--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Reading good books is like engaging in…" description: "\"“Reading good books is like engaging in conversation with the most cultivated minds of past centuries who had composed them, or rather, taking part in ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/bc4/ren-descartes-1376_books_reading-good-books-is-like-engaging-in-c_1780596.jpg" --- # Reading good books is like engaging in conversation with… ![“Reading good books is like engaging in conversation with the most cultivated minds of past centuries who had composed them, or rather, taking part in a well-conducted dialogue in which such minds reveal to us only the best of their thoughts.” quote by René Descartes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/bc4/ren-descartes-1376_books_reading-good-books-is-like-engaging-in-c_1780596.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/bc4/ren-descartes-1376_books_reading-good-books-is-like-engaging-in-c_1780596.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/bc4/ren-descartes-1376_books_reading-good-books-is-like-engaging-in-c_1780596.jpg) > ““Reading good books is like engaging in conversation with the most cultivated minds of past centuries who had composed them, or rather, taking part in a well-conducted dialogue in which such minds reveal to us only the best of their thoughts.”” [René Descartes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ren-descartes/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Reading great books lets us converse with the finest minds of history, absorbing their best ideas. **In simple terms:** Books are conversations with great thinkers. Key Takeaway Read to learn from the best. Themes knowledge conversation history Mood reflective inquisitive Type educational inspirational When to use this quote - academic study - personal growth - creative writing Key Concepts philosophy literature dialogue Questions to Reflect On - How does dialogue with past thinkers shape your views? - What questions arise when you engage with classic texts? A Different Perspective Ideas may be outdated or biased; critical thinking required. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Books](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/books/) [Communication](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/communication/) [Conversation Cultivated](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/conversation-cultivated-1859161/) [Cultivated Minds](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/cultivated-minds-1859162/) [Dialogue](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/dialogue/) [Good book](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/good-book/) [Good books](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/good-books/) [Reading](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/reading/) [Reading Good](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/reading-good/) [Reading good books](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/reading-good-books/) [Writer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writer/) ## Related quotes > [“Never regret losing time on reading good books”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kowtham-kumar-k/never-regret-losing-time-on-reading-good-books/) [Kowtham Kumar K](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kowtham-kumar-k/) > [“Reading good books gives a few lessons, stable minds, inner intellects, a lesson of life, and a way ahead to fly.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abid-hussain/reading-good-books-gives-a-few-lessons-stable-minds-inner-intellects/) [Abid Hussain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abid-hussain/) > [Reading good books implants good ideas in the mind, develops good aspirations, and leads to the cultivation of good friends.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mas-oyama/reading-good-books-implants-good-ideas-in-the-mind-develops-good/) [Mas Oyama](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mas-oyama/) > [“The reading of all good books is like conversation with the finest men of past centuries.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ren-descartes/the-reading-of-all-good-books-is-like-conversation-with-the-finest/) [René Descartes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ren-descartes/) > [Reading good books ruins you for enjoying bad books.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-ann-shaffer/reading-good-books-ruins-you-for-enjoying-bad-books/) [Mary Ann Shaffer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-ann-shaffer/) > [“How are you coming with your home library? Do you need some good ammunition on why it's so important to read? The last time…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/earl-nightingale/how-are-you-coming-with-your-home-library-do-you-need-some-good/) [Earl Nightingale](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/earl-nightingale/) > [The reading of all good books is indeed like a conversation with the noblest men of past centuries who were the authors of them,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ren-descartes/the-reading-of-all-good-books-is-indeed-like-a-conversation-with-the/) [Rene Descartes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ren-descartes/) > [The art of not reading is a very important one. It consists in not taking an interest in whatever may be engaging the attention…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-schopenhauer/the-art-of-not-reading-is-a-very-important-one-it-consists-in-not/) [Arthur Schopenhauer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-schopenhauer/) > [An acquaintanceship with the literature of the world may be won by any person who will devote half an hour a day to the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-andreas-widtsoe/an-acquaintanceship-with-the-literature-of-the-world-may-be-won-by-2/) [John Andreas Widtsoe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-andreas-widtsoe/) > [Our hope is that the elementary reading of comics will lead to the joy of reading good books.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nelson-mandela/our-hope-is-that-the-elementary-reading-of-comics-will-lead-to-the/) [Nelson Mandela](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nelson-mandela/) > [“Reading good books spoils you for enjoying bad books.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/annie-barrows/reading-good-books-spoils-you-for-enjoying-bad-books/) [Annie Barrows](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/annie-barrows/) > [“An acquaintanceship with the literature of the world may be won by any person who will devote half an hour a day to the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-a-widtsoe/an-acquaintanceship-with-the-literature-of-the-world-may-be-won-by/) [John A. Widtsoe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-a-widtsoe/) > [Doubtless, reading good books benefited me during the months and years of writing, yet I remained skeptical of any tight correlation to what I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-chatterton-williams/doubtless-reading-good-books-benefited-me-during-the-months-and-years/) [Thomas Chatterton Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-chatterton-williams/) > [Between cultivated minds the first interview is the best.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-waldo-emerson/between-cultivated-minds-the-first-interview-is-the-best/) [Ralph Waldo Emerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-waldo-emerson/) > [Happiness, for me, has to be real - life that is made of real conversations, of spending quality time with close friends, walks in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bhumika-chawla/happiness-for-me-has-to-be-real-life-that-is-made-of-real/) [Bhumika Chawla](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bhumika-chawla/) ## More by René Descartes > [“My third maxim was to endeavour always to conquer myself rather than fortune, and change my desires rather than the order of the world,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ren-descartes/my-third-maxim-was-to-endeavour-always-to-conquer-myself-rather-than/) [René Descartes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ren-descartes/) > [Your joy is your sorrow unmasked. And the self-same well from which your laughter rises was often-times filled with your tears.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ren-descartes/your-joy-is-your-sorrow-unmasked-and-the-self-same-well-from-which/) [Rene Descartes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ren-descartes/) > [So blind is the curiosity by which mortals are possessed, that they often conduct their minds along unexplored routes, having no reason to hope…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ren-descartes/so-blind-is-the-curiosity-by-which-mortals-are-possessed-that-they/) [Rene Descartes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ren-descartes/) > [“For to be possessed of a vigorous mind is not enough; the prime requisite is rightly to apply it. The greatest minds, as they…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ren-descartes/for-to-be-possessed-of-a-vigorous-mind-is-not-enough-the-prime/) [René Descartes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ren-descartes/) > [“It is useful to know something of the manners of different nations, that we may be enabled to form a more correct judgment regarding…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ren-descartes/it-is-useful-to-know-something-of-the-manners-of-different-nations/) [René Descartes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ren-descartes/) > [A state is better governed which has few laws, and those laws strictly observed.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ren-descartes/a-state-is-better-governed-which-has-few-laws-and-those-laws-strictly/) [Rene Descartes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ren-descartes/) > [ \[About Pierre de Fermat\] It cannot be denied that he has had many exceptional ideas, and that he is a highly intelligent man. For… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ren-descartes/about-pierre-de-fermat-it-cannot-be-denied-that-he-has-had-many/) [Rene Descartes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ren-descartes/) > [Science is practical philosophy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ren-descartes/science-is-practical-philosophy/) [Rene Descartes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ren-descartes/) > [ “And what more am I? I look for aid to the imagination. \[But how mistakenly!\] I am not that assemblage of limbs we call… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ren-descartes/and-what-more-am-i-i-look-for-aid-to-the-imagination-but-how/) [René Descartes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ren-descartes/) > [“And, in fine, of false sciences I thought I knew the worth sufficiently to escape being deceived by the professions of an alchemist, the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ren-descartes/and-in-fine-of-false-sciences-i-thought-i-knew-the-worth-sufficiently/) [René Descartes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ren-descartes/) > [Nothing is more fairly distributed than common sense: no one thinks he needs more of it than he already has.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ren-descartes/nothing-is-more-fairly-distributed-than-common-sense-no-one-thinks-he/) [Rene Descartes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ren-descartes/) > [If I go for the alternative which is false, then obviously I shall be in error; if I take the other side, then it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ren-descartes/if-i-go-for-the-alternative-which-is-false-then-obviously-i-shall-be/) [Rene Descartes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ren-descartes/) > [Everything is self-evident.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ren-descartes/everything-is-self-evident/) [Rene Descartes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ren-descartes/) > [Neither the true nor the false roots are always real; sometimes they are imaginary; that is, while we can always imagine as many roots…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ren-descartes/neither-the-true-nor-the-false-roots-are-always-real-sometimes-they/) [Rene Descartes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ren-descartes/) > [It is only intelligence that is divided equally between people because everybody thinks he/she is enough wise](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ren-descartes/it-is-only-intelligence-that-is-divided-equally-between-people/) [René Descartes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ren-descartes/) [Explore all 232 René Descartes quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ren-descartes/) ## 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": "“Reading good books is like engaging in conversation with the most cultivated minds of past centuries who had composed them, or rather, taking part in a well-conducted dialogue in which such minds reveal to us only the best of their thoughts.”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "René Descartes" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ren-descartes/reading-good-books-is-like-engaging-in-conversation-with-the-most/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Books" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ren-descartes/reading-good-books-is-like-engaging-in-conversation-with-the-most/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/bc4/ren-descartes-1376_books_reading-good-books-is-like-engaging-in-c_1780596.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/bc4/ren-descartes-1376_books_reading-good-books-is-like-engaging-in-c_1780596.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/bc4/ren-descartes-1376_books_reading-good-books-is-like-engaging-in-c_1780596.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Reading good books is like engaging in conversation with the most cultivated minds of past centuries who had…” — René Descartes", "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": "René Descartes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ren-descartes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "“Reading good books is like engaging...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ren-descartes/reading-good-books-is-like-engaging-in-conversation-with-the-most/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ren-descartes/reading-good-books-is-like-engaging-in-conversation-with-the-most/#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 } } ] } ```