--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I can hazily remember, long ago, having…" description: "\"“I can hazily remember, long ago, having adults — librarians, friends’ parents — suggest to me that I liked books “with magic” because I wanted to esca..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9c0/laura-miller-10358_books_i-can-hazily-remember-long-ago-having-ad_309405.png" --- # I can hazily remember, long ago, having adults… ![“I can hazily remember, long ago, having adults — librarians, friends’ parents — suggest to me that I liked books “with magic” because I wanted to escape from a reality that, by implication, I lacked the gumption to face.” quote by Laura Miller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9c0/laura-miller-10358_books_i-can-hazily-remember-long-ago-having-ad_309405.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9c0/laura-miller-10358_books_i-can-hazily-remember-long-ago-having-ad_309405.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9c0/laura-miller-10358_books_i-can-hazily-remember-long-ago-having-ad_309405.png) > ““I can hazily remember, long ago, having adults — librarians, friends’ parents — suggest to me that I liked books “with magic” because I wanted to escape from a reality that, by implication, I lacked the gumption to face.”” [Laura Miller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laura-miller/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. I was told I liked magical books because I wanted to escape a reality I felt unprepared for. **In simple terms:** Escapism often masks confidence gaps. Key Takeaway Acknowledge and confront personal challenges. Themes psychology escapism self‑esteem Mood introspective hopeful Type analytical inspirational When to use this quote - reading habits - creative writing - therapy - personal growth Key Concepts defense mechanisms literary preference Questions to Reflect On - What realities do you avoid? - How can you turn escapism into empowerment? A Different Perspective Escapism can also inspire imagination. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Books](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/books/) [Long ago](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/long-ago/) [Writer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writer/) ## Related quotes > [“Child, all books are magic. Just think,' he said, 'about what books make people do. People go to war on the basis of what…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/scarlett-thomas/child-all-books-are-magic-just-think-he-said-about-what-books-make/) [Scarlett Thomas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/scarlett-thomas/) > [We didn't have a whole lot of money when I was growing up either. I would always ask for magic books or magic tricks…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lance-burton/we-didn-t-have-a-whole-lot-of-money-when-i-was-growing-up-either-i/) [Lance Burton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lance-burton/) > [I had loved magic tricks from the time I was six or seven. I bought books on magic. I did magic acts for my…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steve-martin/i-had-loved-magic-tricks-from-the-time-i-was-six-or-seven-i-bought/) [Steve Martin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steve-martin/) > [I am drawn to writing books about magic and the supernatural because those are the types of books I like to read. I've written…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cassandra-clare/i-am-drawn-to-writing-books-about-magic-and-the-supernatural-because/) [Cassandra Clare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cassandra-clare/) > [“Some people said there was a secret society trained precisely for that purpose, toiling away generation after generation, poring over the book and copying…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/traci-chee/some-people-said-there-was-a-secret-society-trained-precisely-for/) [Traci Chee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/traci-chee/) > [“Books...the magic carpet ride of a lifetime”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/janice-m-lauderdale/books-the-magic-carpet-ride-of-a-lifetime/) Janice M. Lauderdale > [We have everything we need to be happy but we aren't happy. Something is missing... It is not books you need, it's some of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ray-bradbury/we-have-everything-we-need-to-be-happy-but-we-aren-t-happy-something-2/) [Ray Bradbury](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ray-bradbury/) > [Books are magic: you never know where they're going to end up.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dan-savage/books-are-magic-you-never-know-where-they-re-going-to-end-up/) [Dan Savage](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dan-savage/) > [“It’s hard to believe there are people that don’t read books. There’s so much magic in words and well told stories.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/c-toni-graham/it-s-hard-to-believe-there-are-people-that-don-t-read-books-there-s/) [C. Toni Graham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/c-toni-graham/) > [Colin emphatically pushed the book cover shut when he finished reading. "Did you like it?" His dad asked. "Yup," Colin said. He liked all…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-green/colin-emphatically-pushed-the-book-cover-shut-when-he-finished/) [John Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-green/) > [“Esther liked books out where everyone could see them, a sort of graphic index to the intricate labyrinth of her mind arrayed to impress…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-gaddis/esther-liked-books-out-where-everyone-could-see-them-a-sort-of/) [William Gaddis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-gaddis/) > [There is no bond like the bond of having read and liked the same books.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/e-nesbit/there-is-no-bond-like-the-bond-of-having-read-and-liked-the-same-books/) [E. Nesbit](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-nesbit/) > [Hobbits delighted in such things, if they were accurate; they liked to have books filled with things that they already knew, set out fair…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/hobbits-delighted-in-such-things-if-they-were-accurate-they-liked-to/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [My mom didn't write, but she loved to read. She liked books 'that made you a little nervous.' Stephen King, Dean Koontz and Peter…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-easton/my-mom-didn-t-write-but-she-loved-to-read-she-liked-books-that-made/) [Michael Easton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-easton/) > [“I liked my books and clouds and sunsets.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-elo-se-hinton/i-liked-my-books-and-clouds-and-sunsets/) Susan Eloïse Hinton ## More by Laura Miller > [If we weigh the significance of a book by the effect it has on its readers, then the great children's books suddenly turn up…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laura-miller/if-we-weigh-the-significance-of-a-book-by-the-effect-it-has-on-its/) [Laura Miller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laura-miller/) > [“Hope is a funny thing when you think about it. It’s something you always have. You just have to believe you do.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laura-miller/hope-is-a-funny-thing-when-you-think-about-it-it-s-something-you/) [Laura Miller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laura-miller/) > [“Desire acts as a honey trap to the unwary male, luring him into unworthy and catastrophic enterprises. The beauty of the Narnian witches isn't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laura-miller/desire-acts-as-a-honey-trap-to-the-unwary-male-luring-him-into/) [Laura Miller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laura-miller/) > [Others like City Hall the old way, when they could make deals behind closed doors with your tax money.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laura-miller/others-like-city-hall-the-old-way-when-they-could-make-deals-behind/) [Laura Miller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laura-miller/) > [“Life didn’t go how I had planned, but I couldn’t have planned a better life. Somewhere in between the beginning and eternity, I fought…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laura-miller/life-didn-t-go-how-i-had-planned-but-i-couldn-t-have-planned-a-better/) [Laura Miller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laura-miller/) > [Adventure ... is what might otherwise be called hardship if it were attempted in a different spirit.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laura-miller/adventure-is-what-might-otherwise-be-called-hardship-if-it-were/) [Laura Miller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laura-miller/) > [“I gave him a piece of my heart a long time ago, and once you give that away, I’ve learned you don’t so easily…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laura-miller/i-gave-him-a-piece-of-my-heart-a-long-time-ago-and-once-you-give-that/) [Laura Miller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laura-miller/) > [The first book we fall in love with shapes us every bit as much as the first person we fall in love with...](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laura-miller/the-first-book-we-fall-in-love-with-shapes-us-every-bit-as-much-as/) [Laura Miller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laura-miller/) > [“Because I see A rainstorm in June Just before the sun The black of night Just before the stars And, girl, I see your…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laura-miller/because-i-see-a-rainstorm-in-june-just-before-the-sun-the-black-of/) [Laura Miller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laura-miller/) > [Buying a book is not about obtaining a possession, but about securing a portal.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laura-miller/buying-a-book-is-not-about-obtaining-a-possession-but-about-securing/) [Laura Miller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laura-miller/) > [“Desperation will drive you to do things you know will never make you whole again and even to lose the very thing you’re desperate…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laura-miller/desperation-will-drive-you-to-do-things-you-know-will-never-make-you/) [Laura Miller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laura-miller/) > [“Maybe we knew each other in another life. Or maybe we were just meant to find each other in this one.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laura-miller/maybe-we-knew-each-other-in-another-life-or-maybe-we-were-just-meant/) [Laura Miller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laura-miller/) > [People like to complain about the state of contemporary literature, but I can only assume they don't read it very widely.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laura-miller/people-like-to-complain-about-the-state-of-contemporary-literature/) [Laura Miller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laura-miller/) > [“I can see how James or Greene might agree with this point of view: the former finds that the ugly old lamp no longer…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laura-miller/i-can-see-how-james-or-greene-might-agree-with-this-point-of-view-the/) [Laura Miller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laura-miller/) > [“I just want you to know that I love you with everything I am—a million times a million and to the moon and back.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laura-miller/i-just-want-you-to-know-that-i-love-you-with-everything-i-am-a/) [Laura Miller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laura-miller/) [Explore all 66 Laura Miller quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laura-miller/) ## 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 > [“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 > [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": "“I can hazily remember, long ago, having adults — librarians, friends’ parents — suggest to me that I liked books “with magic” because I wanted to escape from a reality that, by implication, I lacked the gumption to face.”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Laura Miller" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laura-miller/i-can-hazily-remember-long-ago-having-adults-librarians-friends/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Books" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laura-miller/i-can-hazily-remember-long-ago-having-adults-librarians-friends/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9c0/laura-miller-10358_books_i-can-hazily-remember-long-ago-having-ad_309405.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9c0/laura-miller-10358_books_i-can-hazily-remember-long-ago-having-ad_309405.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9c0/laura-miller-10358_books_i-can-hazily-remember-long-ago-having-ad_309405.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“I can hazily remember, long ago, having adults — librarians, friends’ parents — suggest to me that I liked…” — Laura Miller", "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": "Laura Miller", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laura-miller/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "“I can hazily remember, long ago,...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laura-miller/i-can-hazily-remember-long-ago-having-adults-librarians-friends/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laura-miller/i-can-hazily-remember-long-ago-having-adults-librarians-friends/#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 } } ] } ```