---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: The important thing is that another…"
description: "\"“The important thing is that another medium—stage, film, music—doesn’t obliterate a book. The movie is here now, on a big screen, with stars and costum..."
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7a7/lois-lowry-978_big-screen_the-important-thing-is-that-another-medi_19707.png"
---

#  The important thing is that another medium—stage, film…

![“The important thing is that another medium—stage, film, music—doesn’t obliterate a book. The movie is here now, on a big screen, with stars and costumes and a score. But the book hasn’t gone away. It has simply grown up, grown larger, and begun to glisten in a new way.” quote by Lois Lowry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7a7/lois-lowry-978_big-screen_the-important-thing-is-that-another-medi_19707.png)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7a7/lois-lowry-978_big-screen_the-important-thing-is-that-another-medi_19707.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7a7/lois-lowry-978_big-screen_the-important-thing-is-that-another-medi_19707.png)

> ““The important thing is that another medium—stage, film, music—doesn’t obliterate a book. The movie is here now, on a big screen, with stars and costumes and a score. But the book hasn’t gone away. It has simply grown up, grown larger, and begun to glisten in a new way.””

[Lois Lowry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lois-lowry/)

## About This Quote

This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation.

Books persist despite adaptations; they evolve, gaining new dimensions without being replaced.

**In simple terms:** Adaptations expand, not erase, a book's impact.

Key Takeaway

Stories can thrive across media.

Themes

media adaptation cultural persistence intertextuality artistic evolution

Mood

reflective optimistic

Type

observational analytical

When to use this quote

- discussing film vs. novel in a class
- marketing a book after a movie release
- evaluating a soundtrack's influence on a story

Key Concepts

medium transformation audience reach

Practical Applications

- educational curricula linking books and movies
- cross‑media promotional campaigns

Questions to Reflect On

- How does a visual adaptation change your perception of the original narrative?
- What aspects of a story survive when its medium changes?

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[Big screen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/big-screen/) [Book](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/book/) [Book Hasn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/book-hasn-393234/) [Book Movie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/book-movie-393233/) [Books](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/books/) [Medium](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/medium/) [Movie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/movie/) [Thing Medium](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/thing-medium-393235/)

## Related quotes

> [I am sure everyone has had the experience of reading a book and finding it vibrating with aliveness, with colour and immediacy. And then,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/doris-lessing/i-am-sure-everyone-has-had-the-experience-of-reading-a-book-and/)

[Doris Lessing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/doris-lessing/)

> [“The 'one book' which hasn't been written yet, even then persistent a book is being written by me, and might never end! While, I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/the-one-book-which-hasn-t-been-written-yet-even-then-persistent-a/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [“Well, right now I'm not dead. But when I am, it's like...I don't know, I guess it's like being inside a book that nobody's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tim-o-brien/well-right-now-i-m-not-dead-but-when-i-am-it-s-like-i-don-t-know-i/)

[Tim O'Brien](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tim-o-brien/)

> [A book hasn't caused me this much trouble since Where's Waldo went to that barber pole factory.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/a-book-hasn-t-caused-me-this-much-trouble-since-where-s-waldo-went-to/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [I thought that deserved a book and feel like the door needs to be open so people can say, "Ok, here we go, let's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brad-warner/i-thought-that-deserved-a-book-and-feel-like-the-door-needs-to-be/)

[Brad Warner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brad-warner/)

> [“I’m working on a large project which I hope will become a book. A war book.’ ‘Hasn’t someone already written that one?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jo-nesb/i-m-working-on-a-large-project-which-i-hope-will-become-a-book-a-war/)

[Jo Nesbø](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jo-nesb/)

> [I always aspire to not to repeat myself be it on small or big screen as for me medium is a secondary concern.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nikitin-dheer/i-always-aspire-to-not-to-repeat-myself-be-it-on-small-or-big-screen/)

[Nikitin Dheer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nikitin-dheer/)

> [“A stage adaptation of The Giver has been performed in cities and towns across the USA for years. More recently an opera has been…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lois-lowry/a-stage-adaptation-of-the-giver-has-been-performed-in-cities-and/)

[Lois Lowry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lois-lowry/)

> [But the animation has become very good, and I think that a movie is not a book, and a book is not a movie.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/katherine-dunn/but-the-animation-has-become-very-good-and-i-think-that-a-movie-is/)

[Katherine Dunn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/katherine-dunn/)

> [“The movie was very different from the book in that there was nothing from the book in the movie. Despite everything — all the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bret-easton-ellis/the-movie-was-very-different-from-the-book-in-that-there-was-nothing/)

[Bret Easton Ellis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bret-easton-ellis/)

> [I want my music to be treated as a book or a movie. It's not about the one single: it's about the bigger picture.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/melanie-martinez/i-want-my-music-to-be-treated-as-a-book-or-a-movie-it-s-not-about-the/)

[Melanie Martinez](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/melanie-martinez/)

> [A book and a movie are different animals. You need a cinematic perspective to be involved in the motion pictures. And this is something…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ashwin-sanghi/a-book-and-a-movie-are-different-animals-you-need-a-cinematic/)

[Ashwin Sanghi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ashwin-sanghi/)

> [Every filmmaker knows that when you make a book into a movie, the first thing you have to do is kill the book, unfortunately.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sam-raimi/every-filmmaker-knows-that-when-you-make-a-book-into-a-movie-the/)

[Sam Raimi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sam-raimi/)

> [I mean, there are things in the book you could never do in a movie.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noah-hathaway/i-mean-there-are-things-in-the-book-you-could-never-do-in-a-movie/)

[Noah Hathaway](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noah-hathaway/)

> [Everything I've wanted to turn into a film becomes something new and different when it becomes a movie... Each time I work with an…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jason-reitman/everything-i-ve-wanted-to-turn-into-a-film-becomes-something-new-and/)

[Jason Reitman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jason-reitman/)

## More by Lois Lowry

> [“She's sure, absolutely sure, that what she's waiting for will happen, just the way she wants it to; and I'm so uncertain, so fearful…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lois-lowry/she-s-sure-absolutely-sure-that-what-she-s-waiting-for-will-happen/)

[Lois Lowry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lois-lowry/)

> [I've always been interested in medicine and was pleased when my brother became a doctor. But after thinking seriously about that field, I realized…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lois-lowry/i-ve-always-been-interested-in-medicine-and-was-pleased-when-my/)

[Lois Lowry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lois-lowry/)

> [Pretending that there are no choices to be made - reading only books, for example, which are cheery and safe and nice - is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lois-lowry/pretending-that-there-are-no-choices-to-be-made-reading-only-books/)

[Lois Lowry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lois-lowry/)

> [They were satisfied with their lives which had none of the vibrance his own was taking on. And he was angry at himself, that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lois-lowry/they-were-satisfied-with-their-lives-which-had-none-of-the-vibrance/)

[Lois Lowry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lois-lowry/)

> [Nowadays it seems as though people sit down to write what they know is going to be a trilogy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lois-lowry/nowadays-it-seems-as-though-people-sit-down-to-write-what-they-know/)

[Lois Lowry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lois-lowry/)

> [“Take your pride in your pain. You are stronger than those who have none.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lois-lowry/take-your-pride-in-your-pain-you-are-stronger-than-those-who-have-none/)

[Lois Lowry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lois-lowry/)

> [“Sometimes we have to hurt people, in order to keep ourselves whole. We must just do it with love, that's all.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lois-lowry/sometimes-we-have-to-hurt-people-in-order-to-keep-ourselves-whole-we/)

[Lois Lowry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lois-lowry/)

> [“Once, back in the time of the memories, everything had a shape and size, the way things still do, but they also had a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lois-lowry/once-back-in-the-time-of-the-memories-everything-had-a-shape-and-size/)

[Lois Lowry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lois-lowry/)

> [“No one mentioned such things; it was not a rule, but was considered rude to call attention to things that were unsettling or different…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lois-lowry/no-one-mentioned-such-things-it-was-not-a-rule-but-was-considered/)

[Lois Lowry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lois-lowry/)

> [When you lose a child in an accident as I did, it's final - you're not caught in this longing for him, to search…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lois-lowry/when-you-lose-a-child-in-an-accident-as-i-did-it-s-final-you-re-not/)

[Lois Lowry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lois-lowry/)

> [“...and I want you all to remember- that you must not dream yourselves back to the times before the war, but the dream for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lois-lowry/and-i-want-you-all-to-remember-that-you-must-not-dream-yourselves/)

[Lois Lowry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lois-lowry/)

> [“He saw Forest and understood what Seer had meant. It was an illusion. It was a tangled knot of fears and deceits and dark…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lois-lowry/he-saw-forest-and-understood-what-seer-had-meant-it-was-an-illusion/)

[Lois Lowry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lois-lowry/)

> [“Don't grow much more, or you will be taller than I am, little Longlegs!" Annemarie smiled, but Peter's comment was no longer the lighthearted…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lois-lowry/don-t-grow-much-more-or-you-will-be-taller-than-i-am-little-longlegs/)

[Lois Lowry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lois-lowry/)

> [“Matty had felt this sensation—the”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lois-lowry/matty-had-felt-this-sensation-the/)

[Lois Lowry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lois-lowry/)

> [Now he saw another elephant emerge from the place where it had stood hidden in the trees. Very slowly it walked to the mutilated…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lois-lowry/now-he-saw-another-elephant-emerge-from-the-place-where-it-had-stood/)

[Lois Lowry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lois-lowry/)

[Explore all 311 Lois Lowry quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lois-lowry/)

## More Big screen quotes

> [Innumerable lovers of Hindi cinema have lit up the big screen. But on screen, they are just two beautiful bodies. They have no caste…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ravish-kumar/innumerable-lovers-of-hindi-cinema-have-lit-up-the-big-screen-but-on/)

[Ravish Kumar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ravish-kumar/)

> [I would love to do a love story or a socially relevant drama. Something on the lines of Netflix originals. I would love to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roop-durgapal/i-would-love-to-do-a-love-story-or-a-socially-relevant-drama/)

[Roop Durgapal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roop-durgapal/)

> [I think it's the source material. 27 Dresses was a famous book, and Devil Wears Prada was also a wonderful book, so it's coming…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jerry-bruckheimer/i-think-it-s-the-source-material-27-dresses-was-a-famous-book-and/)

[Jerry Bruckheimer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jerry-bruckheimer/)

> [No one had ever made it big from my town until I was able to make it to the NFL and now the big…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-jones/no-one-had-ever-made-it-big-from-my-town-until-i-was-able-to-make-it/)

[Thomas Jones](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-jones/)

> [I think that Spider-Man is a part of our culture. He's a perennial character. He's something that's constantly reexamined and there are so many…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marc-webb/i-think-that-spider-man-is-a-part-of-our-culture-he-s-a-perennial/)

[Marc Webb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marc-webb/)

> [The magic of film isn't just because of the big screen, or the acoustics, but the ineffable shared experience of going to the movies.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fernando-perez/the-magic-of-film-isn-t-just-because-of-the-big-screen-or-the/)

[Fernando Perez](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fernando-perez/)

> [When you're a regular gal, you look in the rearview mirror, and in the bright daylight you see that line around your mouth, but…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sharon-stone/when-you-re-a-regular-gal-you-look-in-the-rearview-mirror-and-in-the/)

[Sharon Stone](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sharon-stone/)

> [My car's my best friend. My office. My home. My location. I have a very intimate sense when I am in a car with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abbas-kiarostami/my-car-s-my-best-friend-my-office-my-home-my-location-i-have-a-very/)

[Abbas Kiarostami](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abbas-kiarostami/)

> [I don't really look at stats or whatever. You see them on the big screen. But other than that, I don't pay too much…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cody-bellinger/i-don-t-really-look-at-stats-or-whatever-you-see-them-on-the-big/)

[Cody Bellinger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cody-bellinger/)

> [As a child, I always thought about big screen and even played in a amateur theatrical studio.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sasha-pivovarova/as-a-child-i-always-thought-about-big-screen-and-even-played-in-a/)

[Sasha Pivovarova](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sasha-pivovarova/)

> [I think most people, no matter their status now, have big screen TVs, because they're the standard TVs now. And so why would you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noel-clarke/i-think-most-people-no-matter-their-status-now-have-big-screen-tvs/)

[Noel Clarke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noel-clarke/)

> [I like that because the fans want to see onstage what they know so well from the big screen.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frankie-avalon/i-like-that-because-the-fans-want-to-see-onstage-what-they-know-so/)

[Frankie Avalon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frankie-avalon/)

> [I hadn't been on the big screen in 40 years when I did the horror film 'Fright Night,' so during production of 'Bros,' I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amanda-bearse/i-hadn-t-been-on-the-big-screen-in-40-years-when-i-did-the-horror/)

[Amanda Bearse](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amanda-bearse/)

> [Acting on a digital platform is similar to the big screen.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mithila-palkar/acting-on-a-digital-platform-is-similar-to-the-big-screen/)

[Mithila Palkar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mithila-palkar/)

> [Not all stories are meant for the big screen.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rana-daggubati/not-all-stories-are-meant-for-the-big-screen/)

[Rana Daggubati](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rana-daggubati/)

[Browse all 237 Big screen quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/big-screen/)

```json
{
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@graph": [
        {
            "@type": "Quotation",
            "text": "“The important thing is that another medium—stage, film, music—doesn’t obliterate a book. The movie is here now, on a big screen, with stars and costumes and a score. But the book hasn’t gone away. It has simply grown up, grown larger, and begun to glisten in a new way.”",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "Lois Lowry"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lois-lowry/the-important-thing-is-that-another-medium-stage-film-music-doesn-t/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "Big screen"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lois-lowry/the-important-thing-is-that-another-medium-stage-film-music-doesn-t/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7a7/lois-lowry-978_big-screen_the-important-thing-is-that-another-medi_19707.png",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7a7/lois-lowry-978_big-screen_the-important-thing-is-that-another-medi_19707.png",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7a7/lois-lowry-978_big-screen_the-important-thing-is-that-another-medi_19707.png",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“The important thing is that another medium—stage, film, music—doesn’t obliterate a book. The movie is here…” — Lois Lowry",
                "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": "Lois Lowry",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lois-lowry/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 4,
                    "name": "“The important thing is that another...",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lois-lowry/the-important-thing-is-that-another-medium-stage-film-music-doesn-t/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lois-lowry/the-important-thing-is-that-another-medium-stage-film-music-doesn-t/#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
            }
        }
    ]
}
```
