---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: That is a good book it seems to me, which…"
description: "\"“That is a good book it seems to me, which is opened with expectation and closed with profit.”\" — Louisa May Alcott"
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/cb4/louisa-may-alcott-318_books_that-is-a-good-book-it-seems-to-me-which_1698666.png"
---

#  That is a good book it seems to me, which is opened with…

![“That is a good book it seems to me, which is opened with expectation and closed with profit.” quote by Louisa May Alcott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/cb4/louisa-may-alcott-318_books_that-is-a-good-book-it-seems-to-me-which_1698666.png)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/cb4/louisa-may-alcott-318_books_that-is-a-good-book-it-seems-to-me-which_1698666.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/cb4/louisa-may-alcott-318_books_that-is-a-good-book-it-seems-to-me-which_1698666.png)

> ““That is a good book it seems to me, which is opened with expectation and closed with profit.””

[Louisa May Alcott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louisa-may-alcott/)

## About This Quote

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

Books promise profit but often deliver disappointment when expectations are unmet.

**In simple terms:** Expectations vs. reality in reading.

Key Takeaway

Set realistic expectations for reading material.

Themes

literature expectations disappointment consumerism

Mood

candid reflective

Type

literary practical

When to use this quote

- book clubs
- reading lists
- publishing industry
- personal budgeting
- library use

Key Concepts

literary criticism economics psychology

Questions to Reflect On

- What criteria do you use to choose a book?
- How do you handle unmet literary expectations?

A Different Perspective

Not all books fulfill promised value.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[Books](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/books/) [Good book](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/good-book/) [Writer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writer/)

## Related quotes

> [That is a good book which is opened with expectation and closed with profit.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amos-bronson-alcott/that-is-a-good-book-which-is-opened-with-expectation-and-closed-with/)

[Amos Bronson Alcott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amos-bronson-alcott/)

> [That is a good book which is opened with expectation, and closed with delight and profit.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amos-bronson-alcott/that-is-a-good-book-which-is-opened-with-expectation-and-closed-with-2/)

[Amos Bronson Alcott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amos-bronson-alcott/)

> [“To me, you are a book I have opened. I can't put it down. I need to know more.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jodi-ellen-malpas/to-me-you-are-a-book-i-have-opened-i-can-t-put-it-down-i-need-to-know/)

[Jodi Ellen Malpas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jodi-ellen-malpas/)

> [“people who are wary of what they might find in a book if they opened 1 are right to be”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kurt-vonnegut/people-who-are-wary-of-what-they-might-find-in-a-book-if-they-opened-2/)

[Kurt Vonnegut](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kurt-vonnegut/)

> [My life is an closed book.. No one ever opened it yet ... Those who opened they Neva read it ... Who read never…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/my-life-is-an-closed-book-no-one-ever-opened-it-yet-those-who-opened/)

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

> [“Bastian looked at the book. 'I wonder,' he said to himself, 'what's in a book while it's closed. Oh, I know it's full of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-ende/bastian-looked-at-the-book-i-wonder-he-said-to-himself-what-s-in-a/)

[Michael Ende](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-ende/)

> [Amplified by the still of night, the book opened -- a gust of wind.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/amplified-by-the-still-of-night-the-book-opened-a-gust-of-wind/)

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

> [I thought I would keep the first name Susan and change the last name but I picked up this book and as I opened…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/morgan-brittany/i-thought-i-would-keep-the-first-name-susan-and-change-the-last-name/)

[Morgan Brittany](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/morgan-brittany/)

> [“Ava, the first time I saw you, this lost beautiful creature that swept me into this unimaginable world, I knew I was in trouble.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicole-gulla/ava-the-first-time-i-saw-you-this-lost-beautiful-creature-that-swept/)

[Nicole Gulla](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicole-gulla/)

> [People who are wary of what they might find in a book if they opened one are right to be.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kurt-vonnegut/people-who-are-wary-of-what-they-might-find-in-a-book-if-they-opened/)

[Kurt Vonnegut](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kurt-vonnegut/)

> [“If she really had any doubt, the look in Dr. Alec's face banished it without a word, as he opened wide his arms and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louisa-may-alcott/if-she-really-had-any-doubt-the-look-in-dr-alec-s-face-banished-it/)

[Louisa May Alcott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louisa-may-alcott/)

> [Keep good company, read good books, love good things and cultivate soul and body as faithfully as you can](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louisa-may-alcott/keep-good-company-read-good-books-love-good-things-and-cultivate-soul/)

[Louisa May Alcott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louisa-may-alcott/)

> [“Reading a good book is like taking a journey.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emma-gulliford/reading-a-good-book-is-like-taking-a-journey/)

Emma Gulliford

> [O, there is lovely to feel a book, a good book, firm in the hand, for its fatness holds rich promise, and you are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-llewellyn/o-there-is-lovely-to-feel-a-book-a-good-book-firm-in-the-hand-for-its/)

[Richard Llewellyn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-llewellyn/)

> [Reading good books ruins you for enjoying bad books.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-ann-shaffer/reading-good-books-ruins-you-for-enjoying-bad-books/)

[Mary Ann Shaffer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-ann-shaffer/)

## More by Louisa May Alcott

> [“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/)

> [“At three o'clock in the afternoon, all the fashionable world at Nice may be seen on the Promenade des Anglais—a charming place, for the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louisa-may-alcott/at-three-o-clock-in-the-afternoon-all-the-fashionable-world-at-nice/)

[Louisa May Alcott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louisa-may-alcott/)

> [“Please could I say one word?" was the question three times repeated before a rough head boobed out from the grotto of books in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louisa-may-alcott/please-could-i-say-one-word-was-the-question-three-times-repeated/)

[Louisa May Alcott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louisa-may-alcott/)

> [Elegance has a bad effect on my constitution.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louisa-may-alcott/elegance-has-a-bad-effect-on-my-constitution/)

[Louisa May Alcott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louisa-may-alcott/)

> [“…the child's heart bled when it was broken.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louisa-may-alcott/the-child-s-heart-bled-when-it-was-broken/)

[Louisa May Alcott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louisa-may-alcott/)

> [“She would make a man of me. She puts strength and courage into me as no one else can. She is unlike any girl…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louisa-may-alcott/she-would-make-a-man-of-me-she-puts-strength-and-courage-into-me-as/)

[Louisa May Alcott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louisa-may-alcott/)

> [“I read somewhere that every inch of rope used in the British Navy has a strand of red in it, so that wherever a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louisa-may-alcott/i-read-somewhere-that-every-inch-of-rope-used-in-the-british-navy-has/)

[Louisa May Alcott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louisa-may-alcott/)

> [“Chance words spoken in kindness often help amazingly; and that's what old people are here for -- else their experience is of little use.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louisa-may-alcott/chance-words-spoken-in-kindness-often-help-amazingly-and-that-s-what/)

[Louisa May Alcott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louisa-may-alcott/)

> [“Tired of my own company, I suppose, now I've seen so much better.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louisa-may-alcott/tired-of-my-own-company-i-suppose-now-i-ve-seen-so-much-better/)

[Louisa May Alcott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louisa-may-alcott/)

> [Oft in the silence of the night, When the lonely moon rides high, When wintry winds are whistling, And we hear the owl's shrill…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louisa-may-alcott/oft-in-the-silence-of-the-night-when-the-lonely-moon-rides-high-when/)

[Louisa May Alcott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louisa-may-alcott/)

> [But buds will be roses, and kittens, cats - more's the pity.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louisa-may-alcott/but-buds-will-be-roses-and-kittens-cats-more-s-the-pity/)

[Louisa May Alcott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louisa-may-alcott/)

> [“I'll try and be what he loves to call me, 'a little woman' and not be rough and wild, but do my duty here…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louisa-may-alcott/i-ll-try-and-be-what-he-loves-to-call-me-a-little-woman-and-not-be/)

[Louisa May Alcott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louisa-may-alcott/)

> [“If you feel your value lies in being merely decorative, I fear that someday you might find yourself believing that’s all that you really…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louisa-may-alcott/if-you-feel-your-value-lies-in-being-merely-decorative-i-fear-that/)

[Louisa May Alcott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louisa-may-alcott/)

> [“ "I do not ask for any crown But that which all may win; Nor try to conquer any world Except the world within." ”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louisa-may-alcott/i-do-not-ask-for-any-crown-but-that-which-all-may-win-nor-try-to/)

[Louisa May Alcott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louisa-may-alcott/)

> [Some books are so familiar that reading them is like being home again.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louisa-may-alcott/some-books-are-so-familiar-that-reading-them-is-like-being-home-again/)

[Louisa May Alcott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louisa-may-alcott/)

[Explore all 681 Louisa May Alcott quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louisa-may-alcott/)

## 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": "“That is a good book it seems to me, which is opened with expectation and closed with profit.”",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "Louisa May Alcott"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louisa-may-alcott/that-is-a-good-book-it-seems-to-me-which-is-opened-with-expectation/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "Books"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louisa-may-alcott/that-is-a-good-book-it-seems-to-me-which-is-opened-with-expectation/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/cb4/louisa-may-alcott-318_books_that-is-a-good-book-it-seems-to-me-which_1698666.png",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/cb4/louisa-may-alcott-318_books_that-is-a-good-book-it-seems-to-me-which_1698666.png",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/cb4/louisa-may-alcott-318_books_that-is-a-good-book-it-seems-to-me-which_1698666.png",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“That is a good book it seems to me, which is opened with expectation and closed with profit.” — Louisa May Alcott",
                "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": "Louisa May Alcott",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louisa-may-alcott/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 4,
                    "name": "“That is a good book it...",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louisa-may-alcott/that-is-a-good-book-it-seems-to-me-which-is-opened-with-expectation/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louisa-may-alcott/that-is-a-good-book-it-seems-to-me-which-is-opened-with-expectation/#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
            }
        }
    ]
}
```
