--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Drinks were a lot like books, really: it…" description: "\"“Drinks were a lot like books, really: it didn’t matter where you were, the contents of a vodka tonic were always more or less the same, and you could ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2be/lev-grossman-747_books_drinks-were-a-lot-like-books-really-it-d_247666.jpg" --- # Drinks were a lot like books, really: it didn’t matter… ![“Drinks were a lot like books, really: it didn’t matter where you were, the contents of a vodka tonic were always more or less the same, and you could count on them to take you away to somewhere better or at least make your present arrangements seem more manageable.” quote by Lev Grossman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2be/lev-grossman-747_books_drinks-were-a-lot-like-books-really-it-d_247666.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2be/lev-grossman-747_books_drinks-were-a-lot-like-books-really-it-d_247666.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2be/lev-grossman-747_books_drinks-were-a-lot-like-books-really-it-d_247666.jpg) > ““Drinks were a lot like books, really: it didn’t matter where you were, the contents of a vodka tonic were always more or less the same, and you could count on them to take you away to somewhere better or at least make your present arrangements seem more manageable.”” [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. Comparing drinks to books, the quote suggests that a familiar drink can provide a mental escape and make current problems feel more manageable. **In simple terms:** A drink can be an escape like a book. Key Takeaway Use familiar comforts to gain perspective. Themes escape comfort perspective Mood reflective calming Type metaphorical observational When to use this quote - stressful workday - social gathering - loneliness - creative block - travel fatigue Key Concepts psychology habit coping literature alcohol Questions to Reflect On - What simple ritual helps you reset? - How does a familiar taste affect your mood? A Different Perspective May overreliance on escapism hinder confronting real issues. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Books](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/books/) [Contents Vodka](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/contents-vodka-2469839/) [Drinks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/drinks/) [Drinks Lot](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/drinks-lot-2469840/) [Happiness](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/happiness/) [Like Books](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/like-books/) [Vodka Tonic](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/vodka-tonic-2469838/) ## Related quotes > [Sex without smiling is as sickly and as base as vodka and tonic without ice.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-fry/sex-without-smiling-is-as-sickly-and-as-base-as-vodka-and-tonic/) [Stephen Fry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-fry/) > [Ambition devours gold and drinks blood and climbs so high by other men's heads, that at the length in the fall, it breaks its…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-wentworth-1st-earl-of-strafford/ambition-devours-gold-and-drinks-blood-and-climbs-so-high-by-other/) [Thomas Wentworth, 1st Earl of Strafford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-wentworth-1st-earl-of-strafford/) > [“Have patience with everything that remains unsolved in your heart. Try to love the questions themselves, like locked rooms, like books written in a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rainer-maria-rilke/have-patience-with-everything-that-remains-unsolved-in-your-heart-try/) [Rainer Maria Rilke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rainer-maria-rilke/) > [“People are like books, and the world is like a library. Some believe that it is important to be known with the most possible…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/varg-vikernes/people-are-like-books-and-the-world-is-like-a-library-some-believe/) [Varg Vikernes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/varg-vikernes/) > [It's easy for me to not use my phone for the whole day. I feel like because of books, I can find more balance,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/iga-swiatek/it-s-easy-for-me-to-not-use-my-phone-for-the-whole-day-i-feel-like/) [Iga Swiatek](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/iga-swiatek/) > [I like books that are exciting and that make you think about things, as well. I like things that have a twist - like…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/saoirse-ronan/i-like-books-that-are-exciting-and-that-make-you-think-about-things/) [Saoirse Ronan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/saoirse-ronan/) > [A book has to be easy to open and you don't have to be a bodybuilder to lift it. I like books I can…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karl-lagerfeld/a-book-has-to-be-easy-to-open-and-you-don-t-have-to-be-a-bodybuilder/) [Karl Lagerfeld](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karl-lagerfeld/) > [“Regret. It piles up around us like books we never read.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adam-cozad-and-david-koepp/regret-it-piles-up-around-us-like-books-we-never-read/) [Adam Cozad and David Koepp](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adam-cozad-and-david-koepp/) > [“I looked over Emma’s shoulder. I recognized the girls in the photos. I understood we used to be close. 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I like sentences that don't budge though armies cross them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/virginia-woolf/i-like-books-whose-virtue-is-all-drawn-together-in-a-page-or-two-i/) [Virginia Woolf](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/virginia-woolf/) > [I didn't like books where people played on a sports team and won a bunch of games, or went to summer camp and had…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-handler/i-didn-t-like-books-where-people-played-on-a-sports-team-and-won-a/) [Daniel Handler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-handler/) > [“I like stories more than I like books.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-s-magalh-es/i-like-stories-more-than-i-like-books/) [Tomás Magalhães](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-s-magalh-es/) > [“...you are like me, you have more books than you have friends, no matter what Facebook tells you about your social network.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jason-merkoski/you-are-like-me-you-have-more-books-than-you-have-friends-no-matter/) [Jason Merkoski](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jason-merkoski/) ## 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. 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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. 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