--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Books are to be called for and supplied…" description: "\"Books are to be called for and supplied on the assumption that the process of reading is not a half-sleep, but in the highest sense an exercise, a gymn..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/064/walt-whitman-265_assumption_books-are-to-be-called-for-and-supplied_126528.jpg" --- # Books are to be called for and supplied on the assumption… ![“Books are to be called for and supplied on the assumption that the process of reading is not a half-sleep, but in the highest sense an exercise, a gymnastic struggle; that the reader is to do something for himself.” quote by Walt Whitman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/064/walt-whitman-265_assumption_books-are-to-be-called-for-and-supplied_126528.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/064/walt-whitman-265_assumption_books-are-to-be-called-for-and-supplied_126528.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/064/walt-whitman-265_assumption_books-are-to-be-called-for-and-supplied_126528.jpg) > “Books are to be called for and supplied on the assumption that the process of reading is not a half-sleep, but in the highest sense an exercise, a gymnastic struggle; that the reader is to do something for himself.” [Walt Whitman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walt-whitman/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Reading is an active, vigorous mental exercise that demands full engagement, not a passive activity. **In simple terms:** Reading is active mental workout. Key Takeaway Approach reading with focus and effort. Themes education mindfulness active learning Mood engaged thoughtful Type educational inspirational When to use this quote - academic study - personal enrichment Key Concepts literature cognitive development Practical Applications - Take notes - discuss ideas with others Questions to Reflect On - How do you stay actively engaged while reading? - What strategies deepen comprehension? A Different Perspective Passive reading yields shallow understanding. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Assumption](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/assumption/) [Book](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/book/) [Books](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/books/) [Books Called](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/books-called-1462115/) [Exercise](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/exercise/) [Exercise Gymnastic](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/exercise-gymnastic-1462117/) [Half](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/half/) [Highest](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/highest/) [Process](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/process/) [Process Reading](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/process-reading-314869/) [Reader](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/reader/) [Reading](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/reading/) [Sleep](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sleep/) [Struggle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/struggle/) [Struggle Reader](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/struggle-reader-1462116/) [Writer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writer/) ## Related quotes > [The process of reading is not a half sleep, but in the highest sense, an exercise, a gymnast's struggle: that the reader is to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walt-whitman/the-process-of-reading-is-not-a-half-sleep-but-in-the-highest-sense/) [Walt Whitman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walt-whitman/) > [That's what the great masters and mistresses have been saying ever since time began. They can point the way, leave signposts and little instructions…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-lennon/that-s-what-the-great-masters-and-mistresses-have-been-saying-ever/) [John Lennon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-lennon/) > [Yes, I have two books that are about me: one of them I wrote, and the other one was written about me. One of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eve-bunting/yes-i-have-two-books-that-are-about-me-one-of-them-i-wrote-and-the/) [Eve Bunting](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eve-bunting/) > [We had tried to get a couple books that were written about Ray Kroc, and one of the books, we called the publisher. The…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeremy-renner/we-had-tried-to-get-a-couple-books-that-were-written-about-ray-kroc/) [Jeremy Renner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeremy-renner/) > [There's a series of children's books called A Series of Unfortunate Events, which is like an incredibly dark version of Roald Dahl. I hope…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barry-sonnenfeld/there-s-a-series-of-children-s-books-called-a-series-of-unfortunate/) [Barry Sonnenfeld](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barry-sonnenfeld/) > [“The process of reading a book takes a while to get used to (in this future society). It's so slow and laborious. But once…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mike-a-lancaster/the-process-of-reading-a-book-takes-a-while-to-get-used-to-in-this/) [Mike A. Lancaster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mike-a-lancaster/) > [the process of reading is reciprocal; the book is no more than a formula, to be furnished out with images out of the reader's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-bowen/the-process-of-reading-is-reciprocal-the-book-is-no-more-than-a/) [Elizabeth Bowen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-bowen/) > [For me, the writing process is the same as the reading process. I want to know what happens next.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neal-asher/for-me-the-writing-process-is-the-same-as-the-reading-process-i-want/) [Neal Asher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neal-asher/) > [“The process of reading is somehow heightened through the process of doing it near water. Extreme reading!”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christian-lander/the-process-of-reading-is-somehow-heightened-through-the-process-of/) [Christian Lander](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christian-lander/) > [When we assume God to be a guiding principle well, sure enough, a god is usually characteristic of a certain system of thought or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carl-jung/when-we-assume-god-to-be-a-guiding-principle-well-sure-enough-a-god/) [Carl Jung](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carl-jung/) > [At times it has been doubtful to me if Emerson really knows or feels what Poetry is at its highest, as in the Bible,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walt-whitman/at-times-it-has-been-doubtful-to-me-if-emerson-really-knows-or-feels/) [Walt Whitman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walt-whitman/) > [Neither novels or their readers benefit from any attempts to divine whether any facts hide inside a story. Such efforts attack the very idea…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-green/neither-novels-or-their-readers-benefit-from-any-attempts-to-divine/) [John Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-green/) > [Much like teaching art to young art students age 10 to 15 or so on, you have to break it down into bite-sized pieces,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kehinde-wiley/much-like-teaching-art-to-young-art-students-age-10-to-15-or-so-on/) [Kehinde Wiley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kehinde-wiley/) > [It's difficult for people to come to the understanding that only a small minority of the people ever really get the word about life,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/earl-nightingale/it-s-difficult-for-people-to-come-to-the-understanding-that-only-a/) [Earl Nightingale](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/earl-nightingale/) > [Next to the assumption of power was the responsibility of relinquishing it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benjamin-disraeli/next-to-the-assumption-of-power-was-the-responsibility-of/) [Benjamin Disraeli](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benjamin-disraeli/) ## More by Walt Whitman > [O lands! O all so dear to me - what you are, I become part of that, whatever it is.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walt-whitman/o-lands-o-all-so-dear-to-me-what-you-are-i-become-part-of-that/) [Walt Whitman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walt-whitman/) > [“Each of us inevitable, Each of us limitless—each of us with his or her right upon the earth, Each of us allow'd the eternal…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walt-whitman/each-of-us-inevitable-each-of-us-limitless-each-of-us-with-his-or-her/) [Walt Whitman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walt-whitman/) > [Comerado, this is no book,Who touches this, touches a man,(Is it night? Are we here alone?)It is I you hold, and who holds you,I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walt-whitman/comerado-this-is-no-book-who-touches-this-touches-a-man-is-it-night/) [Walt Whitman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walt-whitman/) > [I have sometimes thought that the laws ought not to punish those actions of evil which are committed when the senses are steeped in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walt-whitman/i-have-sometimes-thought-that-the-laws-ought-not-to-punish-those/) [Walt Whitman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walt-whitman/) > [Oh while I live, to be the ruler of life, not a slave, to meet life as a powerful conqueror, and nothing exterior to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walt-whitman/oh-while-i-live-to-be-the-ruler-of-life-not-a-slave-to-meet-life-as-a/) [Walt Whitman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walt-whitman/) > [“it makes such difference where you read”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walt-whitman/it-makes-such-difference-where-you-read/) [Walt Whitman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walt-whitman/) > [Wisdom is not finally tested in the schools, Wisdom cannot be pass'd from one having it to another not having it, Wisdom is of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walt-whitman/wisdom-is-not-finally-tested-in-the-schools-wisdom-cannot-be-pass-d/) [Walt Whitman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walt-whitman/) > [Strange, (is it not?) that battles, martyrs, blood, even assassination should so condense - perhaps only really lastingly condense - a Nationality.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walt-whitman/strange-is-it-not-that-battles-martyrs-blood-even-assassination/) [Walt Whitman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walt-whitman/) > [I think I could always live with animals. The more you're around people, the more you love animals.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walt-whitman/i-think-i-could-always-live-with-animals-the-more-you-re-around/) [Walt Whitman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walt-whitman/) > [“I am the poet of the Body and I am the poet of the Soul, The pleasures of heaven are with me and the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walt-whitman/i-am-the-poet-of-the-body-and-i-am-the-poet-of-the-soul-the-pleasures/) [Walt Whitman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walt-whitman/) > [So here I sit in the early candle-light of old age-I and my book-casting backward glances over out travel'd road.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walt-whitman/so-here-i-sit-in-the-early-candle-light-of-old-age-i-and-my-book/) [Walt Whitman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walt-whitman/) > [Re-examine all you have been told. Dismiss what insults your soul.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walt-whitman/re-examine-all-you-have-been-told-dismiss-what-insults-your-soul/) [Walt Whitman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walt-whitman/) > [This is what you shall do: love the earth and sun, and animals, despise riches, give alms to every one that asks, stand up…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walt-whitman/this-is-what-you-shall-do-love-the-earth-and-sun-and-animals-despise/) [Walt Whitman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walt-whitman/) > [Each of us inevitable; Each of us limitless-each of us with his or her right upon the earth.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walt-whitman/each-of-us-inevitable-each-of-us-limitless-each-of-us-with-his-or-her-2/) [Walt Whitman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walt-whitman/) > [Silence? What can New York-noisy, roaring, rumbling, tumbling, bustling, story, turbulent New York-have to do with silence? Amid the universal clatter, the incessant din…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walt-whitman/silence-what-can-new-york-noisy-roaring-rumbling-tumbling-bustling/) [Walt Whitman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walt-whitman/) [Explore all 775 Walt Whitman quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walt-whitman/) ## More Assumption quotes > [Next to the assumption of power was the responsibility of relinquishing it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benjamin-disraeli/next-to-the-assumption-of-power-was-the-responsibility-of/) [Benjamin Disraeli](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benjamin-disraeli/) > [It's difficult for people to come to the understanding that only a small minority of the people ever really get the word about life,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/earl-nightingale/it-s-difficult-for-people-to-come-to-the-understanding-that-only-a/) [Earl Nightingale](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/earl-nightingale/) > [Much like teaching art to young art students age 10 to 15 or so on, you have to break it down into bite-sized pieces,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kehinde-wiley/much-like-teaching-art-to-young-art-students-age-10-to-15-or-so-on/) [Kehinde Wiley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kehinde-wiley/) > [Neither novels or their readers benefit from any attempts to divine whether any facts hide inside a story. Such efforts attack the very idea…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-green/neither-novels-or-their-readers-benefit-from-any-attempts-to-divine/) [John Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-green/) > [The risk of developing carcinoma of the lung increases steadily as the amount smoked increases. If the risk among non-smokers is taken as unity…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-doll/the-risk-of-developing-carcinoma-of-the-lung-increases-steadily-as/) [Richard Doll](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-doll/) > [Fortunately, the mind is restless; when it uncovers a layer of its own deception, gives up an illusion, exposes a lie, it does not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kim-chernin/fortunately-the-mind-is-restless-when-it-uncovers-a-layer-of-its-own/) [Kim Chernin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kim-chernin/) > [The possibility of saying anything about a thing rests on the assumption that it preserves its identity, or continues to be the same thing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frank-knight/the-possibility-of-saying-anything-about-a-thing-rests-on-the/) [Frank Knight](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frank-knight/) > [She spent hours drawing on her own, trying to perfect her craft. And when she got into music, she had that same diligence in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laura-joplin/she-spent-hours-drawing-on-her-own-trying-to-perfect-her-craft-and/) [Laura Joplin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laura-joplin/) > [If they are, then the only ultimate truths are the particulars of concrete experience, and no postulate or general assumption is inherent in science…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chauncey-wright/if-they-are-then-the-only-ultimate-truths-are-the-particulars-of/) [Chauncey Wright](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chauncey-wright/) > [If he's - the inference is that somehow he thinks slavery is a - is a noble institution I would - I would strongly…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-w-bush/if-he-s-the-inference-is-that-somehow-he-thinks-slavery-is-a-is-a/) [George W. Bush](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-w-bush/) > [Leadership, pure and simple, is the assumption of responsibility for the pursuit of excellence in group life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-selznick/leadership-pure-and-simple-is-the-assumption-of-responsibility-for/) [Philip Selznick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-selznick/) > [Humans suffer from self-centred notions as to the nature of life. Humans assume that alien life forms should conform to standards that match our…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steve-perry/humans-suffer-from-self-centred-notions-as-to-the-nature-of-life/) [Steve Perry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steve-perry/) > [When I see a fan coming over, I can't help but make an assumption about what they want to talk about. A middle-aged American…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/natalie-dormer/when-i-see-a-fan-coming-over-i-can-t-help-but-make-an-assumption/) [Natalie Dormer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/natalie-dormer/) > [The Bell curve is a fact of life. The blacks on average score 85 per cent on IQ and it is accurate, nothing to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lee-kuan-yew/the-bell-curve-is-a-fact-of-life-the-blacks-on-average-score-85-per/) [Lee Kuan Yew](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lee-kuan-yew/) > [Pussy Riot have certainly changed some people's assumptions about the role of political art and the relationship between the intelligentsia and the church. That's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/masha-gessen/pussy-riot-have-certainly-changed-some-people-s-assumptions-about-the/) [Masha Gessen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/masha-gessen/) [Browse all 1,277 Assumption quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/assumption/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Books are to be called for and supplied on the assumption that the process of reading is not a half-sleep, but in the highest sense an exercise, a gymnastic struggle; that the reader is to do something for himself.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Walt Whitman" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walt-whitman/books-are-to-be-called-for-and-supplied-on-the-assumption-that-the/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Assumption" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walt-whitman/books-are-to-be-called-for-and-supplied-on-the-assumption-that-the/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/064/walt-whitman-265_assumption_books-are-to-be-called-for-and-supplied_126528.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/064/walt-whitman-265_assumption_books-are-to-be-called-for-and-supplied_126528.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/064/walt-whitman-265_assumption_books-are-to-be-called-for-and-supplied_126528.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Books are to be called for and supplied on the assumption that the process of reading is not a half-sleep…” — Walt Whitman", "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": "Walt Whitman", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walt-whitman/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "Books are to be called for...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walt-whitman/books-are-to-be-called-for-and-supplied-on-the-assumption-that-the/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walt-whitman/books-are-to-be-called-for-and-supplied-on-the-assumption-that-the/#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 } } ] } ```