--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Thou shalt not might' reach the head but…" description: "\"“Thou shalt not might' reach the head but it takes 'Once upon a time' to reach the heart. Also: We need stories so much that we're even willing to read..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f6c/philip-pullman-525_time_thou-shalt-not-might-reach-the-head-but_1307002.png" --- # Thou shalt not might' reach the head but it takes 'Once… ![“Thou shalt not might' reach the head but it takes 'Once upon a time' to reach the heart. Also: We need stories so much that we're even willing to read bad books to get them.” quote by Philip Pullman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f6c/philip-pullman-525_time_thou-shalt-not-might-reach-the-head-but_1307002.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f6c/philip-pullman-525_time_thou-shalt-not-might-reach-the-head-but_1307002.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f6c/philip-pullman-525_time_thou-shalt-not-might-reach-the-head-but_1307002.png) > ““Thou shalt not might' reach the head but it takes 'Once upon a time' to reach the heart. Also: We need stories so much that we're even willing to read bad books to get them.”” [Philip Pullman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-pullman/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Stories must reach the heart, not just the mind; even poor books are read for their narrative power. **In simple terms:** Stories need emotional connection; bad books still matter. Key Takeaway Seek narratives that move you emotionally. Themes literature storytelling emotion value Mood contemplative inspired Type literary psychological When to use this quote - choosing books - creative writing - literary criticism Key Concepts narrative theory aesthetic judgment psychology of reading Questions to Reflect On - When is a “bad” book worth reading? - How do stories shape our emotions? A Different Perspective Not all stories are equally beneficial; quality varies. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Time](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/time/) ## Related quotes > [There's a hunger for stories in all of us, adults too. We need stories so much that we're even willing to read bad books…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-pullman/there-s-a-hunger-for-stories-in-all-of-us-adults-too-we-need-stories/) [Philip Pullman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-pullman/) > [Thou shalt not' might reach the head, but it takes 'Once upon a time' to reach the heart.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-pullman/thou-shalt-not-might-reach-the-head-but-it-takes-once-upon-a-time-to-2/) [Philip Pullman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-pullman/) > [I have advice for people - period - who are in unhealthy relationships: Follow your heart. It will get you to where you need…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erykah-badu/i-have-advice-for-people-period-who-are-in-unhealthy-relationships/) [Erykah Badu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erykah-badu/) > [“I DID my life - one thing to do after another, always something else to do. Because you don't need a heart to DO,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patti-callahan-henry/i-did-my-life-one-thing-to-do-after-another-always-something-else-to/) [Patti Callahan Henry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patti-callahan-henry/) > [“If we listen with the heart, we do not need ears.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sir-kristian-goldmund-aumann/if-we-listen-with-the-heart-we-do-not-need-ears/) sir kristian goldmund aumann > [I need u like a melody need u like a heart need a a a beat because boy I can't live without you I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/courtneyhood/i-need-u-like-a-melody-need-u-like-a-heart-need-a-a-a-beat-because/) Courtneyhood > [You should gather in your heart the need for people and the dispensing with them. You may have the need for people through showing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zahid-abas/you-should-gather-in-your-heart-the-need-for-people-and-the/) [Zahid Abas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zahid-abas/) > [“This is the heart I need. And if I have this - and a little schmaltz - I dont need anything else in the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-clayton/this-is-the-heart-i-need-and-if-i-have-this-and-a-little-schmaltz-i/) [Alice Clayton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-clayton/) > [I put so much online, and my heart is the only thing I don't wanna - my heart, I need to myself.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bretman-rock/i-put-so-much-online-and-my-heart-is-the-only-thing-i-don-t-wanna-my/) [Bretman Rock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bretman-rock/) > [To live this life, I need a heartbeat... To have a heartbeat, I need a heart... To have a heart, I need happiness... To…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/to-live-this-life-i-need-a-heartbeat-to-have-a-heartbeat-i-need-a/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Listen to the compass of your heart. All you need lies within you.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-anne-radmacher/listen-to-the-compass-of-your-heart-all-you-need-lies-within-you/) [Mary Anne Radmacher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-anne-radmacher/) > [ We need heart. We need a lot of things. But you have to have some basic ability. And sadly, she \[Hillary Clinton\] doesn't have… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donald-trump/we-need-heart-we-need-a-lot-of-things-but-you-have-to-have-some-basic/) [Donald Trump](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donald-trump/) > [For anyone to open their heart, they need the right atmosphere, and something to prompt them. For my mother it was her trip abroad:…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jung-chang/for-anyone-to-open-their-heart-they-need-the-right-atmosphere-and/) [Jung Chang](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jung-chang/) > [“The greatest gift you can open is your heart to someone in need.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matshona-dhliwayo/the-greatest-gift-you-can-open-is-your-heart-to-someone-in-need/) [Matshona Dhliwayo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matshona-dhliwayo/) > [Those who keep Jesus in their heart will never need to look far when they need him.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-gabriel/those-who-keep-jesus-in-their-heart-will-never-need-to-look-far-when/) [John Gabriel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-gabriel/) ## More by Philip Pullman > [The state of mind which I put myself when I tell a story is one in which superstition flourishes very easily. And I welcome…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-pullman/the-state-of-mind-which-i-put-myself-when-i-tell-a-story-is-one-in/) [Philip Pullman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-pullman/) > [Religion grants its adherents malign, intoxicating and morally corrosive sensations. Destroying intellectual freedom is always evil, but only religion makes doing evil feel quite…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-pullman/religion-grants-its-adherents-malign-intoxicating-and-morally/) [Philip Pullman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-pullman/) > [We don't need lists of rights and wrongs, tables of do's and don'ts: we need books, time, and silence. Thou shalt not is soon…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-pullman/we-don-t-need-lists-of-rights-and-wrongs-tables-of-do-s-and-don-ts-we/) [Philip Pullman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-pullman/) > [I have stolen ideas from every book I have ever read.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-pullman/i-have-stolen-ideas-from-every-book-i-have-ever-read/) [Philip Pullman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-pullman/) > [All the stories of the Bible that I know came to me first from my grandfather's lips... He would see stories in everything. He…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-pullman/all-the-stories-of-the-bible-that-i-know-came-to-me-first-from-my/) [Philip Pullman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-pullman/) > [What I do say is that I can write verse, and that the writing of verse in strict form is the best possible training…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-pullman/what-i-do-say-is-that-i-can-write-verse-and-that-the-writing-of-verse/) [Philip Pullman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-pullman/) > [Writing is tyranny ... but reading is democracy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-pullman/writing-is-tyranny-but-reading-is-democracy/) [Philip Pullman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-pullman/) > [“Middlemarch is a novel that is diminished by being put on the screen. It can't help but be, because so much of what we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-pullman/middlemarch-is-a-novel-that-is-diminished-by-being-put-on-the-screen/) [Philip Pullman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-pullman/) > [I have maintained a passionate interest in education, which leads me occasionally to make foolish and ill-considered remarks alleging that not everything is well…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-pullman/i-have-maintained-a-passionate-interest-in-education-which-leads-me/) [Philip Pullman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-pullman/) > [And think what worrying does: has anyone ever added a single hour to the length of his life by worrying about it?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-pullman/and-think-what-worrying-does-has-anyone-ever-added-a-single-hour-to/) [Philip Pullman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-pullman/) > [“The question authors get asked more than any other is "Where do you get your ideas from?" And we all find a way of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-pullman/the-question-authors-get-asked-more-than-any-other-is-where-do-you/) [Philip Pullman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-pullman/) > [“We are all subject to the fates. But we must all act as if we are not,” said the witch, “or die of despair.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-pullman/we-are-all-subject-to-the-fates-but-we-must-all-act-as-if-we-are-not/) [Philip Pullman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-pullman/) > [Lonely? I don't know. They tell me this is cold. I don't know what cold is, because I don't freeze. So I don't know…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-pullman/lonely-i-don-t-know-they-tell-me-this-is-cold-i-don-t-know-what-cold/) [Philip Pullman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-pullman/) > [Just finished 'Secrecy' - truly enthralling both as a love story and as a tale of suspense - but much more than both.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-pullman/just-finished-secrecy-truly-enthralling-both-as-a-love-story-and-as-a/) [Philip Pullman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-pullman/) > [“As Auden is believed to have said, no poem saved a single Jew from the gas chambers. Never mind. Write the poems anyway. Play…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-pullman/as-auden-is-believed-to-have-said-no-poem-saved-a-single-jew-from-the/) [Philip Pullman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-pullman/) [Explore all 479 Philip Pullman quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-pullman/) ## More Time quotes > ['Mad TV' is one of my most favorite shows of all time and is a huge part of my obsession with sketch comedy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shane-dawson/mad-tv-is-one-of-my-most-favorite-shows-of-all-time-and-is-a-huge/) [Shane Dawson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shane-dawson/) > [These joys were so trifling as to be as imperceptible as grains of gold among the sand, and in moments of depression she saw…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leo-tolstoy/these-joys-were-so-trifling-as-to-be-as-imperceptible-as-grains-of/) [Leo Tolstoy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leo-tolstoy/) > [“William didn't look like he'd be difficult about anything - he was thin and sandy-haired and already wore eyeglasses like his father. Most of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patricia-c-wrede/william-didn-t-look-like-he-d-be-difficult-about-anything-he-was-thin/) [Patricia C. Wrede](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patricia-c-wrede/) > [Intel has a very complete process that I go through any time I want to sell that ensures I have no insider information.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brian-krzanich/intel-has-a-very-complete-process-that-i-go-through-any-time-i-want/) [Brian Krzanich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brian-krzanich/) > [The man who can master his time can master nearly anything.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/winston-churchill/the-man-who-can-master-his-time-can-master-nearly-anything/) [Winston Churchill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/winston-churchill/) > [I feel like the future is unwritten. So many of the things that we write now haven't been about educating people on the environment,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-flansburgh/i-feel-like-the-future-is-unwritten-so-many-of-the-things-that-we/) [John Flansburgh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-flansburgh/) > [You'll seldom experience regret for anything that you've done. It is what you haven't done that will torment you. The message, therefore, is clear.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/you-ll-seldom-experience-regret-for-anything-that-you-ve-done-it-is/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [When you do things they're absolutely right at that time for you and it can always teach you something about yourself. You can take…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kym-marsh/when-you-do-things-they-re-absolutely-right-at-that-time-for-you-and/) [Kym Marsh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kym-marsh/) > [Resist discouragement by speaking His Word over your future. Keep standing. Keep hoping; keep believing because He is working behind the scenes. He's going…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joel-osteen/resist-discouragement-by-speaking-his-word-over-your-future-keep/) [Joel Osteen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joel-osteen/) > [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/) > [Me.. I have been through a lot, but I still manage to have a smile on my face. Im not worried about the past…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/me-i-have-been-through-a-lot-but-i-still-manage-to-have-a-smile-on-my/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“The future is only an indifferent void no one cares about, but the past is filled with life, and its countenance is irritating, repellent,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/milan-kundera/the-future-is-only-an-indifferent-void-no-one-cares-about-but-the/) [Milan Kundera](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/milan-kundera/) > [“Conception is the beginning of human life. From the time that an ovum is fertilized a new life begins that is neither that of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/declaration-on-procured-abortion-congregation-for-the-doctrine-of-the-faith-1974/conception-is-the-beginning-of-human-life-from-the-time-that-an-ovum/) Declaration on Procured Abortion Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith 1974 > [“You put together two things that have not been put together before. And the world is changed. People may not notice at the time,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julian-barnes/you-put-together-two-things-that-have-not-been-put-together-before/) [Julian Barnes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julian-barnes/) > [“It was about damn time something happened.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lev-grossman/it-was-about-damn-time-something-happened/) [Lev Grossman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lev-grossman/) [Browse all 215,255 Time quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/time/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“Thou shalt not might' reach the head but it takes 'Once upon a time' to reach the heart. Also: We need stories so much that we're even willing to read bad books to get them.”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Philip Pullman" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-pullman/thou-shalt-not-might-reach-the-head-but-it-takes-once-upon-a-time-to/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Time" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-pullman/thou-shalt-not-might-reach-the-head-but-it-takes-once-upon-a-time-to/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f6c/philip-pullman-525_time_thou-shalt-not-might-reach-the-head-but_1307002.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f6c/philip-pullman-525_time_thou-shalt-not-might-reach-the-head-but_1307002.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f6c/philip-pullman-525_time_thou-shalt-not-might-reach-the-head-but_1307002.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Thou shalt not might' reach the head but it takes 'Once upon a time' to reach the heart. Also: We need…” — Philip Pullman", "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": "Philip Pullman", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-pullman/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "“Thou shalt not might' reach the...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-pullman/thou-shalt-not-might-reach-the-head-but-it-takes-once-upon-a-time-to/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-pullman/thou-shalt-not-might-reach-the-head-but-it-takes-once-upon-a-time-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 } } ] } ```