--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: People are like books, unknown until they…" description: "\"People are like books, unknown until they are opened.\" — Richard Paul Evans" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d48/richard-paul-evans-1002_book_people-are-like-books-unknown-until-they_2799971.png" --- # People are like books, unknown until they are opened. ![“People are like books, unknown until they are opened.” quote by Richard Paul Evans](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d48/richard-paul-evans-1002_book_people-are-like-books-unknown-until-they_2799971.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d48/richard-paul-evans-1002_book_people-are-like-books-unknown-until-they_2799971.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d48/richard-paul-evans-1002_book_people-are-like-books-unknown-until-they_2799971.png) > “People are like books, unknown until they are opened.” [Richard Paul Evans](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-paul-evans/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. People remain mysterious until they share their stories, revealing their true selves. **In simple terms:** People are unknown until opened. Key Takeaway Encourage open conversation. Themes relationships discovery storytelling Mood reflective hopeful Type motivational inspirational When to use this quote - friendship - therapy - leadership Key Concepts personal growth empathy Questions to Reflect On - What stories are you withholding? - How can you create safe spaces? A Different Perspective People may resist opening up. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Book](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/book/) [Books](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/books/) [Books Unknown](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/books-unknown-3442697/) [Humanity](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/humanity/) [Inspirational](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/inspirational/) [Like Books](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/like-books/) [Opened](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/opened/) [People](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/people/) [People Like](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/people-like/) [Unknown Opened](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/unknown-opened-3442698/) [Writer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writer/) ## Related quotes > [Kids can sniff out when they are being preached to, and they don't like it. So while my books aren't amoral, they are not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeff-kinney/kids-can-sniff-out-when-they-are-being-preached-to-and-they-don-t/) [Jeff Kinney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeff-kinney/) > [I wanted to understand things and then be free of them. I needed to learn how to telescope things, ideas. Things were too big…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bob-dylan/i-wanted-to-understand-things-and-then-be-free-of-them-i-needed-to/) [Bob Dylan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bob-dylan/) > [“People are like books, and the world is like a library. Some believe that it is important to be known with the most possible…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/varg-vikernes/people-are-like-books-and-the-world-is-like-a-library-some-believe/) [Varg Vikernes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/varg-vikernes/) > [It's easy for me to not use my phone for the whole day. I feel like because of books, I can find more balance,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/iga-swiatek/it-s-easy-for-me-to-not-use-my-phone-for-the-whole-day-i-feel-like/) [Iga Swiatek](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/iga-swiatek/) > [I like books that are exciting and that make you think about things, as well. I like things that have a twist - like…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/saoirse-ronan/i-like-books-that-are-exciting-and-that-make-you-think-about-things/) [Saoirse Ronan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/saoirse-ronan/) > [A book has to be easy to open and you don't have to be a bodybuilder to lift it. I like books I can…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karl-lagerfeld/a-book-has-to-be-easy-to-open-and-you-don-t-have-to-be-a-bodybuilder/) [Karl Lagerfeld](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karl-lagerfeld/) > [“Regret. It piles up around us like books we never read.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adam-cozad-and-david-koepp/regret-it-piles-up-around-us-like-books-we-never-read/) [Adam Cozad and David Koepp](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adam-cozad-and-david-koepp/) > [“I looked over Emma’s shoulder. I recognized the girls in the photos. I understood we used to be close. But they were like books…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sarah-shepard/i-looked-over-emma-s-shoulder-i-recognized-the-girls-in-the-photos-i/) [Sarah Shepard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sarah-shepard/) > [“...you are like me, you have more books than you have friends, no matter what Facebook tells you about your social network.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jason-merkoski/you-are-like-me-you-have-more-books-than-you-have-friends-no-matter/) [Jason Merkoski](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jason-merkoski/) > [I'm not obsessively a follower of fashion in the way I used to be. But I still have all those magazines I bought at…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tavi-gevinson/i-m-not-obsessively-a-follower-of-fashion-in-the-way-i-used-to-be-but/) [Tavi Gevinson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tavi-gevinson/) > [I like books whose virtue is all drawn together in a page or two. I like sentences that don't budge though armies cross them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/virginia-woolf/i-like-books-whose-virtue-is-all-drawn-together-in-a-page-or-two-i/) [Virginia Woolf](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/virginia-woolf/) > [I didn't like books where people played on a sports team and won a bunch of games, or went to summer camp and had…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-handler/i-didn-t-like-books-where-people-played-on-a-sports-team-and-won-a/) [Daniel Handler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-handler/) > [“I like stories more than I like books.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-s-magalh-es/i-like-stories-more-than-i-like-books/) [Tomás Magalhães](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-s-magalh-es/) > [“Have patience with everything that remains unsolved in your heart. Try to love the questions themselves, like locked rooms, like books written in a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rainer-maria-rilke/have-patience-with-everything-that-remains-unsolved-in-your-heart-try/) [Rainer Maria Rilke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rainer-maria-rilke/) > [I understood we used to be close. But they were like books i'd read two summer ago; I knew I'd liked them, but I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sara-shepard/i-understood-we-used-to-be-close-but-they-were-like-books-i-d-read/) [Sara Shepard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sara-shepard/) ## More by Richard Paul Evans > [ The smells of Christmas are the smells of childhood \[p. 53\] ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-paul-evans/the-smells-of-christmas-are-the-smells-of-childhood-p-53/) [Richard Paul Evans](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-paul-evans/) > [We are chained to that which we do not forgive](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-paul-evans/we-are-chained-to-that-which-we-do-not-forgive/) [Richard Paul Evans](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-paul-evans/) > [“I've found that when someone is beautiful on the outside, but spiritually dark inside, all that outer beauty is just lipstick on a pig.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-paul-evans/i-ve-found-that-when-someone-is-beautiful-on-the-outside-but/) [Richard Paul Evans](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-paul-evans/) > [There are none so impoverished as those who do not acknowledge the abundance of their lives](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-paul-evans/there-are-none-so-impoverished-as-those-who-do-not-acknowledge-the/) [Richard Paul Evans](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-paul-evans/) > [It's our memories that make us who we are. Without them, we're nothing. If that means we have to hurt sometimes, it's worth it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-paul-evans/it-s-our-memories-that-make-us-who-we-are-without-them-we-re-nothing/) [Richard Paul Evans](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-paul-evans/) > [At one time in my career, Barnes and Noble bookstores categorized my books as religious fiction.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-paul-evans/at-one-time-in-my-career-barnes-and-noble-bookstores-categorized-my/) [Richard Paul Evans](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-paul-evans/) > [“I'm no one important or famous, no matter. It is better to be loved by one person who knows your soul than millions who…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-paul-evans/i-m-no-one-important-or-famous-no-matter-it-is-better-to-be-loved-by/) [Richard Paul Evans](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-paul-evans/) > [The first step of a journey is always the longest.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-paul-evans/the-first-step-of-a-journey-is-always-the-longest/) [Richard Paul Evans](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-paul-evans/) > [“Simply stated, earth is a school-a divine educational process custom-fit to each of us.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-paul-evans/simply-stated-earth-is-a-school-a-divine-educational-process-custom/) [Richard Paul Evans](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-paul-evans/) > [So much of young adult literature has turned dark, almost pathological. It's almost as if there is a race to see who can be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-paul-evans/so-much-of-young-adult-literature-has-turned-dark-almost-pathological/) [Richard Paul Evans](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-paul-evans/) > [If the errors of my life have profited me one great truth it is this: believe. Believe in your destiny and the star from…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-paul-evans/if-the-errors-of-my-life-have-profited-me-one-great-truth-it-is-this/) [Richard Paul Evans](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-paul-evans/) > [Some people in this world have stopped looking for beauty, then wonder why their lives are so ugly. Don't be like them. The ability…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-paul-evans/some-people-in-this-world-have-stopped-looking-for-beauty-then-wonder/) [Richard Paul Evans](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-paul-evans/) > [“There's a big difference between us. I write non-fiction, you write fiction. I write truths that tell lies. You write lies that tell truths.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-paul-evans/there-s-a-big-difference-between-us-i-write-non-fiction-you-write/) [Richard Paul Evans](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-paul-evans/) > [As a boy I heard this story in church. A man was patching a pitched roof of a tall building when he began sliding…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-paul-evans/as-a-boy-i-heard-this-story-in-church-a-man-was-patching-a-pitched/) [Richard Paul Evans](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-paul-evans/) > [I am facing the most difficult thing of my life, my own greatest failure.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-paul-evans/i-am-facing-the-most-difficult-thing-of-my-life-my-own-greatest/) [Richard Paul Evans](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-paul-evans/) [Explore all 311 Richard Paul Evans quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-paul-evans/) ## 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": "People are like books, unknown until they are opened.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Richard Paul Evans" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-paul-evans/people-are-like-books-unknown-until-they-are-opened/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Book" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-paul-evans/people-are-like-books-unknown-until-they-are-opened/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d48/richard-paul-evans-1002_book_people-are-like-books-unknown-until-they_2799971.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d48/richard-paul-evans-1002_book_people-are-like-books-unknown-until-they_2799971.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d48/richard-paul-evans-1002_book_people-are-like-books-unknown-until-they_2799971.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“People are like books, unknown until they are opened.” — Richard Paul Evans", "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": "Richard Paul Evans", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-paul-evans/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "People are like books, unknown until...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-paul-evans/people-are-like-books-unknown-until-they-are-opened/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-paul-evans/people-are-like-books-unknown-until-they-are-opened/#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 } } ] } ```