--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I don't know exactly how long the book as…" description: "\"I don't know exactly how long the book as we know it will exist, but I fully expect to make it to my death without having to give up on books.\" — Rick ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/192/rick-moody-8542_book_i-don-t-know-exactly-how-long-the-book-a_2473564.png" --- # I don't know exactly how long the book as we know it will… ![“I don't know exactly how long the book as we know it will exist, but I fully expect to make it to my death without having to give up on books.” quote by Rick Moody](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/192/rick-moody-8542_book_i-don-t-know-exactly-how-long-the-book-a_2473564.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/192/rick-moody-8542_book_i-don-t-know-exactly-how-long-the-book-a_2473564.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/192/rick-moody-8542_book_i-don-t-know-exactly-how-long-the-book-a_2473564.png) > “I don't know exactly how long the book as we know it will exist, but I fully expect to make it to my death without having to give up on books.” [Rick Moody](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rick-moody/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The quote reflects a belief that books will endure throughout the author's lifetime, emphasizing a personal commitment to preserving reading culture. **In simple terms:** Books will survive for the author's life. Key Takeaway Value and protect literature. Themes literature longevity commitment Mood reflective determined Type philosophical inspirational When to use this quote - personal reading habit - library support - advocacy for publishing - education - public policy Key Concepts cultural preservation intellectual continuity Questions to Reflect On - How can we ensure books remain relevant in a digital age? - What actions can individuals take to support reading? A Different Perspective Potentially optimistic; may overlook digital transformation challenges. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Book](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/book/) [Books](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/books/) [Death](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/death/) [Exist Fully](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/exist-fully-709541/) [Giving](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/giving/) [Giving up](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/giving-up/) [Having Books](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/having-books-451030/) [Know Exist](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/know-exist/) [Knows](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/knows/) [Long](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/long/) [Long book](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/long-book/) [Make Death](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/make-death-432434/) ## Related quotes > [“We exist to fully participate in the creation our own lives.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/toni-sorenson/we-exist-to-fully-participate-in-the-creation-our-own-lives/) [Toni Sorenson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/toni-sorenson/) > [We do not exist for ourselves alone, and it is only when we are fully convinced of this fact that we begin to love…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-merton/we-do-not-exist-for-ourselves-alone-and-it-is-only-when-we-are-fully/) [Thomas Merton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-merton/) > [“I believe that we exist to fully participate in the creation of our own lives.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/toni-sorenson/i-believe-that-we-exist-to-fully-participate-in-the-creation-of-our/) [Toni Sorenson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/toni-sorenson/) > [“Because reading books and having them bound represent two enormously different stages of development. First, people gradually get used to reading, over centuries naturally,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fyodor-dostoyevsky/because-reading-books-and-having-them-bound-represent-two-enormously/) [Fyodor Dostoyevsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fyodor-dostoyevsky/) > [“Get someone-anyone-to read books to you. Having books read to you at any age is the supremo ultimato of living.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carew-papritz/get-someone-anyone-to-read-books-to-you-having-books-read-to-you-at/) [Carew Papritz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carew-papritz/) > [Having books published is very destructive to writing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ernest-hemingway/having-books-published-is-very-destructive-to-writing/) [Ernest Hemingway](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ernest-hemingway/) > [I was teased if I brought my books home. I would take a paper bag to the library and put the books in the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walter-dean-myers/i-was-teased-if-i-brought-my-books-home-i-would-take-a-paper-bag-to/) [Walter Dean Myers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walter-dean-myers/) > [“Having books standing on a shelf in a room is like having completely different worlds at the ready, waiting to be explored.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-f-hermann/having-books-standing-on-a-shelf-in-a-room-is-like-having-completely/) [J.F Hermann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-f-hermann/) > [While I do, of course, now feel the pressure having had books that have been very successful, I just know I have to concentrate…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lisa-morton/while-i-do-of-course-now-feel-the-pressure-having-had-books-that-have/) [Lisa Morton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lisa-morton/) > [Having books published is very destructive to writing. It is even worse than making love too much. Because when you make love too much…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ernest-hemingway/having-books-published-is-very-destructive-to-writing-it-is-even/) [Ernest Hemingway](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ernest-hemingway/) > [Why, after all, should readers never be harrowed? Surely there is enough happiness in life without having to go to books for it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dorothy-parker/why-after-all-should-readers-never-be-harrowed-surely-there-is-enough/) [Dorothy Parker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dorothy-parker/) > [I do like having books on my shelves. I do value that life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noah-baumbach/i-do-like-having-books-on-my-shelves-i-do-value-that-life/) [Noah Baumbach](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noah-baumbach/) > [“Not having any books makes me feel empty and strained and pathetic.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laura-amy-schlitz/not-having-any-books-makes-me-feel-empty-and-strained-and-pathetic/) [Laura Amy Schlitz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laura-amy-schlitz/) > [“I know there's nothing you can say to make death okay. It is what it is.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jill-hathaway/i-know-there-s-nothing-you-can-say-to-make-death-okay-it-is-what-it-is/) [Jill Hathaway](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jill-hathaway/) > [“HAS YOUR LIFE BEEN A FAILURE? LET’S MAKE YOUR DEATH A SUCCESS!”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-teul/has-your-life-been-a-failure-let-s-make-your-death-a-success/) [Jean Teulé](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-teul/) ## More by Rick Moody > [I believe that God locates himself at the spot where you recognize your own fallibility…And the paradox of it all has been that whenever…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rick-moody/i-believe-that-god-locates-himself-at-the-spot-where-you-recognize/) [Rick Moody](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rick-moody/) > [The Ice Storm, because of the movie, has had, or is to have, a vigorous life in other cultures.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rick-moody/the-ice-storm-because-of-the-movie-has-had-or-is-to-have-a-vigorous/) [Rick Moody](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rick-moody/) > [Capitalism, in the realm of sexuality, I figure, thinks that we behave in specific ways, like a breast is always going to produce a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rick-moody/capitalism-in-the-realm-of-sexuality-i-figure-thinks-that-we-behave/) [Rick Moody](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rick-moody/) > [Literature precedes genre.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rick-moody/literature-precedes-genre/) [Rick Moody](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rick-moody/) > [I'm not the guy to ask about the most up to date stuff.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rick-moody/i-m-not-the-guy-to-ask-about-the-most-up-to-date-stuff/) [Rick Moody](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rick-moody/) > [“Words are the oldest information storage and retrieval system ever devised. Words are probably older than the cave paintings in France, words have been…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rick-moody/words-are-the-oldest-information-storage-and-retrieval-system-ever/) [Rick Moody](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rick-moody/) > [Writing the book was itself a process of concealing and revealing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rick-moody/writing-the-book-was-itself-a-process-of-concealing-and-revealing/) [Rick Moody](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rick-moody/) > [Tangled in one another's arms and nine times out of ten the things you think about a person make it impossible to touch them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rick-moody/tangled-in-one-another-s-arms-and-nine-times-out-of-ten-the-things/) [Rick Moody](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rick-moody/) > [The Great Recession is not imaginary, and the effects loom large. There was an article in the NYT about the galloping death rate among…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rick-moody/the-great-recession-is-not-imaginary-and-the-effects-loom-large-there/) [Rick Moody](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rick-moody/) > [I have worked really hard to defy categorization, to break down a taxonomy whenever it comes my way.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rick-moody/i-have-worked-really-hard-to-defy-categorization-to-break-down-a/) [Rick Moody](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rick-moody/) > [I am excited by... the new novel by Samantha Hunt. She's a writer I really admire a lot.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rick-moody/i-am-excited-by-the-new-novel-by-samantha-hunt-she-s-a-writer-i/) [Rick Moody](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rick-moody/) > [All the stuff that I used to treat with contempt - you know, I'm an artist, man, I don't do that family stuff -…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rick-moody/all-the-stuff-that-i-used-to-treat-with-contempt-you-know-i-m-an/) [Rick Moody](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rick-moody/) > [Updike worked this way, and I just kinda borrowed it from him. So the memoir will be relief from novel writing for a moment.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rick-moody/updike-worked-this-way-and-i-just-kinda-borrowed-it-from-him-so-the/) [Rick Moody](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rick-moody/) > [ “\[I\]t is things that make us happy when conversation begins to reveal itself as a paltry substitute.” ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rick-moody/i-t-is-things-that-make-us-happy-when-conversation-begins-to-reveal/) [Rick Moody](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rick-moody/) > [When prose gets too stylized and out of control - and Stein is sometimes a good example - when you don't know what the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rick-moody/when-prose-gets-too-stylized-and-out-of-control-and-stein-is/) [Rick Moody](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rick-moody/) [Explore all 80 Rick Moody quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rick-moody/) ## 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": "I don't know exactly how long the book as we know it will exist, but I fully expect to make it to my death without having to give up on books.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Rick Moody" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rick-moody/i-don-t-know-exactly-how-long-the-book-as-we-know-it-will-exist-but-i/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Book" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rick-moody/i-don-t-know-exactly-how-long-the-book-as-we-know-it-will-exist-but-i/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/192/rick-moody-8542_book_i-don-t-know-exactly-how-long-the-book-a_2473564.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/192/rick-moody-8542_book_i-don-t-know-exactly-how-long-the-book-a_2473564.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/192/rick-moody-8542_book_i-don-t-know-exactly-how-long-the-book-a_2473564.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“I don't know exactly how long the book as we know it will exist, but I fully expect to make it to my death…” — Rick Moody", "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": "Rick Moody", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rick-moody/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "I don't know exactly how long...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rick-moody/i-don-t-know-exactly-how-long-the-book-as-we-know-it-will-exist-but-i/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rick-moody/i-don-t-know-exactly-how-long-the-book-as-we-know-it-will-exist-but-i/#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 } } ] } ```