--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I’m completely library educated. I’ve…" description: "\"“I’m completely library educated. I’ve never been to college. I went down to the library when I was in grade school in Waukegan, and in high school in ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/548/ray-bradbury-75_books_i-m-completely-library-educated-i-ve-nev_1776584.jpg" --- # I’m completely library educated. I’ve never been to… ![“I’m completely library educated. I’ve never been to college. I went down to the library when I was in grade school in Waukegan, and in high school in Los Angeles, and spent long days every summer in the library. I used to steal magazines from a store on Genesee Street, in Waukegan, and read them…” quote by Ray Bradbury](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/548/ray-bradbury-75_books_i-m-completely-library-educated-i-ve-nev_1776584.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/548/ray-bradbury-75_books_i-m-completely-library-educated-i-ve-nev_1776584.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/548/ray-bradbury-75_books_i-m-completely-library-educated-i-ve-nev_1776584.jpg) > ““I’m completely library educated. I’ve never been to college. I went down to the library when I was in grade school in Waukegan, and in high school in Los Angeles, and spent long days every summer in the library. I used to steal magazines from a store on Genesee Street, in Waukegan, and read them and then steal them back on the racks again. That way I took the print off with my eyeballs and stayed honest. I didn’t want to be a permanent thief, and I was very careful to wash my hands before I read them. But with the library, it’s like catnip, I suppose: you begin to run in circles because there’s so much to look at and read. And it’s far more fun than going to school, simply because you make up your own list and you don’t have to listen to anyone. When I would see some of the books my kids were forced to bring home and read by some of their teachers, and were graded on—well, what if you don’t like those books?”” [Ray Bradbury](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ray-bradbury/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Celebrates self‑directed learning through libraries, contrasting it with formal education and its constraints. **In simple terms:** Loves learning from libraries over school. Key Takeaway Pursue knowledge that excites you. Themes learning libraries self‑education curiosity Mood enthusiastic nostalgic Type reflection inspirational When to use this quote - personal growth - reading habits - alternative education Key Concepts humanism education theory Questions to Reflect On - What topics would you explore next? - How do you verify information? A Different Perspective Libraries can lack structured guidance. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Books](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/books/) [High school](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/high-school/) [Libraries](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/libraries/) [Library](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/library/) [Library Educated](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/library-educated-1825533/) [Library Grade](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/library-grade-1825535/) [Library Used](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/library-used-1785138/) [Long Days](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/long-days/) [Los angeles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/los-angeles/) [Waukegan Read](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/waukegan-read-1825534/) [Went Library](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/went-library-788092/) [Writer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writer/) ## Related quotes > [“I’m completely library educated. I’ve never been to college. 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I went to find me in the library.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ray-bradbury/i-discovered-me-in-the-library-i-went-to-find-me-in-the-library/) [Ray Bradbury](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ray-bradbury/) > [I never went to college, so I went to the library.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ray-bradbury/i-never-went-to-college-so-i-went-to-the-library/) [Ray Bradbury](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ray-bradbury/) > [When I graduated from high school I couldn't go to college, so I went to the library 3 days a week for 10 years.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ray-bradbury/when-i-graduated-from-high-school-i-couldn-t-go-to-college-so-i-went/) [Ray Bradbury](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ray-bradbury/) > [“This is incredible. This is quite amazing because who you're honoring tonight is not only myself but the ghost of a lot of your…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ray-bradbury/this-is-incredible-this-is-quite-amazing-because-who-you-re-honoring/) [Ray Bradbury](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ray-bradbury/) > [I am a librarian. I discovered me in the library. I went to find me in the library. Before I fell in love with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ray-bradbury/i-am-a-librarian-i-discovered-me-in-the-library-i-went-to-find-me-in/) [Ray Bradbury](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ray-bradbury/) > [“I was only twelve. But I knew how much I loved her. It was that love that comes before all significance of body and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ray-bradbury/i-was-only-twelve-but-i-knew-how-much-i-loved-her-it-was-that-love/) [Ray Bradbury](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ray-bradbury/) > [I was one of Them: the Strange Ones. The Funny People. The Odd Tribes of autograph collectors and photographers. 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Twenge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-m-twenge/) > [“After breakfast, I parted ways with Colin even though he was all about us going for a run or something—and who in the hell…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennifer-l-armentrout/after-breakfast-i-parted-ways-with-colin-even-though-he-was-all-about/) [Jennifer L. Armentrout](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jennifer-l-armentrout/) ## More by Ray Bradbury > [That's the great secret of creativity. You treat ideas like cats: you make them follow you.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ray-bradbury/that-s-the-great-secret-of-creativity-you-treat-ideas-like-cats-you/) [Ray Bradbury](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ray-bradbury/) > [You feed yourself. Make sure you have all the information, whether it's aesthetic, scientific, mathematical, I don't care what it is. Then you walk…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ray-bradbury/you-feed-yourself-make-sure-you-have-all-the-information-whether-it-s/) [Ray Bradbury](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ray-bradbury/) > [Do you ever read any of the books you burn?" He laughed. "That's against the law!" "Oh. Of course.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ray-bradbury/do-you-ever-read-any-of-the-books-you-burn-he-laughed-that-s-against/) [Ray Bradbury](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ray-bradbury/) > [There's no reason to burn books if you don't read them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ray-bradbury/there-s-no-reason-to-burn-books-if-you-don-t-read-them/) [Ray Bradbury](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ray-bradbury/) > [We were put here as witnesses to the miracle of life. We see the stars, and we want them. 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It’s a very bad place for writers because the teachers always think they know more than you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ray-bradbury/you-can-t-learn-to-write-in-college-it-s-a-very-bad-place-for-writers/) [Ray Bradbury](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ray-bradbury/) > [We're going to become the martians when we land there. When we explore and build communities, we become the martians. That's a wonderful destiny…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ray-bradbury/we-re-going-to-become-the-martians-when-we-land-there-when-we-explore/) [Ray Bradbury](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ray-bradbury/) > [I wish you a wrestling match with your Creative Muse that will last a lifetime. ... I wish craziness and foolishness and madness upon…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ray-bradbury/i-wish-you-a-wrestling-match-with-your-creative-muse-that-will-last-a/) [Ray Bradbury](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ray-bradbury/) > [The library is the biggest cracker box factory in the world. The more you eat, the more you want.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ray-bradbury/the-library-is-the-biggest-cracker-box-factory-in-the-world-the-more/) [Ray Bradbury](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ray-bradbury/) > [We travel for romance, we travel for architecture, and we travel to be lost.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ray-bradbury/we-travel-for-romance-we-travel-for-architecture-and-we-travel-to-be/) [Ray Bradbury](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ray-bradbury/) > [I spent three days a week for 10 years educating myself in the public library, and it's better than college. People should educate themselves…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ray-bradbury/i-spent-three-days-a-week-for-10-years-educating-myself-in-the-public/) [Ray Bradbury](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ray-bradbury/) > [If we try to deny the darkness in our souls then we'll become completely dark.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ray-bradbury/if-we-try-to-deny-the-darkness-in-our-souls-then-we-ll-become/) [Ray Bradbury](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ray-bradbury/) > [But remember that the Captain belongs to the most dangerous enemy to truth and freedom, the solid unmoving cattle of the majority](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ray-bradbury/but-remember-that-the-captain-belongs-to-the-most-dangerous-enemy-to/) [Ray Bradbury](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ray-bradbury/) [Explore all 1,520 Ray Bradbury quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ray-bradbury/) ## 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! 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That way I took the print off with my eyeballs and stayed honest. I didn’t want to be a permanent thief, and I was very careful to wash my hands before I read them. But with the library, it’s like catnip, I suppose: you begin to run in circles because there’s so much to look at and read. And it’s far more fun than going to school, simply because you make up your own list and you don’t have to listen to anyone. 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