--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Listen you have to read a book three…" description: "\"Listen you have to read a book three times before you know it.\" — Sherman Alexie" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0fe/sherman-alexie-444_book_listen-you-have-to-read-a-book-three-tim_1812311.png" --- # Listen you have to read a book three times before you know… ![“Listen you have to read a book three times before you know it.” quote by Sherman Alexie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0fe/sherman-alexie-444_book_listen-you-have-to-read-a-book-three-tim_1812311.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0fe/sherman-alexie-444_book_listen-you-have-to-read-a-book-three-tim_1812311.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0fe/sherman-alexie-444_book_listen-you-have-to-read-a-book-three-tim_1812311.png) > “Listen you have to read a book three times before you know it.” [Sherman Alexie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sherman-alexie/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Deep understanding of a text requires multiple readings to grasp its layers and nuances. **In simple terms:** Read a book several times to truly understand it. Key Takeaway Read repeatedly for deeper insight. Themes learning reading comprehension Mood thoughtful inquisitive Type educational reflective When to use this quote - studying literature - preparing for exams - teaching - book clubs - research Key Concepts literature cognitive depth interpretation Questions to Reflect On - How does rereading change your perception? - When is a single read enough? A Different Perspective Multiple readings are time‑consuming and may not suit all readers. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Book](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/book/) [Books](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/books/) [Time](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/time/) [Writer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writer/) ## Related quotes > [“Listen," he said one afternoon in the library. "You have to read a book three times before you know it. The first time you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sherman-alexie/listen-he-said-one-afternoon-in-the-library-you-have-to-read-a-book/) [Sherman Alexie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sherman-alexie/) > [Sweetie, if you opened a book more times than you opened your legs,you might actually get somewhere in life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nikhil-saluja/sweetie-if-you-opened-a-book-more-times-than-you-opened-your-legs-you/) [Nikhil Saluja](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nikhil-saluja/) > [I don't even listen or read some stuff from the Internet.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andrei-arlovski/i-don-t-even-listen-or-read-some-stuff-from-the-internet/) [Andrei Arlovski](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andrei-arlovski/) > [Before you talk, listen. Before you read, think. Before you criticize, wait. Before you pray, forgive. Before you quit, try.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sukhjit-singh-multani/before-you-talk-listen-before-you-read-think-before-you-criticize/) Sukhjit Singh Multani > [“Before you act, listen. Before you read, think. Before you spend, earn. Before you criticize, wait. Before you pray, forgive. Before you quit, try.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ernst-hemmingway/before-you-act-listen-before-you-read-think-before-you-spend-earn/) Ernst Hemmingway > [“Well, there are times when we know where people are, yes? This would not be one of those times.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-david/well-there-are-times-when-we-know-where-people-are-yes-this-would-not/) [Peter David](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-david/) > [I think one of the reasons to be here on earth is to finally be who we are, at all times - to know…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louise-erdrich/i-think-one-of-the-reasons-to-be-here-on-earth-is-to-finally-be-who/) [Louise Erdrich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louise-erdrich/) > [Honestly, like, I'm a superfan of the 'New York Times,' but I know nothing about how they put it together, and I really don't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ira-glass/honestly-like-i-m-a-superfan-of-the-new-york-times-but-i-know-nothing/) [Ira Glass](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ira-glass/) > [~ There are times that you will only know the truth by making lies. ~](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vince/there-are-times-that-you-will-only-know-the-truth-by-making-lies/) [Vince](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vince/) > [We should read music in the same way that an educated adult will read a book: in silence, but imagining the sound.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zoltan-kodaly/we-should-read-music-in-the-same-way-that-an-educated-adult-will-read/) [Zoltan Kodaly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zoltan-kodaly/) > [When I'm deciding to read a book, I never open to the first chapter, because that's been revised and worked over 88 times. I'll…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carl-hiaasen/when-i-m-deciding-to-read-a-book-i-never-open-to-the-first-chapter/) [Carl Hiaasen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carl-hiaasen/) > [“When you read a book, you don't give up on it. You might soon feel like your part of the story.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kiersten-white/when-you-read-a-book-you-don-t-give-up-on-it-you-might-soon-feel-like/) [Kiersten White](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kiersten-white/) > [Free time is a terrible thing to waste. Read a book.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/e-a-bucchianeri-2/free-time-is-a-terrible-thing-to-waste-read-a-book/) E. A. Bucchianeri > [Usually when I'm on a plane, I try to enjoy the fact that I have to be still for eight hours and read a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michiel-huisman/usually-when-i-m-on-a-plane-i-try-to-enjoy-the-fact-that-i-have-to-be/) [Michiel Huisman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michiel-huisman/) > [“I just can't get with this idea that literature is a 12-step program. If someone wants to read a book to see good people…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/china-mi-ville/i-just-can-t-get-with-this-idea-that-literature-is-a-12-step-program/) [China Miéville](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/china-mi-ville/) ## More by Sherman Alexie > [“He says the earth is an oval marble that nobody can win. He says the sky is not blue and the grass is not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sherman-alexie/he-says-the-earth-is-an-oval-marble-that-nobody-can-win-he-says-the/) [Sherman Alexie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sherman-alexie/) > [“Now, in the old days, Indians used to be forgiving of any kind of eccentricity. In fact, weird people were often celebrated. Epileptics were…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sherman-alexie/now-in-the-old-days-indians-used-to-be-forgiving-of-any-kind-of/) [Sherman Alexie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sherman-alexie/) > [Since Jesus was human then he most assuredly farted and burped. And if God did create us in God's image then God must fart…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sherman-alexie/since-jesus-was-human-then-he-most-assuredly-farted-and-burped-and-if/) [Sherman Alexie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sherman-alexie/) > [“A century ago she might have been beautiful, her face reflected in the river instead of a mirror. But all the years have changed…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sherman-alexie/a-century-ago-she-might-have-been-beautiful-her-face-reflected-in-the/) [Sherman Alexie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sherman-alexie/) > [“In all those stories, I could fly.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sherman-alexie/in-all-those-stories-i-could-fly/) [Sherman Alexie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sherman-alexie/) > [I don't think there's a whole lot of class literature at all. I think most of that has become racially based, and people don't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sherman-alexie/i-don-t-think-there-s-a-whole-lot-of-class-literature-at-all-i-think/) [Sherman Alexie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sherman-alexie/) > [She wanted to be buried in a coffin filled with used paperbacks.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sherman-alexie/she-wanted-to-be-buried-in-a-coffin-filled-with-used-paperbacks/) [Sherman Alexie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sherman-alexie/) > [“Is there really a difference between that killing and this killing? Does God approve of some killing and not other killing? If I kill…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sherman-alexie/is-there-really-a-difference-between-that-killing-and-this-killing/) [Sherman Alexie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sherman-alexie/) > [“Son, things have never been like how you think they used to be.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sherman-alexie/son-things-have-never-been-like-how-you-think-they-used-to-be/) [Sherman Alexie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sherman-alexie/) > [My parents banned nothing, though the Christian fundamentalists in my tribe held book-and-record burnings every now and again. So, yes, fundamentalist assholes can also…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sherman-alexie/my-parents-banned-nothing-though-the-christian-fundamentalists-in-my/) [Sherman Alexie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sherman-alexie/) > [“Or maybe I could have anesthetized myself with homework and extra credit and binge-reading.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sherman-alexie/or-maybe-i-could-have-anesthetized-myself-with-homework-and-extra/) [Sherman Alexie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sherman-alexie/) > [“Dear wife, I'm sorry that I am mysteriously incapable of folding clean laundry, but I iron, oh, I iron. Sweetheart, I'll make your white…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sherman-alexie/dear-wife-i-m-sorry-that-i-am-mysteriously-incapable-of-folding-clean/) [Sherman Alexie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sherman-alexie/) > [“Gordy,” I said. “I need to talk to you." "I don't have time," he said. "Mr. Orcutt and I have to debug some PCs.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sherman-alexie/gordy-i-said-i-need-to-talk-to-you-i-don-t-have-time-he-said-mr/) [Sherman Alexie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sherman-alexie/) > [“The United States wants all of us to forget the crimes it committed against the indigenous. The United States wants us to forget. The…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sherman-alexie/the-united-states-wants-all-of-us-to-forget-the-crimes-it-committed/) [Sherman Alexie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sherman-alexie/) > [I think that white women are more apt to read laterally. So I think there's some strong identification for women, and their political and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sherman-alexie/i-think-that-white-women-are-more-apt-to-read-laterally-so-i-think/) [Sherman Alexie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sherman-alexie/) [Explore all 546 Sherman Alexie quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sherman-alexie/) ## 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! 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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": "Listen you have to read a book three times before you know it.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Sherman Alexie" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sherman-alexie/listen-you-have-to-read-a-book-three-times-before-you-know-it/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Book" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sherman-alexie/listen-you-have-to-read-a-book-three-times-before-you-know-it/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0fe/sherman-alexie-444_book_listen-you-have-to-read-a-book-three-tim_1812311.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0fe/sherman-alexie-444_book_listen-you-have-to-read-a-book-three-tim_1812311.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0fe/sherman-alexie-444_book_listen-you-have-to-read-a-book-three-tim_1812311.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Listen you have to read a book three times before you know it.” — Sherman Alexie", "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": "Sherman Alexie", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sherman-alexie/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "Listen you have to read a...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sherman-alexie/listen-you-have-to-read-a-book-three-times-before-you-know-it/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sherman-alexie/listen-you-have-to-read-a-book-three-times-before-you-know-it/#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 } } ] } ```