--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Whenever I see someone reading a book…" description: "\"“Whenever I see someone reading a book, especially if it is someone I don't expect, I feel civilisation has become a little safer.”\" — Matt Haig" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/105/matt-haig-1036_books_whenever-i-see-someone-reading-a-book-es_2899210.jpg" --- # Whenever I see someone reading a book, especially if it is… ![“Whenever I see someone reading a book, especially if it is someone I don't expect, I feel civilisation has become a little safer.” quote by Matt Haig](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/105/matt-haig-1036_books_whenever-i-see-someone-reading-a-book-es_2899210.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/105/matt-haig-1036_books_whenever-i-see-someone-reading-a-book-es_2899210.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/105/matt-haig-1036_books_whenever-i-see-someone-reading-a-book-es_2899210.jpg) > ““Whenever I see someone reading a book, especially if it is someone I don't expect, I feel civilisation has become a little safer.”” [Matt Haig](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matt-haig/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Seeing unexpected readers reassures that literature protects civilization. **In simple terms:** Unexpected readers signal cultural safety. Key Takeaway Celebrate diverse readers. Themes literature civilization diversity Mood optimistic thoughtful Type analytical inspirational When to use this quote - libraries - book clubs - schools - online forums Key Concepts cultural resilience social cohesion Questions to Reflect On - Why does unexpected reading matter? - How does literature strengthen communities? A Different Perspective Reading alone may not change society. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Books](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/books/) [Civilisation](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/civilisation/) [Civilisation Little](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/civilisation-little-4113991/) [Feel Civilisation](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/feel-civilisation-4113990/) [Reading](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/reading/) [Reading A Book](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/reading-a-book/) [Reading Book](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/reading-book/) [Writer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writer/) ## Related quotes > [If you ask me what is civilisation, it's little more than an act of faith.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-beard/if-you-ask-me-what-is-civilisation-it-s-little-more-than-an-act-of/) [Mary Beard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-beard/) > [Reading a book is like re-writing it for yourself.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/angela-carter/reading-a-book-is-like-re-writing-it-for-yourself/) [Angela Carter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/angela-carter/) > [“reading a book, or remembering something I heard on the radio last week, or admiring the flowers on the table, I am doing”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/geoffrey-durham/reading-a-book-or-remembering-something-i-heard-on-the-radio-last/) [Geoffrey Durham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/geoffrey-durham/) > [I can feel infinitely alive curled up on the sofa reading a book.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benedict-cumberbatch/i-can-feel-infinitely-alive-curled-up-on-the-sofa-reading-a-book/) [Benedict Cumberbatch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benedict-cumberbatch/) > [“Oh, reading! There is something singularly unattractive about a woman reading a book, I always think. Hunched and squinting in a corner while everyone…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kate-riordan/oh-reading-there-is-something-singularly-unattractive-about-a-woman/) [Kate Riordan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kate-riordan/) > [“books, i think, are a different kind of time machine. instead of reminding you of a lost world, they create one for you. more…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-peart/books-i-think-are-a-different-kind-of-time-machine-instead-of/) [Neil Peart](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-peart/) > [My mom would always read a book to me at night from when I was three. Now, I can't go to sleep without reading…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sonam-kapoor/my-mom-would-always-read-a-book-to-me-at-night-from-when-i-was-three/) [Sonam Kapoor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sonam-kapoor/) > [If I was reading a book about a comedian, I wouldn't really care too much about their childhood.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lee-mack/if-i-was-reading-a-book-about-a-comedian-i-wouldn-t-really-care-too/) [Lee Mack](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lee-mack/) > [“When in doubt keep reading. 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Once I start, I can't stop until it's over.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/to-me-reading-a-book-is-like-watching-a-movie-once-i-start-i-can-t/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“Hope knew that her thinking regarding books went contrary to the general sentiment of the people of Eden. Books were seen as a waste…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-bergen/hope-knew-that-her-thinking-regarding-books-went-contrary-to-the/) [David Bergen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-bergen/) > [Reading a book you are not enjoying is a torture not to be undertaken without a reward. I leave plays at the interval, too!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mariella-frostrup/reading-a-book-you-are-not-enjoying-is-a-torture-not-to-be-undertaken/) [Mariella Frostrup](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mariella-frostrup/) > [Reading a book should not be a passive exercise, but rather a raucous conversation.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/studs-terkel/reading-a-book-should-not-be-a-passive-exercise-but-rather-a-raucous/) [Studs Terkel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/studs-terkel/) ## More by Matt Haig > [“Maybe that is what growing up was all about. It was about changing your mind. Opening it right up. Admitting to yourself that you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matt-haig/maybe-that-is-what-growing-up-was-all-about-it-was-about-changing/) [Matt Haig](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matt-haig/) > [“It felt civilised and modern. It felt refined and tantalising, all at once, like a polite collective pre-orgasm.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matt-haig/it-felt-civilised-and-modern-it-felt-refined-and-tantalising-all-at/) [Matt Haig](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matt-haig/) > [If you can't give children optimism, then what are you doing?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matt-haig/if-you-can-t-give-children-optimism-then-what-are-you-doing/) [Matt Haig](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matt-haig/) > [“He just wanted to live inside a moment of that life with her forever, to pluck it like a flower and press it in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matt-haig/he-just-wanted-to-live-inside-a-moment-of-that-life-with-her-forever/) [Matt Haig](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matt-haig/) > [British culture is very cynical sometimes of overt displays of sentimentality, and I think that becomes almost a suspicion of emotion, or a suspicion…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matt-haig/british-culture-is-very-cynical-sometimes-of-overt-displays-of/) [Matt Haig](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matt-haig/) > [“That is one of the patterns: when nothing is happening, nothing continues to happen, but after a while the lull becomes too much and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matt-haig/that-is-one-of-the-patterns-when-nothing-is-happening-nothing/) [Matt Haig](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matt-haig/) > [The single biggest act of bravery or madness anyone can do is the act of change.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matt-haig/the-single-biggest-act-of-bravery-or-madness-anyone-can-do-is-the-act/) [Matt Haig](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matt-haig/) > [For me, as a writer, I desperately want to be read. I'm very conscious of readers as I'm writing. I think, 'If you write…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matt-haig/for-me-as-a-writer-i-desperately-want-to-be-read-i-m-very-conscious/) [Matt Haig](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matt-haig/) > [“It’s not you. It’s them. (No, really. It is.)”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matt-haig/it-s-not-you-it-s-them-no-really-it-is/) [Matt Haig](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matt-haig/) > [“We are all so weird that, really, none of us are. There are seven billion versions of strange on this freak wonder of a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matt-haig/we-are-all-so-weird-that-really-none-of-us-are-there-are-seven/) [Matt Haig](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matt-haig/) > [“Sa asculti muzica, mi-am dat eu seama, nu era altceva decat placerea de a numara fara sa iti dai seama ca numeri.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matt-haig/sa-asculti-muzica-mi-am-dat-eu-seama-nu-era-altceva-decat-placerea-de/) [Matt Haig](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matt-haig/) > [“Beauty--be not caused," said Emily Dickinson. "It is." In one way she was wrong. The scattering of light over a long distance creates a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matt-haig/beauty-be-not-caused-said-emily-dickinson-it-is-in-one-way-she-was/) [Matt Haig](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matt-haig/) > [I'm a firm believer in the connection between the body and the mind: feed one, feed both. I like to run, but only short…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matt-haig/i-m-a-firm-believer-in-the-connection-between-the-body-and-the-mind/) [Matt Haig](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matt-haig/) > [Look at the sky; remind yourself of the cosmos. Seek vastness at every opportunity in order to see the smallness of yourself.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matt-haig/look-at-the-sky-remind-yourself-of-the-cosmos-seek-vastness-at-every/) [Matt Haig](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matt-haig/) > [A book is a map. There will be times in your life when you will feel lost and confused. The way back to yourself…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matt-haig/a-book-is-a-map-there-will-be-times-in-your-life-when-you-will-feel/) [Matt Haig](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matt-haig/) [Explore all 294 Matt Haig quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matt-haig/) ## 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](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/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](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/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": "“Whenever I see someone reading a book, especially if it is someone I don't expect, I feel civilisation has become a little safer.”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Matt Haig" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matt-haig/whenever-i-see-someone-reading-a-book-especially-if-it-is-someone-i/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Books" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matt-haig/whenever-i-see-someone-reading-a-book-especially-if-it-is-someone-i/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/105/matt-haig-1036_books_whenever-i-see-someone-reading-a-book-es_2899210.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/105/matt-haig-1036_books_whenever-i-see-someone-reading-a-book-es_2899210.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/105/matt-haig-1036_books_whenever-i-see-someone-reading-a-book-es_2899210.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Whenever I see someone reading a book, especially if it is someone I don't expect, I feel civilisation has…” — Matt Haig", "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": "Matt Haig", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matt-haig/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "“Whenever I see someone reading a...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matt-haig/whenever-i-see-someone-reading-a-book-especially-if-it-is-someone-i/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matt-haig/whenever-i-see-someone-reading-a-book-especially-if-it-is-someone-i/#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 } } ] } ```