--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: When getting my nose in a book Cured most…" description: "\"“When getting my nose in a book Cured most things short of school, It was worth ruining my eyes To know I could still keep cool, And deal out the old r..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b52/philip-larkin-1822_books_when-getting-my-nose-in-a-book-cured-mos_1652321.jpg" --- # When getting my nose in a book Cured most things short of… ![“When getting my nose in a book Cured most things short of school, It was worth ruining my eyes To know I could still keep cool, And deal out the old right hook To dirty dogs twice my size. Later, with inch-thick specs, Evil was just my lark: Me and my coat and fangs Had ripping times in the dark…” quote by Philip Larkin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b52/philip-larkin-1822_books_when-getting-my-nose-in-a-book-cured-mos_1652321.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b52/philip-larkin-1822_books_when-getting-my-nose-in-a-book-cured-mos_1652321.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b52/philip-larkin-1822_books_when-getting-my-nose-in-a-book-cured-mos_1652321.jpg) > ““When getting my nose in a book Cured most things short of school, It was worth ruining my eyes To know I could still keep cool, And deal out the old right hook To dirty dogs twice my size. Later, with inch-thick specs, Evil was just my lark: Me and my coat and fangs Had ripping times in the dark. The women I clubbed with sex! I broke them up like meringues. Don't read much now: the dude Who lets the girl down before The hero arrives, the chap Who's yellow and keeps the store Seem far too familiar. Get stewed: Books are a load of crap. (A Study Of Reading Habits) ”” [Philip Larkin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-larkin/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The speaker satizes the contradictory effects of reading, both as escapism and as a source of disillusionment, and ultimately dismisses books as burdensome. **In simple terms:** Reading can both help and hurt; the speaker grows cynical about books. Key Takeaway Recognize when reading no longer serves you. Themes literature disillusionment escapism cynicism Mood reflective skeptical Type critical philosophical When to use this quote - personal growth - academic study - mental health - creative writing Key Concepts nihilism selfreflection identitycrisis Questions to Reflect On - Do you still find value in reading? - When does reading become a hindrance? A Different Perspective Books may become oppressive if they replace real experience. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Book Cured](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/book-cured-665937/) [Books](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/books/) [Education](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/education/) [Read Dude](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/read-dude-665938/) [Reading](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/reading/) [Reading habits](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/reading-habits/) [Stewed Books](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/stewed-books-665936/) [Study Reading](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/study-reading-665939/) [Writer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writer/) ## Related quotes > [Get stewed:Books are a load of crap.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-larkin/get-stewed-books-are-a-load-of-crap/) [Philip Larkin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-larkin/) > [“study: The reading of books or examination of other materials to gain knowledge. Page 5.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sean-clouden/study-the-reading-of-books-or-examination-of-other-materials-to-gain/) [Sean Clouden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sean-clouden/) > [“In The Woman Reader Kate Flint argues that "the study of reading...involves examining a fulcrum: the meeting-place of discourses of subjectivity and socialization." Reading…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ann-romines/in-the-woman-reader-kate-flint-argues-that-the-study-of-reading/) [Ann Romines](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ann-romines/) > [“He that loves a book will never want a faithful friend, a wholesome counselor, a cheerful companion, and effectual comforter. By study, by reading,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barrow/he-that-loves-a-book-will-never-want-a-faithful-friend-a-wholesome-2/) [Barrow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barrow/) > [ He that loves a book will never want a \[close\] friend, a wholesome counselor, a cheerful companion, an effectual comforter. By study, by reading,… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/isaac-barrow/he-that-loves-a-book-will-never-want-a-close-friend-a-wholesome/) [Isaac Barrow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/isaac-barrow/) > [He that loveth a book will never want a faithful friend, a wholesome counsellor, a cheerful companion, an effectual comforter. By study, by reading,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/isaac-barrow/he-that-loveth-a-book-will-never-want-a-faithful-friend-a-wholesome/) [Isaac Barrow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/isaac-barrow/) > [“He that loves a book will never want a faithful friend, a wholesome counselor, a cheerful companion, an effectual comforter. By study, by reading,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/he-that-loves-a-book-will-never-want-a-faithful-friend-a-wholesome/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Love of books is the best of all.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jackie-kennedy/love-of-books-is-the-best-of-all/) [Jackie Kennedy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jackie-kennedy/) > [Look at Mann's reading habits, his explicit comments on Nietzsche, and his copy of Birth of Tragedy, and it starts to seem doubtful that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-kitcher/look-at-mann-s-reading-habits-his-explicit-comments-on-nietzsche-and/) [Philip Kitcher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-kitcher/) > [When I look back on my reading habits when I was really young, I was really drawn to stories about strong girls who in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jesmyn-ward/when-i-look-back-on-my-reading-habits-when-i-was-really-young-i-was/) [Jesmyn Ward](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jesmyn-ward/) > [“Reading is like skiing. When done well, when done by an expert, both reading and skiing are graceful, harmonious, activities. When done by a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mortimer-j-adler/reading-is-like-skiing-when-done-well-when-done-by-an-expert-both/) [Mortimer J. Adler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mortimer-j-adler/) > [“My eyes hunger to read more books then time allows me to devour.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jazz-feylynn/my-eyes-hunger-to-read-more-books-then-time-allows-me-to-devour/) [Jazz Feylynn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jazz-feylynn/) > [“I am a passionate reader. New interested books keep adding on my reading list. My wildest dream is to complete reading all the books.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lailah-gifty-akita/i-am-a-passionate-reader-new-interested-books-keep-adding-on-my/) [Lailah Gifty Akita](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lailah-gifty-akita/) > [“A man who does not read miss great wisdom.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lailah-gifty-akita/a-man-who-does-not-read-miss-great-wisdom/) [Lailah Gifty Akita](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lailah-gifty-akita/) > [I hate it when people tell me the end of the story because my mother always read the last page of a novel first…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-hoffman/i-hate-it-when-people-tell-me-the-end-of-the-story-because-my-mother/) [Alice Hoffman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-hoffman/) ## More by Philip Larkin > [Deprivation is for me what daffodils were for Wordsworth.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-larkin/deprivation-is-for-me-what-daffodils-were-for-wordsworth/) [Philip Larkin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-larkin/) > [Only one ship is seeking us, a black-Sailed unfamiliar, towing at her backA huge and birdless silence. In her wakeNo waters breed or break.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-larkin/only-one-ship-is-seeking-us-a-black-sailed-unfamiliar-towing-at-her/) [Philip Larkin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-larkin/) > [And immediately Rather than words comes the thought of high windows: The sun-comprehending glass, And beyond it, the deep blue air, that shows Nothing,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-larkin/and-immediately-rather-than-words-comes-the-thought-of-high-windows/) [Philip Larkin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-larkin/) > [“Living toys are something novel, But it soon wears off somehow.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-larkin/living-toys-are-something-novel-but-it-soon-wears-off-somehow/) [Philip Larkin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-larkin/) > [“Once I am sure there's nothing going on I step inside, letting the door thud shut. 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Something to do with violence A long way back, and wrong rewards, And arrogant eternity.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-larkin/it-never-worked-for-me-something-to-do-with-violence-a-long-way-back/) [Philip Larkin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-larkin/) > [Seriously, I think it is a grave fault in life that so much time is wasted in social matters, because it not only takes…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-larkin/seriously-i-think-it-is-a-grave-fault-in-life-that-so-much-time-is/) [Philip Larkin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-larkin/) > [So many things I had thought forgotten Return to my mind with stranger pain: Like letters that arrive addressed to someone Who left the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-larkin/so-many-things-i-had-thought-forgotten-return-to-my-mind-with/) [Philip Larkin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-larkin/) > [“One of the quainter quirks of life is that we shall never know who dies on the same day as we do ourselves.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-larkin/one-of-the-quainter-quirks-of-life-is-that-we-shall-never-know-who/) [Philip Larkin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-larkin/) > [“I sit in my room like Miss Havisham, about whom I have been reading this week. Better the Dickens you know than the Dickens…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-larkin/i-sit-in-my-room-like-miss-havisham-about-whom-i-have-been-reading/) [Philip Larkin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-larkin/) > [“When I throw back my head and howl People (women mostly) say But you've always done what you want, You always get your way…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-larkin/when-i-throw-back-my-head-and-howl-people-women-mostly-say-but-you-ve/) [Philip Larkin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-larkin/) > [I think a young poet, or an old poet, for that matter, should try to produce something that pleases himself personally, not only when…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-larkin/i-think-a-young-poet-or-an-old-poet-for-that-matter-should-try-to/) [Philip Larkin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-larkin/) > [But superstition, like belief, must die.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-larkin/but-superstition-like-belief-must-die/) [Philip Larkin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-larkin/) > [“Side by side, their faces blurred, The earl and countess lie in stone, Their proper habits vaguely shown As jointed armour, stiffened pleat, And…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-larkin/side-by-side-their-faces-blurred-the-earl-and-countess-lie-in-stone/) [Philip Larkin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-larkin/) [Explore all 206 Philip Larkin quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-larkin/) ## 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": "“When getting my nose in a book Cured most things short of school, It was worth ruining my eyes To know I could still keep cool, And deal out the old right hook To dirty dogs twice my size. Later, with inch-thick specs, Evil was just my lark: Me and my coat and fangs Had ripping times in the dark. The women I clubbed with sex! I broke them up like meringues. Don't read much now: the dude Who lets the girl down before The hero arrives, the chap Who's yellow and keeps the store Seem far too familiar. Get stewed: Books are a load of crap. 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