--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: • Was there a handbook that could tell me…" description: "\"“• Was there a handbook that could tell me what to do next? There were thousands of books that taught parenting; I was pretty sure there wasn't a self-..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/70f/s-e-anderson-44841_books_was-there-a-handbook-that-could-tell-me_1290130.jpg" --- # • Was there a handbook that could tell me what to do next?… ![“• Was there a handbook that could tell me what to do next? There were thousands of books that taught parenting; I was pretty sure there wasn't a self-help book about alien roommates. If there was, it was probably about abductees, not subletters.” quote by S.E. Anderson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/70f/s-e-anderson-44841_books_was-there-a-handbook-that-could-tell-me_1290130.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/70f/s-e-anderson-44841_books_was-there-a-handbook-that-could-tell-me_1290130.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/70f/s-e-anderson-44841_books_was-there-a-handbook-that-could-tell-me_1290130.jpg) > ““• Was there a handbook that could tell me what to do next? There were thousands of books that taught parenting; I was pretty sure there wasn't a self-help book about alien roommates. If there was, it was probably about abductees, not subletters.”” [S.E. Anderson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/s-e-anderson/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. A narrator laments the lack of guidance for dealing with alien roommates, contrasting abundant parenting books with none for extraterrestrials. **In simple terms:** No guide for alien co‑habitants. Key Takeaway Seek creative solutions when manuals fail. Themes loneliness uncertainty creativity Mood playful curious Type satirical fictional When to use this quote - living with unknown beings - writing speculative fiction - building improvisational skills Key Concepts science fiction satire existential humor Questions to Reflect On - How would you handle an impossible roommate? - What does the absence of a guide reveal about human reliance on manuals? A Different Perspective The quote may be fictional and not tied to a real source. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Book Alien](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/book-alien-4200111/) [Books](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/books/) [Handbook Tell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/handbook-tell-4200110/) [Help book](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/help-book/) [Parenting](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/parenting/) [Taught Parenting](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/taught-parenting-4200109/) ## Related quotes > [If you have to learn it from a self-help book, you may be beyond help.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wes-smith/if-you-have-to-learn-it-from-a-self-help-book-you-may-be-beyond-help/) [Wes Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wes-smith/) > [When it comes to achieving your dreams, the excuse "I don't know where to start" is no longer valid. Between the countless self-help books…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hal-elrod/when-it-comes-to-achieving-your-dreams-the-excuse-i-don-t-know-where/) [Hal Elrod](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hal-elrod/) > [Music is gathering. Taking our scattered thoughts and senses and coalescing us back into our core. Music is powerful. The first few chords can…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-siberry/music-is-gathering-taking-our-scattered-thoughts-and-senses-and/) [Jane Siberry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-siberry/) > [Self-help books for women are part of a multibillion-dollar industry, sensitively attuned to our insecurities and our purses.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harriet-lerner/self-help-books-for-women-are-part-of-a-multibillion-dollar-industry/) [Harriet Lerner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harriet-lerner/) > [No matter what the shrinks, or the pundits, or the self-help books tell you, when it comes to love, it's luck.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/woody-allen/no-matter-what-the-shrinks-or-the-pundits-or-the-self-help-books-tell/) [Woody Allen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/woody-allen/) > [The buying of a self-help book is the most desperate of all human acts. It means you've lost your mind completely: You've entrusted your…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cynthia-heimel/the-buying-of-a-self-help-book-is-the-most-desperate-of-all-human/) [Cynthia Heimel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cynthia-heimel/) > [Your ability to navigate and tolerate change and its painful uncomfortablene ss directly correlates to your happiness and general well-being. See what I just…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amy-poehler/your-ability-to-navigate-and-tolerate-change-and-its-painful/) [Amy Poehler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amy-poehler/) > [I never read a self-help book except for the Bible.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jon-heder/i-never-read-a-self-help-book-except-for-the-bible/) [Jon Heder](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jon-heder/) > [The American journalist Barbara Ehrenreich has written about this in her book Smile or Die: How Positive Thinking Fooled America and the World (2009)…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-ravenhill/the-american-journalist-barbara-ehrenreich-has-written-about-this-in/) [Mark Ravenhill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-ravenhill/) > [There are many self-help books by Ph.D.s, but I hold a different degree: an I.B.T.I.A.-I've Been Through It All. 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Men are from Mars, women are from Venus, and self help books are from Uranus.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/craig-ferguson/self-help-books-are-pointless-here-s-something-for-you-men-are-from/) [Craig Ferguson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/craig-ferguson/) > [A very enjoyable meditation on the curious thing called 'Zen' -not the Japanese religious tradition but rather the Western clich of Zen that is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexander-gardner/a-very-enjoyable-meditation-on-the-curious-thing-called-zen-not-the/) [Alexander Gardner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexander-gardner/) > [I don't want to sound like a self-help book, but it really has been transformative for me to take a look at my relationships…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bonnie-raitt/i-don-t-want-to-sound-like-a-self-help-book-but-it-really-has-been/) [Bonnie Raitt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bonnie-raitt/) > [Coming into your powers can be a very confusing time. Perhaps there is a book on the subject. If you like, we can go…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kami-garcia/coming-into-your-powers-can-be-a-very-confusing-time-perhaps-there-is/) [Kami Garcia](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kami-garcia/) ## More by S.E. Anderson > [“My name is Sally Webber. I’m a human from Earth, a college dropout with no career ambition. I’m wearing a wig, and I really…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/s-e-anderson/my-name-is-sally-webber-i-m-a-human-from-earth-a-college-dropout-with/) [S.E. Anderson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/s-e-anderson/) > [“I've toppled empires. I can figure out how to get water to the right temperature.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/s-e-anderson/i-ve-toppled-empires-i-can-figure-out-how-to-get-water-to-the-right/) [S.E. Anderson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/s-e-anderson/) > [“Try to stay longer, and your head will be the only part of you that makes it home.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/s-e-anderson/try-to-stay-longer-and-your-head-will-be-the-only-part-of-you-that/) [S.E. Anderson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/s-e-anderson/) > [“Nothing's impossible. Everything's got screwed up probability ratios.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/s-e-anderson/nothing-s-impossible-everything-s-got-screwed-up-probability-ratios/) [S.E. Anderson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/s-e-anderson/) > [“Sometimes, Don’t Panic does not apply.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/s-e-anderson/sometimes-don-t-panic-does-not-apply/) [S.E. Anderson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/s-e-anderson/) > [“Some days, I was instructed not to pick up the phone at all. I would take down the messages left on the machine; bring…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/s-e-anderson/some-days-i-was-instructed-not-to-pick-up-the-phone-at-all-i-would/) [S.E. Anderson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/s-e-anderson/) > [“Sally, are you really going to believe the word of a man who tried to kill you over the one who stopped him from…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/s-e-anderson/sally-are-you-really-going-to-believe-the-word-of-a-man-who-tried-to/) [S.E. Anderson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/s-e-anderson/) > [“Look, you can't take people off their planet willy-nilly. It's called alien abduction, and is frowned upon in the most respectable circles.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/s-e-anderson/look-you-can-t-take-people-off-their-planet-willy-nilly-it-s-called/) [S.E. Anderson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/s-e-anderson/) [Explore all 9 S.E. Anderson quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/s-e-anderson/) ## 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": "“•\tWas there a handbook that could tell me what to do next? There were thousands of books that taught parenting; I was pretty sure there wasn't a self-help book about alien roommates. If there was, it was probably about abductees, not subletters.”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "S.E. 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