--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: All of human literature could just be a…" description: "\"“All of human literature could just be a user’s guide to the multiverse!”\" — Lev Grossman" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/868/lev-grossman-747_books_all-of-human-literature-could-just-be-a_2547121.png" --- # All of human literature could just be a user’s guide to… ![“All of human literature could just be a user’s guide to the multiverse!” quote by Lev Grossman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/868/lev-grossman-747_books_all-of-human-literature-could-just-be-a_2547121.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/868/lev-grossman-747_books_all-of-human-literature-could-just-be-a_2547121.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/868/lev-grossman-747_books_all-of-human-literature-could-just-be-a_2547121.png) > ““All of human literature could just be a user’s guide to the multiverse!”” [Lev Grossman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lev-grossman/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Literature can be seen as a guidebook for navigating multiple possible realities. **In simple terms:** Books map many worlds. Key Takeaway Read to explore diverse possibilities. Themes literature multiverse guidance imagination Mood curious thoughtful Type philosophical inspirational When to use this quote - creative writing - educational curricula - personal exploration - philosophical inquiry Key Concepts narrative theory world‑building Questions to Reflect On - How does a story shape your worldview? - What “multiverse” does your favorite book reveal? A Different Perspective Interpretations vary; not all see literature this way. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Books](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/books/) [Human](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/human/) [Literature](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/literature/) ## Related quotes > [“Practically all human literature deals with the present and the past; when literature tries to describe the future, it at once ceases to be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/francis-mccullagh/practically-all-human-literature-deals-with-the-present-and-the-past/) Francis Mccullagh > [Vengeance is a strange human motivation --- it can drive a man to do things which he neither would nor could achieve without it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/h-beam-piper/vengeance-is-a-strange-human-motivation-it-can-drive-a-man-to-do/) [H. Beam Piper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/h-beam-piper/) > [South African literature is a literature in bondage. It is a less-than-fully-human literature. It is exactly the kind of literature you would expect people…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-m-coetzee-2/south-african-literature-is-a-literature-in-bondage-it-is-a-less-than/) [J. M. Coetzee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-m-coetzee-2/) > [The Bible stands alone in human literature in its elevated conception of manhood, in character and conduct.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-ward-beecher/the-bible-stands-alone-in-human-literature-in-its-elevated-conception/) [Henry Ward Beecher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-ward-beecher/) > [Once I got into college, I discovered literature - in particular, multicultural literature. I just started to understand the power of story and narrative,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matt-de-la-pena/once-i-got-into-college-i-discovered-literature-in-particular/) [Matt de la Pena](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matt-de-la-pena/) > [“A little girl's fantasies are one thing, and literature is another; just as numbers require rules to give them human meaning, words, too, demand…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benjamin-moser/a-little-girl-s-fantasies-are-one-thing-and-literature-is-another/) [Benjamin Moser](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benjamin-moser/) > [People don't expect too much from literature. They just want to know they're not alone with being confused.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-ames/people-don-t-expect-too-much-from-literature-they-just-want-to-know/) [Jonathan Ames](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-ames/) > [“Who says great literatue has to be written by men? Who says great literature has to be about scary, creepy stuff like adulterers being…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anna-quindlen/who-says-great-literatue-has-to-be-written-by-men-who-says-great/) [Anna Quindlen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anna-quindlen/) > [“God really must have had a sense of humor, because if I had to name my biggest turn-on, it was literature. And he had…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kody-keplinger/god-really-must-have-had-a-sense-of-humor-because-if-i-had-to-name-my/) [Kody Keplinger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kody-keplinger/) > [Nonfiction writers are second-class citizens, the Ellis Island of literature. We just can't quite get in. And yes, it pisses me off.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-styron/nonfiction-writers-are-second-class-citizens-the-ellis-island-of/) [William Styron](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-styron/) > [While in some countries there's a feeling that literature must stay away from religion, this is not so in India - in the Indian…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amish-tripathi/while-in-some-countries-there-s-a-feeling-that-literature-must-stay/) [Amish Tripathi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amish-tripathi/) > [I have friends who are writers, but we don't tend to talk about literature very much. It's just not part of my process; I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donald-miller/i-have-friends-who-are-writers-but-we-don-t-tend-to-talk-about/) [Donald Miller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donald-miller/) > [I feel the written word, poetry and literature is just one of the most beautiful things that human beings do. So we have to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/helen-mirren/i-feel-the-written-word-poetry-and-literature-is-just-one-of-the-most/) [Helen Mirren](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/helen-mirren/) > [Now the novels that are read are purely entertainment – well done, very polished, with a very effective technique – but not literature, just entertainment.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mario/now-the-novels-that-are-read-are-purely-entertainment-well-done-very/) [Mario](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mario/) > [“Is there just one single love in a lifetime? Are all our lovers ― from the first to the last, including the most fleeting…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dai-sijie/is-there-just-one-single-love-in-a-lifetime-are-all-our-lovers-from/) [Dai Sijie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dai-sijie/) ## More by Lev Grossman > [“It was about damn time something happened.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lev-grossman/it-was-about-damn-time-something-happened/) [Lev Grossman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lev-grossman/) > [We're wired to expect the world to be brighter and more meaningful and more obviously interesting than it actually is. And when we realize…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lev-grossman/we-re-wired-to-expect-the-world-to-be-brighter-and-more-meaningful/) [Lev Grossman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lev-grossman/) > [“He was going to sign the papers and he was going to be a motherfucking magician.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lev-grossman/he-was-going-to-sign-the-papers-and-he-was-going-to-be-a/) [Lev Grossman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lev-grossman/) > [“Being brave was easy when you would rather die than give up. Fatigue meant nothing when you actually wanted to suffer.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lev-grossman/being-brave-was-easy-when-you-would-rather-die-than-give-up-fatigue/) [Lev Grossman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lev-grossman/) > [As a writer I'm more drawn to villains who are just slightly mad.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lev-grossman/as-a-writer-i-m-more-drawn-to-villains-who-are-just-slightly-mad/) [Lev Grossman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lev-grossman/) > [“He wasn't in a safe little story where wrongs were automatically righted; he was still in the real world, where bad bitter things happened…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lev-grossman/he-wasn-t-in-a-safe-little-story-where-wrongs-were-automatically/) [Lev Grossman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lev-grossman/) > [I love rare books. Not that I own a lot of them, mind you. You couldn't quite call me a rare-book collector. But I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lev-grossman/i-love-rare-books-not-that-i-own-a-lot-of-them-mind-you-you-couldn-t/) [Lev Grossman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lev-grossman/) > [By now he had learned enough to know that when he was getting annoyed at somebody else, it was usually because there was something…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lev-grossman/by-now-he-had-learned-enough-to-know-that-when-he-was-getting-annoyed/) [Lev Grossman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lev-grossman/) > [About as close you can get to the perfect cerebral thriller: searingly smart, ridiculously funny, and fast as hell... I defy anybody to read…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lev-grossman/about-as-close-you-can-get-to-the-perfect-cerebral-thriller-searingly/) [Lev Grossman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lev-grossman/) > [“It's true," Eliot said. "Statistically, historically, and however else you want to look at it, you are almost never right. A monkey making life…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lev-grossman/it-s-true-eliot-said-statistically-historically-and-however-else-you/) [Lev Grossman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lev-grossman/) > [“God, I hope we don’t have to use that,” was all he said out loud. “Oh, come on, Quentina. We’re not looking for trouble.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lev-grossman/god-i-hope-we-don-t-have-to-use-that-was-all-he-said-out-loud-oh-come/) [Lev Grossman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lev-grossman/) > [I mean, when you're tired of book reviews, you're tired of life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lev-grossman/i-mean-when-you-re-tired-of-book-reviews-you-re-tired-of-life/) [Lev Grossman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lev-grossman/) > [My specialty as a collector is books that almost have value. When I love a book, I don't buy the first edition, because those…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lev-grossman/my-specialty-as-a-collector-is-books-that-almost-have-value-when-i/) [Lev Grossman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lev-grossman/) > [I used to write in a local coffee shop, but there was another guy, another writer, who kept sitting in my favorite seat. I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lev-grossman/i-used-to-write-in-a-local-coffee-shop-but-there-was-another-guy/) [Lev Grossman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lev-grossman/) > [I don't know if I've ever derived such an immediate sense of calm and well-being from any book as I did from 'Right Ho,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lev-grossman/i-don-t-know-if-i-ve-ever-derived-such-an-immediate-sense-of-calm-and/) [Lev Grossman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lev-grossman/) [Explore all 379 Lev Grossman quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lev-grossman/) ## 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": "“All of human literature could just be a user’s guide to the multiverse!”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Lev Grossman" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lev-grossman/all-of-human-literature-could-just-be-a-user-s-guide-to-the-multiverse/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Books" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lev-grossman/all-of-human-literature-could-just-be-a-user-s-guide-to-the-multiverse/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/868/lev-grossman-747_books_all-of-human-literature-could-just-be-a_2547121.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/868/lev-grossman-747_books_all-of-human-literature-could-just-be-a_2547121.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/868/lev-grossman-747_books_all-of-human-literature-could-just-be-a_2547121.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“All of human literature could just be a user’s guide to the multiverse!” — Lev Grossman", "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": "Lev Grossman", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lev-grossman/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "“All of human literature could just...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lev-grossman/all-of-human-literature-could-just-be-a-user-s-guide-to-the-multiverse/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lev-grossman/all-of-human-literature-could-just-be-a-user-s-guide-to-the-multiverse/#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 } } ] } ```