--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: For this quiet, unprepossessing, passive…" description: "\"For this quiet, unprepossessing, passive man who has no garden in front of his subsidised flat, books are like flowers. He loves to line them up on the..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e5d/stefan-zweig-811_book_for-this-quiet-unprepossessing-passive-m_737747.jpg" --- # For this quiet, unprepossessing, passive man who has no… ![“For this quiet, unprepossessing, passive man who has no garden in front of his subsidised flat, books are like flowers. He loves to line them up on the shelf in multicoloured rows: he watches over each of them with an old-fashioned gardener's delight, holds them like fragile objects in his thin…” quote by Stefan Zweig](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e5d/stefan-zweig-811_book_for-this-quiet-unprepossessing-passive-m_737747.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e5d/stefan-zweig-811_book_for-this-quiet-unprepossessing-passive-m_737747.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e5d/stefan-zweig-811_book_for-this-quiet-unprepossessing-passive-m_737747.jpg) > “For this quiet, unprepossessing, passive man who has no garden in front of his subsidised flat, books are like flowers. He loves to line them up on the shelf in multicoloured rows: he watches over each of them with an old-fashioned gardener's delight, holds them like fragile objects in his thin, bloodless hands.” [Stefan Zweig](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stefan-zweig/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. He treats books with the same reverence as a gardener tends flowers, arranging them carefully and handling them delicately. **In simple terms:** He loves books like a gardener loves flowers. Key Takeaway Cherish and protect your books. Themes literature care beauty Mood reflective nostalgic Type observational descriptive When to use this quote - personal library - reading habit - gift giving - collecting books Key Concepts aesthetic appreciation attachment ritual Questions to Reflect On - How do you show respect for the objects you love? - What does caring for books reveal about you? A Different Perspective Books are fragile and can be damaged if not handled properly. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Book](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/book/) [Books](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/books/) [Delight](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/delight/) [Fashioned Gardener](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fashioned-gardener-5766343/) [Flat Books](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/flat-books-5766342/) [Flats](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/flats/) [Flower](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/flower/) [Garden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/garden/) [Gardener](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/gardener/) [Gardening](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/gardening/) [Hands](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hands/) [Like Flowers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/like-flowers/) [Lines](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/lines/) [Man Garden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/man-garden-558553/) [Men](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/men/) [Old fashioned](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/old-fashioned/) [Passive](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/passive/) [Passive Man](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/passive-man-2790445/) [Quiet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/quiet/) [Shelves](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/shelves/) [Watches](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/watches/) [Writer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writer/) ## Related quotes > [I also know that we must cultivate our garden. For when man was put in the Garden of Eden, he was put there ut…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/voltaire/i-also-know-that-we-must-cultivate-our-garden-for-when-man-was-put-in/) [Voltaire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/voltaire/) > [“As Robert Bly laments in Iron John, “Some women want a passive man if they want a man at all; the church wants a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-eldredge/as-robert-bly-laments-in-iron-john-some-women-want-a-passive-man-if/) [John Eldredge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-eldredge/) > [“Male passivity is a disease that robs a man of his purpose while it destroys marriages, ruins families, and spoils legacies. A passive man…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dennis-rainey/male-passivity-is-a-disease-that-robs-a-man-of-his-purpose-while-it/) [Dennis Rainey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dennis-rainey/) > [I like flowers. In my next life, maybe I can be a gardener.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ruskin-bond/i-like-flowers-in-my-next-life-maybe-i-can-be-a-gardener/) [Ruskin Bond](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ruskin-bond/) > [Yes, in the poor man's garden grow Far more than herbs and flowers - Kind thoughts, contentment, peace of mind, And Joy for weary…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-howitt/yes-in-the-poor-man-s-garden-grow-far-more-than-herbs-and-flowers/) [Mary Howitt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-howitt/) > [“when man was put into the garden of eden, he was put there with the idea that he should work the land; and this…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/voltaire/when-man-was-put-into-the-garden-of-eden-he-was-put-there-with-the/) [Voltaire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/voltaire/) > [“There was a man in the garden with the little girl. He was turning over the soil in a garden bed. He had obviously…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicole-trope/there-was-a-man-in-the-garden-with-the-little-girl-he-was-turning/) [Nicole Trope](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicole-trope/) > [We must cultivate our own garden. When man was put in the garden of Eden he was put there so that he should work,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/voltaire/we-must-cultivate-our-own-garden-when-man-was-put-in-the-garden-of/) [Voltaire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/voltaire/) > [Like flowers and plants, we too need ground under our feet, warmth and sunshine and food for our spirit, protective boundaries, tending and care,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sonia-choquette/like-flowers-and-plants-we-too-need-ground-under-our-feet-warmth-and/) [Sonia Choquette](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sonia-choquette/) > [Minds are like flowers. If you let it sit there without soaking anything up, it will dry up.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ken-hill/minds-are-like-flowers-if-you-let-it-sit-there-without-soaking/) [Ken Hill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ken-hill/) > [Human beings are like flowers trust no one](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/onuh-justus-izuchukwu/human-beings-are-like-flowers-trust-no-one/) [Onuh Justus Izuchukwu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/onuh-justus-izuchukwu/) > [“Dandelions are just friendly little weeds who only want to be loved like flowers.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/heather-babcock/dandelions-are-just-friendly-little-weeds-who-only-want-to-be-loved/) [Heather Babcock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/heather-babcock/) > [Learn to grow just like these flowers that bloom, Learn to look over the horizon that is as beautiful as your life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ariana-moran/learn-to-grow-just-like-these-flowers-that-bloom-learn-to-look-over/) [Ariana Moran](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ariana-moran/) > [“And my name sounds like flowers in his mouth.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amy-reed/and-my-name-sounds-like-flowers-in-his-mouth/) [Amy Reed](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amy-reed/) > [It is the property of things seen for the first time, or for the first time after long, like the flowers in spring, to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-louis-stevenson/it-is-the-property-of-things-seen-for-the-first-time-or-for-the-first/) [Robert Louis Stevenson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-louis-stevenson/) ## More by Stefan Zweig > [“Madness,” he exclaimed to himself, in astonishment, faltering. “Madness! What do they want? Once again, once again!” War once again, war that had so…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stefan-zweig/madness-he-exclaimed-to-himself-in-astonishment-faltering-madness/) [Stefan Zweig](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stefan-zweig/) > [It is never until one realizes that one means something to others that one feels there is any point or purpose in one's own…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stefan-zweig/it-is-never-until-one-realizes-that-one-means-something-to-others/) [Stefan Zweig](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stefan-zweig/) > [“And if I am asked today to advise a young writer who has not yet made up his mind what way to go, I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stefan-zweig/and-if-i-am-asked-today-to-advise-a-young-writer-who-has-not-yet-made/) [Stefan Zweig](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stefan-zweig/) > [“Live and let live” was the famous Viennese motto, which today still seems to me to be more humane than all the categorical imperatives,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stefan-zweig/live-and-let-live-was-the-famous-viennese-motto-which-today-still/) [Stefan Zweig](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stefan-zweig/) > [“Değerli olan her zaman için gerçeğin yarısı değil, tamamıdır.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stefan-zweig/de-erli-olan-her-zaman-i-in-ger-e-in-yar-s-de-il-tamam-d-r/) [Stefan Zweig](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stefan-zweig/) > [One never gets to know a person's character better than by watching his behavior during decisive moments… It is always only danger which forces…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stefan-zweig/one-never-gets-to-know-a-person-s-character-better-than-by-watching/) [Stefan Zweig](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stefan-zweig/) > [Names have a mysterious transforming power. Like a ring on a finger, a name may at first seem merely accidental, committing you to nothing;…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stefan-zweig/names-have-a-mysterious-transforming-power-like-a-ring-on-a-finger-a/) [Stefan Zweig](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stefan-zweig/) > [There is no sense to a sacrifice after you come to feel that it is a sacrifice.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stefan-zweig/there-is-no-sense-to-a-sacrifice-after-you-come-to-feel-that-it-is-a/) [Stefan Zweig](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stefan-zweig/) > [No guilt is forgotten so long as the conscience still knows of it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stefan-zweig/no-guilt-is-forgotten-so-long-as-the-conscience-still-knows-of-it/) [Stefan Zweig](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stefan-zweig/) > [Nothing that has ever been thought and said with a clear mind and pure ethical strength is totally in vain; even if it comes…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stefan-zweig/nothing-that-has-ever-been-thought-and-said-with-a-clear-mind-and/) [Stefan Zweig](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stefan-zweig/) > [It is the way of youth that each fresh piece of knowledge of life should go to its head, and that once uplifted by…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stefan-zweig/it-is-the-way-of-youth-that-each-fresh-piece-of-knowledge-of-life/) [Stefan Zweig](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stefan-zweig/) > [“The truths that he finds may in the coming months or even the coming years be truths no more. He must be forever searching.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stefan-zweig/the-truths-that-he-finds-may-in-the-coming-months-or-even-the-coming/) [Stefan Zweig](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stefan-zweig/) > [The union of opposites, in so far as they are really complementary, always results in the most perfect harmony; and the seemingly incongruous is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stefan-zweig/the-union-of-opposites-in-so-far-as-they-are-really-complementary/) [Stefan Zweig](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stefan-zweig/) > [The sight of a wedding always has a disturbing effect on young girls; at such moments a mysterious sense of solidarity with their own…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stefan-zweig/the-sight-of-a-wedding-always-has-a-disturbing-effect-on-young-girls/) [Stefan Zweig](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stefan-zweig/) > [“Lightly, caressingly, Marie Antoinette picked up the crown as a gift. She was still too young to know that life never gives anything for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stefan-zweig/lightly-caressingly-marie-antoinette-picked-up-the-crown-as-a-gift-2/) [Stefan Zweig](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stefan-zweig/) [Explore all 267 Stefan Zweig quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stefan-zweig/) ## 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": "For this quiet, unprepossessing, passive man who has no garden in front of his subsidised flat, books are like flowers. He loves to line them up on the shelf in multicoloured rows: he watches over each of them with an old-fashioned gardener's delight, holds them like fragile objects in his thin, bloodless hands.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Stefan Zweig" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stefan-zweig/for-this-quiet-unprepossessing-passive-man-who-has-no-garden-in-front/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Book" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stefan-zweig/for-this-quiet-unprepossessing-passive-man-who-has-no-garden-in-front/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e5d/stefan-zweig-811_book_for-this-quiet-unprepossessing-passive-m_737747.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e5d/stefan-zweig-811_book_for-this-quiet-unprepossessing-passive-m_737747.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e5d/stefan-zweig-811_book_for-this-quiet-unprepossessing-passive-m_737747.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“For this quiet, unprepossessing, passive man who has no garden in front of his subsidised flat, books are…” — Stefan Zweig", "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": "Stefan Zweig", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stefan-zweig/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "For this quiet, unprepossessing, passive man...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stefan-zweig/for-this-quiet-unprepossessing-passive-man-who-has-no-garden-in-front/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stefan-zweig/for-this-quiet-unprepossessing-passive-man-who-has-no-garden-in-front/#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 } } ] } ```