--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: If I have to spend time in purgatory…" description: "\"If I have to spend time in purgatory before going to one place or the other, I guess I'll be all right as long as there's a lending library.\" — Stephen..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ff3/stephen-king-13_book_if-i-have-to-spend-time-in-purgatory-bef_1719567.jpg" --- # If I have to spend time in purgatory before going to one… ![“If I have to spend time in purgatory before going to one place or the other, I guess I'll be all right as long as there's a lending library.” quote by Stephen King](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ff3/stephen-king-13_book_if-i-have-to-spend-time-in-purgatory-bef_1719567.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ff3/stephen-king-13_book_if-i-have-to-spend-time-in-purgatory-bef_1719567.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ff3/stephen-king-13_book_if-i-have-to-spend-time-in-purgatory-bef_1719567.jpg) > “If I have to spend time in purgatory before going to one place or the other, I guess I'll be all right as long as there's a lending library.” [Stephen King](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-king/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. He jokes that even in limbo, a library offers comfort and purpose. **In simple terms:** Even in waiting, books help. Key Takeaway Seek knowledge in tough times. Themes humor library comfort Mood lighthearted thoughtful Type humorous inspirational When to use this quote - hospital - prison - life transitions - career pauses Key Concepts existential waiting literary refuge Questions to Reflect On - What does a library symbolize for you? - How can stories sustain you in uncertainty? A Different Perspective Humor may downplay genuine suffering. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Book](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/book/) [Library](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/library/) [Purgatory](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/purgatory/) [Time](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/time/) [Writer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writer/) ## Related quotes > [Time is a purgatory that has cleansed all fury from my memories.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/s-ndor-m-rai/time-is-a-purgatory-that-has-cleansed-all-fury-from-my-memories/) [Sándor Márai](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/s-ndor-m-rai/) > [Security can be found in renunciation of ownership over people, money, and real assets; to gain, keep or protect that which others need for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-mollison/security-can-be-found-in-renunciation-of-ownership-over-people-money/) [Bill Mollison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-mollison/) > [“The real world isn't like one of those lending library novels that you ladies read--and write--so avidly.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-westhaven/the-real-world-isn-t-like-one-of-those-lending-library-novels-that/) [Margaret Westhaven](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-westhaven/) > [“ Not being sure of things , he knew, was a charmless corner of purgatory reserved for writers who were driving fast with no…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-king/not-being-sure-of-things-he-knew-was-a-charmless-corner-of-purgatory/) [Stephen King](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-king/) > [“Censorship and the suppression of reading materials are rarely about family values and almost always about control; About who is snapping the whip, who…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-king/censorship-and-the-suppression-of-reading-materials-are-rarely-about/) [Stephen King](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-king/) > [A prison! heav'ns, I loath the hated name, Famine's metropolis, the sink of shame, A nauseous sepulchre, whose craving womb Hourly inters poor mortals…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-brown-jr/a-prison-heav-ns-i-loath-the-hated-name-famine-s-metropolis-the-sink/) [Tom Brown, Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-brown-jr/) > [I see no reason why I should not live on indefinitely just as I have done, and on the whole I am more comfortable…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-borden/i-see-no-reason-why-i-should-not-live-on-indefinitely-just-as-i-have/) [Mary Borden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-borden/) > [If the politics of inaction and delay that have triumphed in this country continues for another decade, then Planetary Purgatory in the likely future…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-j-romm/if-the-politics-of-inaction-and-delay-that-have-triumphed-in-this/) [Joseph J. 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