--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Only idiots or snobs ever really thought…" description: "\"Only idiots or snobs ever really thought less of 'genre books' of course. There are stupid books and there are smart books. There are well-written book..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/917/stephen-marche-15665_book_only-idiots-or-snobs-ever-really-thought_534749.jpg" --- # Only idiots or snobs ever really thought less of 'genre… ![“Only idiots or snobs ever really thought less of 'genre books' of course. There are stupid books and there are smart books. There are well-written books and badly written books. There are fun books and boring books. All of these distinctions are vastly more important than the distinction between…” quote by Stephen Marche](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/917/stephen-marche-15665_book_only-idiots-or-snobs-ever-really-thought_534749.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/917/stephen-marche-15665_book_only-idiots-or-snobs-ever-really-thought_534749.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/917/stephen-marche-15665_book_only-idiots-or-snobs-ever-really-thought_534749.jpg) > “Only idiots or snobs ever really thought less of 'genre books' of course. There are stupid books and there are smart books. There are well-written books and badly written books. There are fun books and boring books. All of these distinctions are vastly more important than the distinction between the literary and the non-literary.” [Stephen Marche](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-marche/) ## 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 argues that genre distinctions (quality, style, enjoyment) matter more than the arbitrary split between literary and non‑literary works. **In simple terms:** Genre matters more than literary label. Key Takeaway Focus on a and enjoyment, not labels. Themes literature genre quality reading culture Mood critical reflective analytical Type observational analytical critical When to use this quote - Choosing a book - teaching literature - publishing decisions - personal reading habits Key Concepts Literary criticism genre theory cultural hierarchy Questions to Reflect On - Do you judge books by genre or by quality? - How do labels affect your reading choices? A Different Perspective The binary literary/non‑literary split can still influence awards and market perception. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Book](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/book/) [Books](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/books/) [Books Badly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/books-badly-2903030/) [Books Distinctions](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/books-distinctions-4483955/) [Boring](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/boring/) [Boring books](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/boring-books-22878/) [Courses](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/courses/) [Distinction](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/distinction/) [Fun](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fun/) [Fun Book](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fun-book-225495/) [Genre](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/genre/) [Genre Books](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/genre-books-1946653/) [Idiot](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/idiot/) [Important](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/important/) [Literary Non](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/literary-non-2098839/) [Smart](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/smart/) [Snob](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/snob/) [Stupid](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/stupid/) [Stupid Books](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/stupid-books-2312333/) [Well written](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/well-written/) [Wells](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/wells/) [Written](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/written/) ## Related quotes > [We are never allowed to forget that some books are badly written; we should remember that sometimes they're badly read, too.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nick-hornby/we-are-never-allowed-to-forget-that-some-books-are-badly-written-we/) [Nick Hornby](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nick-hornby/) > [I am self-educated from genre books.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlaine-harris/i-am-self-educated-from-genre-books/) [Charlaine Harris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlaine-harris/) > [I'll always be reading a good book. I don't have, like, specific genre tastes or anything or things that I kind of get hooked…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dylan-o-brien/i-ll-always-be-reading-a-good-book-i-don-t-have-like-specific-genre/) [Dylan O'Brien](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dylan-o-brien/) > [There's nothing quite as exciting or moving as the very finest literary non-fiction.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/catherine-jinks/there-s-nothing-quite-as-exciting-or-moving-as-the-very-finest/) [Catherine Jinks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/catherine-jinks/) > [I think poets should work in the non-literary, non-academic world, get to know more than a workshop or a university.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adrienne-rich/i-think-poets-should-work-in-the-non-literary-non-academic-world-get/) [Adrienne Rich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adrienne-rich/) > [“All books are good,’ he said. ‘That’s not true,’ I said. ‘I’ve read some really bad books.’ I was thinking specifically of Anne of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lisa-jewell/all-books-are-good-he-said-that-s-not-true-i-said-i-ve-read-some/) [Lisa Jewell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lisa-jewell/) > [“One of the most egregiously stupid books I've ever come across. I would recommend reading this only because it's the epitome of all that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kris-saknussemm/one-of-the-most-egregiously-stupid-books-i-ve-ever-come-across-i/) [Kris Saknussemm](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kris-saknussemm/) > [When we wrote that scene about the Sleepy Kittens where he's reading the storybook to the kids, it's like we've had to read these…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cinco-paul/when-we-wrote-that-scene-about-the-sleepy-kittens-where-he-s-reading/) [Cinco Paul](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cinco-paul/) > [The directors thought, They understand nothing in the real economy, in real life. 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There is a massive spiking suicide rate in middle age for men and a cultural…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-marche/men-s-gender-problems-cause-them-a-lot-of-suffering-there-is-a/) [Stephen Marche](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-marche/) > [Actually the family is still the core social unit. Culturally, traditional masculinity was a removed father. That was a false conception of masculinity and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-marche/actually-the-family-is-still-the-core-social-unit-culturally/) [Stephen Marche](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-marche/) > [Look at The Iliad, there's all this stuff about men loving children. The King of Sparta was the most brutal warrior of ancient Greece,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-marche/look-at-the-iliad-there-s-all-this-stuff-about-men-loving-children/) [Stephen Marche](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-marche/) > [Marriage is an an inherently contradictory state. It involves the fusion of two people into one thing. And it's also love, and it's a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-marche/marriage-is-an-an-inherently-contradictory-state-it-involves-the/) [Stephen Marche](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-marche/) > [I cannot imagine why a woman would ever call herself anything but a feminist. But a man calling himself a feminist, what does that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-marche/i-cannot-imagine-why-a-woman-would-ever-call-herself-anything-but-a/) [Stephen Marche](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-marche/) > [When you look at how men and women are living together, there are two processes at work. One, women are rising in the middle…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-marche/when-you-look-at-how-men-and-women-are-living-together-there-are-two/) [Stephen Marche](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-marche/) > [I don't really mind it when Trudeau calls himself a feminist because, you know, he did the half-female cabinet; that's something to be proud…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-marche/i-don-t-really-mind-it-when-trudeau-calls-himself-a-feminist-because/) [Stephen Marche](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-marche/) > [We're in Trump times - we're in the time this misogynist hate clown is the leader of the free world, and when Putin has…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-marche/we-re-in-trump-times-we-re-in-the-time-this-misogynist-hate-clown-is/) [Stephen Marche](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-marche/) > [The wilderness within us is actually the best part of us.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-marche/the-wilderness-within-us-is-actually-the-best-part-of-us/) [Stephen Marche](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-marche/) > [One thing you can say about Trump is that he is not a traditional patriarch. He has a wife who's not even in the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-marche/one-thing-you-can-say-about-trump-is-that-he-is-not-a-traditional/) [Stephen Marche](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-marche/) > [The research points pretty clearly to the rise of companionate marriage, and I just think it's going to keep being popular, for the very…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-marche/the-research-points-pretty-clearly-to-the-rise-of-companionate/) [Stephen Marche](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-marche/) [Explore all 42 Stephen Marche quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-marche/) ## 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. 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