--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I never read a book before reviewing it…" description: "\"I never read a book before reviewing it - it prejudices a man so\" — Sydney Smith" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7c1/sydney-smith-6523_book_i-never-read-a-book-before-reviewing-it_1197104.png" --- # I never read a book before reviewing it - it prejudices a… ![“I never read a book before reviewing it - it prejudices a man so” quote by Sydney Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7c1/sydney-smith-6523_book_i-never-read-a-book-before-reviewing-it_1197104.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7c1/sydney-smith-6523_book_i-never-read-a-book-before-reviewing-it_1197104.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7c1/sydney-smith-6523_book_i-never-read-a-book-before-reviewing-it_1197104.png) > “I never read a book before reviewing it - it prejudices a man so” [Sydney Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sydney-smith/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Reading a book before reviewing biases your judgment, preventing objective assessment. **In simple terms:** Prejudices arise from premature reading. Key Takeaway Read first, then review. Themes bias critical thinking reading habits Mood reflective analytical Type critical philosophical When to use this quote - book clubs - academic reviews - personal reading Key Concepts cognitive bias evaluation process Questions to Reflect On - How does early exposure shape your opinion? - Can you separate impression from analysis? A Different Perspective Reviews can be influenced by prior knowledge. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Book](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/book/) [Book Reviewing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/book-reviewing-3548368/) [Books](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/books/) [Prejudices](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/prejudices/) [Prejudices Man](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/prejudices-man-2875104/) [Read A Book](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/read-a-book/) [Reviewing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/reviewing/) [Reviewing Prejudices](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/reviewing-prejudices-3574335/) ## Related quotes > [I never read a book before previewing it; it prejudices a man so.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sydney-smith/i-never-read-a-book-before-previewing-it-it-prejudices-a-man-so/) [Sydney Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sydney-smith/) > [I'm never a fan of the sociopathic kind of reviewing, people who are sort of self-immolating and have social problems or whatever, and let…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dave-eggers/i-m-never-a-fan-of-the-sociopathic-kind-of-reviewing-people-who-are/) [Dave Eggers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dave-eggers/) > [What is in question is a kind of book reviewing which seems to be more and more popular: the loose putting down of opinions…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gore-vidal/what-is-in-question-is-a-kind-of-book-reviewing-which-seems-to-be/) [Gore Vidal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gore-vidal/) > [My childhood began, as everybody's childhood begins, with prejudices. Man finds prejudices beside his cradle, puts them from him a little in the course…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/victor-hugo/my-childhood-began-as-everybody-s-childhood-begins-with-prejudices/) [Victor Hugo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/victor-hugo/) > [Literary men now routinely tell their readers about their divorces. One literary man who reviews books wrote, in reviewing a study of Ruskin, that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-w-s-trow/literary-men-now-routinely-tell-their-readers-about-their-divorces/) [George W. S. Trow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-w-s-trow/) > [“reviewing History's great idea, the one way you can make things change”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/reviewing-history-s-great-idea-the-one-way-you-can-make-things-change/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“I was going to suggest some hard-won guidelines for responsible reviewing. For instance: First, as in Hippocrates, do no harm. Second, never stoop to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-leonard/i-was-going-to-suggest-some-hard-won-guidelines-for-responsible/) [John Leonard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-leonard/) > [“I never want the art of reviewing to ever feel like a chore.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/queen-of-spades/i-never-want-the-art-of-reviewing-to-ever-feel-like-a-chore/) [Queen Of Spades](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/queen-of-spades/) > [ “ \[Blog post, March 10, 2014\]” ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/k-j-charles/blog-post-march-10-2014/) [K.J. Charles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/k-j-charles/) > [I did my degree in journalism, and I then went on to being a games journalist, reviewing and previewing games and writing about the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rhianna-pratchett/i-did-my-degree-in-journalism-and-i-then-went-on-to-being-a-games/) [Rhianna Pratchett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rhianna-pratchett/) > [I still viewed myself as a reviewer when I was on radio. Was it appropriate for me? I think the answer is it's only…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rod-lurie/i-still-viewed-myself-as-a-reviewer-when-i-was-on-radio-was-it/) [Rod Lurie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rod-lurie/) > [“Only a few short years ago, the average stay-at-home mom spent her relaxation time reading Jackie Collins and staring at the pool boy. Now,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pete-morin/only-a-few-short-years-ago-the-average-stay-at-home-mom-spent-her/) [Pete Morin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pete-morin/) > [One of the greatest creations of the human mind is the art of reviewing books without having read them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/georg-c-lichtenberg/one-of-the-greatest-creations-of-the-human-mind-is-the-art-of/) [Georg C. Lichtenberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/georg-c-lichtenberg/) > [I became a writer because I love to read, yet I never get to unless I'm reviewing a book or doing research.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/i-became-a-writer-because-i-love-to-read-yet-i-never-get-to-unless-i/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [I get rewarded virtually every day with something amazing to see - whether it's a new shot, a miniature sweater, someone who's figured out…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-selick/i-get-rewarded-virtually-every-day-with-something-amazing-to-see/) [Henry Selick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-selick/) ## More by Sydney Smith > [Live always in the best company when you read.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sydney-smith/live-always-in-the-best-company-when-you-read/) [Sydney Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sydney-smith/) > [Scotland: That garret of the earth - that knuckle-end of England - that land of Calvin, oatcakes, and sulfur.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sydney-smith/scotland-that-garret-of-the-earth-that-knuckle-end-of-england-that/) [Sydney Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sydney-smith/) > [My living in Yorkshire was so far out of the way, that it was eleven miles away from a lemon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sydney-smith/my-living-in-yorkshire-was-so-far-out-of-the-way-that-it-was-eleven/) [Sydney Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sydney-smith/) > [Poverty is no disgrace to a man, but it is confoundedly inconvenient](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sydney-smith/poverty-is-no-disgrace-to-a-man-but-it-is-confoundedly-inconvenient/) [Sydney Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sydney-smith/) > [A comfortable house is a great source of happiness. 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Every day sends to their graves obscure men…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sydney-smith/a-great-deal-of-talent-is-lost-to-the-world-for-want-of-a-little/) [Sydney Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sydney-smith/) > [A man who wishes to make his way in life could do no better than go through the world with a boiling tea-kettle in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sydney-smith/a-man-who-wishes-to-make-his-way-in-life-could-do-no-better-than-go/) [Sydney Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sydney-smith/) > [ \[T\]he 47th proposition in Euclid might now be voted down with as much ease as any proposition in politics; and therefore if Lord Hawkesbury… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sydney-smith/t-he-47th-proposition-in-euclid-might-now-be-voted-down-with-as-much/) [Sydney Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sydney-smith/) > [Be what nature intended you for, and you will succeed; be anything else and you will be ten thousand times worse than nothing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sydney-smith/be-what-nature-intended-you-for-and-you-will-succeed-be-anything-else/) [Sydney Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sydney-smith/) > [To business that we love we rise bedtime, and go to't with delight.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sydney-smith/to-business-that-we-love-we-rise-bedtime-and-go-to-t-with-delight/) [Sydney Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sydney-smith/) > [The schoolboy whips his taxed top; the beardless youth manages his taxed horse with a taxed bridle on a taxed road; and the dying…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sydney-smith/the-schoolboy-whips-his-taxed-top-the-beardless-youth-manages-his/) [Sydney Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sydney-smith/) > [I always fear that creation will expire before teatime.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sydney-smith/i-always-fear-that-creation-will-expire-before-teatime/) [Sydney Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sydney-smith/) [Explore all 98 Sydney Smith quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sydney-smith/) ## 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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