--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: It should be possible to exist with only…" description: "\"“It should be possible to exist with only a short shelf of books, to read and give away. After all - we may not open a book, once read, for ten years o..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/016/pam-brown-9219_book_it-should-be-possible-to-exist-with-only_905390.png" --- # It should be possible to exist with only a short shelf of… ![“It should be possible to exist with only a short shelf of books, to read and give away. After all - we may not open a book, once read, for ten years or more. But the act of reading has made it part of us - to relinquish it would be to lose an extension of our being.” quote by Pam Brown](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/016/pam-brown-9219_book_it-should-be-possible-to-exist-with-only_905390.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/016/pam-brown-9219_book_it-should-be-possible-to-exist-with-only_905390.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/016/pam-brown-9219_book_it-should-be-possible-to-exist-with-only_905390.png) > ““It should be possible to exist with only a short shelf of books, to read and give away. After all - we may not open a book, once read, for ten years or more. But the act of reading has made it part of us - to relinquish it would be to lose an extension of our being.”” [Pam Brown](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pam-brown/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Reading integrates books into our identity; giving them away feels like losing part of ourselves. **In simple terms:** Books become part of us; giving them away feels like losing part of Key Takeaway Reflect on how reading shapes you. Themes identity literature attachment Mood nostalgic contemplative Type philosophical personal When to use this quote - personal libraries - gift exchanges - donating books - archiving reading Key Concepts Selfhood materialism memory Questions to Reflect On - Do you feel a personal loss when part a book? - How does sharing books affect your connection to them? A Different Perspective Some may argue that physical books are replaceable by digital copies. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Book](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/book/) [Books](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/books/) [Giving](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/giving/) [Open book](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/open-book/) [Reading](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/reading/) [Writer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writer/) ## Related quotes > [We each exist for but a short time, and in that time explore but a small part of the whole universe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-hawking/we-each-exist-for-but-a-short-time-and-in-that-time-explore-but-a/) [Stephen Hawking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-hawking/) > [“there is a short shelf life on inspiration without action.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/liz-wiseman/there-is-a-short-shelf-life-on-inspiration-without-action/) [Liz Wiseman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/liz-wiseman/) > [“Each of us will make his own shelf of books. The book for me is the book that delights, attracts, soothes, or uplifts me.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maurice-francis-egan/each-of-us-will-make-his-own-shelf-of-books-the-book-for-me-is-the/) [Maurice Francis Egan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maurice-francis-egan/) > [There were two sets of double doors leading out of the antechamber, one marked STACKS and the other TOMES. Not knowing the difference between…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patrick-rothfuss/there-were-two-sets-of-double-doors-leading-out-of-the-antechamber/) [Patrick Rothfuss](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patrick-rothfuss/) > [ “\[I\] threw open the door to find Rob sit­ting on the low stool in front of my book­case, sur­round­ed by card­board box­es. He was… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/annie-barrows/i-threw-open-the-door-to-find-rob-sit-ting-on-the-low-stool-in-front/) [Annie Barrows](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/annie-barrows/) > [You are a shelf of books without the pages.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gabrielle-aplin/you-are-a-shelf-of-books-without-the-pages/) [Gabrielle Aplin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gabrielle-aplin/) > [An aging writer has the not insignificant satisfaction of a shelf of books behind him that, as they wait for their ideal readers to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-updike/an-aging-writer-has-the-not-insignificant-satisfaction-of-a-shelf-of/) [John Updike](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-updike/) > [One could get a first-class education from a shelf of books five feet long.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-william-eliot/one-could-get-a-first-class-education-from-a-shelf-of-books-five-feet/) [Charles William Eliot](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-william-eliot/) > [“Consider me an open book" dev said. "Mi casa es su casa." Dev crinkled his nose and smelled the air. "Err, mi nose es…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennifer-lynn-barnes/consider-me-an-open-book-dev-said-mi-casa-es-su-casa-dev-crinkled-his/) [Jennifer Lynn Barnes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jennifer-lynn-barnes/) > [“I prop my guitar up against the nightstand. Then I turn toward the bed and fall into it face first. The mattress is soft…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emma-chase/i-prop-my-guitar-up-against-the-nightstand-then-i-turn-toward-the-bed/) [Emma Chase](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emma-chase/) > [“When you open a book, you open the mind of the author. Someone needs to tell all womens to stop looking for what doesn't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/teni-a/when-you-open-a-book-you-open-the-mind-of-the-author-someone-needs-to/) [Teni. A](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/teni-a/) > [My story's been an open book for a long time, no pun intended.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jay-williams/my-story-s-been-an-open-book-for-a-long-time-no-pun-intended/) [Jay Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jay-williams/) > [A breeze discovered my open book And began to flutter the leaves to look](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/a-breeze-discovered-my-open-book-and-began-to-flutter-the-leaves-to/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [I'm pretty much an open book. I am a fanatic golfer and golf nut. If I have three free hours any day, my first…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-friedman/i-m-pretty-much-an-open-book-i-am-a-fanatic-golfer-and-golf-nut-if-i/) [Thomas Friedman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-friedman/) > [My life is an open book. With illustrations.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hugh-hefner/my-life-is-an-open-book-with-illustrations/) [Hugh Hefner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hugh-hefner/) ## More by Pam Brown > [The child who ran weeping to you with a cut finger is now brought home, smiling gamely, with a broken collarbone and incredible contusions-…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pam-brown/the-child-who-ran-weeping-to-you-with-a-cut-finger-is-now-brought/) [Pam Brown](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pam-brown/) > [Many a cat can only be lured in by switching off all the lights and keeping very still. Until the indignant cry of a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pam-brown/many-a-cat-can-only-be-lured-in-by-switching-off-all-the-lights-and/) [Pam Brown](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pam-brown/) > [In a world gone bad, a bear - even a bear standing on its head - is a comforting, uncomplicated, dependable hunk of sanity.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pam-brown/in-a-world-gone-bad-a-bear-even-a-bear-standing-on-its-head-is-a/) [Pam Brown](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pam-brown/) > [However time or circumstances may come between mother and her child, their lives are interwoven forever.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pam-brown/however-time-or-circumstances-may-come-between-mother-and-her-child/) [Pam Brown](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pam-brown/) > [Friendship can weather most things and thrive in thin soil - but it needs a little mulch of letters and phone calls and small…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pam-brown/friendship-can-weather-most-things-and-thrive-in-thin-soil-but-it/) [Pam Brown](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pam-brown/) > [A cat likes to hear you calling him. He sits in a bush a yard from your shoes - and listens.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pam-brown/a-cat-likes-to-hear-you-calling-him-he-sits-in-a-bush-a-yard-from/) [Pam Brown](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pam-brown/) > [Brooks too wide for our leaping, hedges far to high. Loads too heavy for our moving, burdens too cumbersome for us to bear. Distances…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pam-brown/brooks-too-wide-for-our-leaping-hedges-far-to-high-loads-too-heavy/) [Pam Brown](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pam-brown/) > [The trouble with sharing one's bed with cats is that they'd rather sleep on you than beside you.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pam-brown/the-trouble-with-sharing-one-s-bed-with-cats-is-that-they-d-rather/) [Pam Brown](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pam-brown/) > [You are asleep. Deep, deep asleep - and then the world caves in. The cat has leapt from the top window onto your stomach.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pam-brown/you-are-asleep-deep-deep-asleep-and-then-the-world-caves-in-the-cat/) [Pam Brown](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pam-brown/) > [Cats can work out mathematically the exact place to sit that will cause most inconvenience.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pam-brown/cats-can-work-out-mathematically-the-exact-place-to-sit-that-will/) [Pam Brown](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pam-brown/) > [When sisters stand shoulder to shoulder, who stands a chance against us?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pam-brown/when-sisters-stand-shoulder-to-shoulder-who-stands-a-chance-against-us/) [Pam Brown](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pam-brown/) > [If there is a heaven, it's certain our animals are to be there. Their lives become so interwoven with our own, it would take…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pam-brown/if-there-is-a-heaven-it-s-certain-our-animals-are-to-be-there-their/) [Pam Brown](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pam-brown/) > [The child who ran weeping to you with a cut finger is now brought home, smiling gamely, with a broken collar bone and incredible…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pam-brown/the-child-who-ran-weeping-to-you-with-a-cut-finger-is-now-brought-2/) [Pam Brown](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pam-brown/) > [From serenity comes gentleness, comes lasting strength.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pam-brown/from-serenity-comes-gentleness-comes-lasting-strength/) [Pam Brown](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pam-brown/) > [We expect too much at Christmas. It's got to be magical. It's got to go right. Feasting. Fun. The perfect present. All that anticipation.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pam-brown/we-expect-too-much-at-christmas-it-s-got-to-be-magical-it-s-got-to-go/) [Pam Brown](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pam-brown/) [Explore all 74 Pam Brown quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pam-brown/) ## More Book 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/) > [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/) > [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/) > [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/) > [I don't think I have made as much of my life as I should have. I should have written more books.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-m-schlesinger-jr/i-don-t-think-i-have-made-as-much-of-my-life-as-i-should-have-i/) [Arthur M. Schlesinger, Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-m-schlesinger-jr/) > [Some books are not read in the right way because they have skipped a stage of opinion, assume a crystallization of information in society…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/doris-lessing/some-books-are-not-read-in-the-right-way-because-they-have-skipped-a/) [Doris Lessing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/doris-lessing/) > [“People talk about books that write themselves, and it's a lie. Books don't write themselves. It takes thought and research and a backache and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-gaiman/people-talk-about-books-that-write-themselves-and-it-s-a-lie-books/) [Neil Gaiman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-gaiman/) > [There are great books in this world and great worlds in books.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-bronte/there-are-great-books-in-this-world-and-great-worlds-in-books/) [Anne Bronte](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-bronte/) > [The purpose of this book is to supply, in the form suitable for laymen, guidance in the adoption and execution of an investment policy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benjamin-graham/the-purpose-of-this-book-is-to-supply-in-the-form-suitable-for-laymen/) [Benjamin Graham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benjamin-graham/) > [But I think that of all the literature that I studied, the book that did more than any other to fire my enthusiasm was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kwame-nkrumah/but-i-think-that-of-all-the-literature-that-i-studied-the-book-that/) [Kwame Nkrumah](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kwame-nkrumah/) > [It's amazing to see things that are suggested in the book fully developed and so brilliantly realized through the artistry of the designers.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/suzanne-collins/it-s-amazing-to-see-things-that-are-suggested-in-the-book-fully/) [Suzanne Collins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/suzanne-collins/) > [“But I’ve developed a great reputation for wisdom by ordering more books than I ever had time to read, and reading more books, by…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marilynne-robinson/but-i-ve-developed-a-great-reputation-for-wisdom-by-ordering-more/) [Marilynne Robinson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marilynne-robinson/) [Browse all 29,378 Book quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/book/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“It should be possible to exist with only a short shelf of books, to read and give away. After all - we may not open a book, once read, for ten years or more. But the act of reading has made it part of us - to relinquish it would be to lose an extension of our being.”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Pam Brown" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pam-brown/it-should-be-possible-to-exist-with-only-a-short-shelf-of-books-to/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Book" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pam-brown/it-should-be-possible-to-exist-with-only-a-short-shelf-of-books-to/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/016/pam-brown-9219_book_it-should-be-possible-to-exist-with-only_905390.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/016/pam-brown-9219_book_it-should-be-possible-to-exist-with-only_905390.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/016/pam-brown-9219_book_it-should-be-possible-to-exist-with-only_905390.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“It should be possible to exist with only a short shelf of books, to read and give away. After all - we may…” — Pam Brown", "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": "Pam Brown", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pam-brown/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "“It should be possible to exist...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pam-brown/it-should-be-possible-to-exist-with-only-a-short-shelf-of-books-to/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pam-brown/it-should-be-possible-to-exist-with-only-a-short-shelf-of-books-to/#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 } } ] } ```