in-the-end-what-makes-a-book-valuable-is_1304708.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9f7/john-green-12_book_in-the-end-what-makes-a-book-valuable-is_1304708.jpg) > “In the end, what makes a book valuable is not the paper it's printed on, but the thousands of hours of work by dozens of people who are dedicated to creating the best possible reading experience for you.” [John Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-green/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. A book's worth lies in the collective effort behind it, not its physical material. **In simple terms:** Value comes from people’s work, not paper. Key Takeaway Appreciate the creators behind a book. Themes collaboration craft appreciation Mood grateful reflective Type literary inspirational When to use this quote - reading clubs - library programs - book reviews - literary awards Key Concepts publishing editing design authoring Questions to Reflect On - How does knowing the process change your reading? - What roles are most overlooked? A Different Perspective The physical book can still affect perception and durability. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Book](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/book/) [Books](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/books/) [Creating](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/creating/) [Dedicated](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/dedicated/) [People](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/people/) [Reading](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/reading/) [Reading experience](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/reading-experience/) [Writer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writer/) ## Related quotes > [People can take your name and write a book about you and they make money off of it. How is the public supposed to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/diana-ross/people-can-take-your-name-and-write-a-book-about-you-and-they-make/) [Diana Ross](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/diana-ross/) > [...I will continue to underscore that I don't think authorial intent is all that important to a reading experience, and I certainly don't think…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-green/i-will-continue-to-underscore-that-i-don-t-think-authorial-intent-is/) [John Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-green/) > [What doesn't kill you only makes your book longer.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anthony-kiedis/what-doesn-t-kill-you-only-makes-your-book-longer/) [Anthony Kiedis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anthony-kiedis/) > [What makes a book unique isn't always about having one big grand new idea. It's about combining many different ideas in new and interesting…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kameron-hurley/what-makes-a-book-unique-isn-t-always-about-having-one-big-grand-new/) [Kameron Hurley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kameron-hurley/) > [My books arose from my own experience, when I sought guidance in practical leadership in my career. In sum, I strive to write the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-m-strock/my-books-arose-from-my-own-experience-when-i-sought-guidance-in/) [James M Strock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-m-strock/) > [We are so overwhelmed with quantities of books, that we hardly realize any more that a book can be valuable, valuable like a jewel,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/we-are-so-overwhelmed-with-quantities-of-books-that-we-hardly-realize/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [A book is valuable not only for what it says but for what it makes you think, or causes you to remember. No matter…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louis-l-amour/a-book-is-valuable-not-only-for-what-it-says-but-for-what-it-makes/) [Louis L'Amour](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louis-l-amour/) > [ “This Book \[is\] the most valuable thing that this world affords.” ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/this-book-is-the-most-valuable-thing-that-this-world-affords/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [We are so overwhelmed with quantities of books, that we hardly realise any more that a book can be valuable, valuable like a jewel,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/d-h-lawrence/we-are-so-overwhelmed-with-quantities-of-books-that-we-hardly-realise/) [D. H. Lawrence](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/d-h-lawrence/) > [Over the years I must have spent thousands of hours silently brushing on the liquid coatings, preparing each sheet in anticipation of reaching the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/irving-penn/over-the-years-i-must-have-spent-thousands-of-hours-silently-brushing/) [Irving Penn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/irving-penn/) > [As combat infantrymen and special operators, we received thousands of hours of firearms training.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stanley-a-mcchrystal/as-combat-infantrymen-and-special-operators-we-received-thousands-of/) [Stanley A. McChrystal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stanley-a-mcchrystal/) > [I've had the joy of spending thousands of hours under the sea. I wish I could take people along to see what I see,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sylvia-earle/i-ve-had-the-joy-of-spending-thousands-of-hours-under-the-sea-i-wish/) [Sylvia Earle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sylvia-earle/) > [There was a lot of work that people don't know about that I did to establish my villain persona. There were a lot of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roddy-piper/there-was-a-lot-of-work-that-people-don-t-know-about-that-i-did-to/) [Roddy Piper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roddy-piper/) > [Sometimes we have only ten minutes to be with the love of our life and thousands of hours to spend thinking about them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paulo-coelho/sometimes-we-have-only-ten-minutes-to-be-with-the-love-of-our-life/) [Paulo Coelho](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paulo-coelho/) > [I spent thousands of thousands of hours playing the piano, and by thousands of hours, I mean playing in cover bands or wedding bands…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tim-minchin/i-spent-thousands-of-thousands-of-hours-playing-the-piano-and-by/) [Tim Minchin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tim-minchin/) ## More by John Green > [Issac:"I dislike living in a world without Augustus Waters." Computer: "I don't understand-" Issac: "Me neither. Pause](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-green/issac-i-dislike-living-in-a-world-without-augustus-waters-computer-i/) [John Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-green/) > [“I just want to stay away from people and read books and think”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-green/i-just-want-to-stay-away-from-people-and-read-books-and-think/) [John Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-green/) > [She smiled with all the delight of a kid on Christmas morning and said, "Y'all smoke to enjoy it. I smoke to die." -…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-green/she-smiled-with-all-the-delight-of-a-kid-on-christmas-morning-and/) [John Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-green/) > [A Margo for each of us--and each more mirror than window.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-green/a-margo-for-each-of-us-and-each-more-mirror-than-window/) [John Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-green/) > [“No one ever says good-bye unless they want to see you again.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-green/no-one-ever-says-good-bye-unless-they-want-to-see-you-again/) [John Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-green/) > [Neither novels or their readers benefit from any attempts to divine whether any facts hide inside a story. Such efforts attack the very idea…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-green/neither-novels-or-their-readers-benefit-from-any-attempts-to-divine/) [John Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-green/) > [“Traffic's not too bad on Sheridan, and I'm cornering the car like it's the Indy 500, and we're listening to my favorite NMH song,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-green/traffic-s-not-too-bad-on-sheridan-and-i-m-cornering-the-car-like-it-s/) [John Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-green/) > [“Praise God for good nurses.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-green/praise-god-for-good-nurses/) [John Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-green/) > [So I was ugly. I was never fat, really, and I never wore headgear or had zits or anything. But I was ugly. I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-green/so-i-was-ugly-i-was-never-fat-really-and-i-never-wore-headgear-or-had/) [John Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-green/) > [Nothing has ever looked like that ever in all of human history.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-green/nothing-has-ever-looked-like-that-ever-in-all-of-human-history/) [John Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-green/) > [“said to him quietly, as if I couldn’t hear or something. Dad was about to respond but I interrupted.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-green/said-to-him-quietly-as-if-i-couldn-t-hear-or-something-dad-was-about/) [John Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-green/) > [I believe humans have souls, and I believe in the conservation of souls.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-green/i-believe-humans-have-souls-and-i-believe-in-the-conservation-of-souls/) [John Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-green/) > [“He was hot. A nonhotboy stares at you relentlessly and it is, at best, awkward and, at worst, a form of assault. But a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-green/he-was-hot-a-nonhotboy-stares-at-you-relentlessly-and-it-is-at-best/) [John Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-green/) > [I think if you keep the box closed long enough you do kill the cat, actually.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-green/i-think-if-you-keep-the-box-closed-long-enough-you-do-kill-the-cat/) [John Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-green/) > [Imagining the future is a kind of nostalgia. (...) You spend your whole life stuck in the labyrinth, thinking about how you'll escape it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-green/imagining-the-future-is-a-kind-of-nostalgia-you-spend-your-whole-life/) [John Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-green/) [Explore all 3,614 John Green quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-green/) ## 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": "In the end, what makes a book valuable is not the paper it's printed on, but the thousands of hours of work by dozens of people who are dedicated to creating the best possible reading experience for you.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "John Green" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-green/in-the-end-what-makes-a-book-valuable-is-not-the-paper-it-s-printed/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Book" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-green/in-the-end-what-makes-a-book-valuable-is-not-the-paper-it-s-printed/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9f7/john-green-12_book_in-the-end-what-makes-a-book-valuable-is_1304708.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9f7/john-green-12_book_in-the-end-what-makes-a-book-valuable-is_1304708.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9f7/john-green-12_book_in-the-end-what-makes-a-book-valuable-is_1304708.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“In the end, what makes a book valuable is not the paper it's printed on, but the thousands of hours of work…” — John Green", "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": "John Green", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-green/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "In the end, what makes a...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-green/in-the-end-what-makes-a-book-valuable-is-not-the-paper-it-s-printed/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-green/in-the-end-what-makes-a-book-valuable-is-not-the-paper-it-s-printed/#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 } } ] } ```