--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: A book about books is like a poem about…" description: "\"“A book about books is like a poem about poetry: Books are knowledge, paid for, all. Readers - horses in a stall. Stallions should always run. Lest the..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/620/will-advise-10236_approval_a-book-about-books-is-like-a-poem-about_1882900.jpg" --- # A book about books is like a poem about poetry: Books are… ![“A book about books is like a poem about poetry: Books are knowledge, paid for, all. Readers - horses in a stall. Stallions should always run. Lest they stale become, in turn. Running waters are most clear. In some books, you disappear – lose yourself, and track of time. How I wish that one was…” quote by Will Advise](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/620/will-advise-10236_approval_a-book-about-books-is-like-a-poem-about_1882900.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/620/will-advise-10236_approval_a-book-about-books-is-like-a-poem-about_1882900.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/620/will-advise-10236_approval_a-book-about-books-is-like-a-poem-about_1882900.jpg) > ““A book about books is like a poem about poetry: Books are knowledge, paid for, all. Readers - horses in a stall. Stallions should always run. Lest they stale become, in turn. Running waters are most clear. In some books, you disappear – lose yourself, and track of time. How I wish that one was mine... Mine, to have, to write, to read... Mine, just like a flying steed. Mine, forever, - to improve. Would I then, of me, approve? I would not, I can't... myself. I'm but dust, swept off a shelf. Fly, can I, just 'til I'm settled, down, beside my flower, petalled.”” Will Advise ## 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 likens books to poetry and readers to horses, urging freedom and immersion in reading for personal growth. **In simple terms:** Books are like poetry; readers should roam freely. Key Takeaway Embrace reading as a liberating, transformative practice. Themes reading creativity freedom self‑discovery Mood reflective inspirational Type philosophical poetic When to use this quote - personal reflection - creative writing - literary analysis - mindful reading - self‑development Key Concepts literature metaphor identity transcendence Questions to Reflect On - How does freedom in reading shape personal identity? - What limits do we place on our imagination? A Different Perspective May become reading become a constraint rather than a catalyst? ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Approval](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/approval/) [Book](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/book/) [Books](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/books/) [Botany](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/botany/) [Flower](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/flower/) [Flowers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/flowers/) [Forgiveness](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/forgiveness/) [Freedom](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/freedom/) [Horse](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/horse/) [Horses](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/horses/) [Invisibility](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/invisibility/) [Losing yourself](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/losing-yourself/) [Nothing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/nothing/) [Ownership](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ownership/) [Poem](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/poem/) [Poems](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/poems/) [Poetry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/poetry/) [Reading](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/reading/) [River](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/river/) [Rose](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/rose/) [Running](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/running/) [Stall](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/stall/) [Stallion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/stallion/) [Stallions](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/stallions/) [Stillness](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/stillness/) [Water](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/water/) [Writer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writer/) [Writing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writing/) ## Related quotes > [If you can explain a poem, it is not a poem. Poetry has to be inexplicable.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/luis-gonzalez/if-you-can-explain-a-poem-it-is-not-a-poem-poetry-has-to-be/) [Luis Gonzalez](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/luis-gonzalez/) > [The fact is that poetry is not the books in the library . . . Poetry is the encounter of the reader with the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/the-fact-is-that-poetry-is-not-the-books-in-the-library-poetry-is-the/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [I used to buy scented poetry books on tour and read aloud to the band. Not what you'd expect, huh?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/suzi-quatro/i-used-to-buy-scented-poetry-books-on-tour-and-read-aloud-to-the-band/) [Suzi Quatro](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/suzi-quatro/) > [“I love the echoes of a home filled to the rim with poetry, books and art.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/melody-lee/i-love-the-echoes-of-a-home-filled-to-the-rim-with-poetry-books-and/) [Melody Lee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/melody-lee/) > [I'm reading a manuscript by Rodney Jones, "Village Prodigies",it's one of the best contemporary poetry books I've ever read ever.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-dobyns/i-m-reading-a-manuscript-by-rodney-jones-village-prodigies-it-s-one/) [Stephen Dobyns](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-dobyns/) > [“His head propped on a stack of poetry books he’d brought from the library. Almost all of them had been inscribed on the inside…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cassandra-clare/his-head-propped-on-a-stack-of-poetry-books-he-d-brought-from-the/) [Cassandra Clare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cassandra-clare/) > [I have piles of poetry books in the bathroom, on the stairs, everywhere. The only way to write poetry is to read it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carol-ann-duffy/i-have-piles-of-poetry-books-in-the-bathroom-on-the-stairs-everywhere/) [Carol Ann Duffy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carol-ann-duffy/) > [“Poetry is not the books in the library. Poetry is the encounter of the reader with the book, the discovery of the book.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jorge-luis-borges/poetry-is-not-the-books-in-the-library-poetry-is-the-encounter-of-the/) [Jorge Luis Borges](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jorge-luis-borges/) > [I never thought I'd be doing poetry books. I never really studied poetry. But the first one I did was after my mother died,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/caroline-kennedy/i-never-thought-i-d-be-doing-poetry-books-i-never-really-studied/) [Caroline Kennedy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/caroline-kennedy/) > [I find great consolation in having a lot of poetry books around. I believe that writing poetry and reading it are deeply intertwined. I've…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-hirsch/i-find-great-consolation-in-having-a-lot-of-poetry-books-around-i/) [Edward Hirsch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-hirsch/) > [Sometimes if you have a difficult decisin to make, just stall until the answer presents itself.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tina-fey/sometimes-if-you-have-a-difficult-decisin-to-make-just-stall-until/) [Tina Fey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tina-fey/) > [My uncle was the first brown person to have a market stall on Petticoat Lane in the 1960s. He worked his way up from…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/m-i-a/my-uncle-was-the-first-brown-person-to-have-a-market-stall-on/) M.I.A > [If 1 had 1 life to live why would he wait to the last second to live it !](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/militon-munney/if-1-had-1-life-to-live-why-would-he-wait-to-the-last-second-to-live/) [Militon Munney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/militon-munney/) > [So many entrepreneurs view their companies as their babies. They micromanage, and they stall.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kirsten-green/so-many-entrepreneurs-view-their-companies-as-their-babies-they/) [Kirsten Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kirsten-green/) > [Using a public bathroom is an incredibly embarrassing experience. I enter the stall but can't reach the lock on the door.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sinead-burke/using-a-public-bathroom-is-an-incredibly-embarrassing-experience-i/) [Sinead Burke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sinead-burke/) ## More by Will Advise > [“If you have half a nothing - sell it for a double something, resell half at double-price, and buy another something and a half…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/will-advise/if-you-have-half-a-nothing-sell-it-for-a-double-something-resell-half/) Will Advise > [“Having no applicable skills, in any possible area whatsoever, effectively makes me the master of redundancy. But that info is obsolete, like my insults…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/will-advise/having-no-applicable-skills-in-any-possible-area-whatsoever/) Will Advise > [“A river starts by longing for the ocean...”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/will-advise/a-river-starts-by-longing-for-the-ocean/) Will Advise > [“To have the wisdom is rarely achieved by seeking the knowledge.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/will-advise/to-have-the-wisdom-is-rarely-achieved-by-seeking-the-knowledge/) Will Advise > [“The best about cats is they love cannot feign...”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/will-advise/the-best-about-cats-is-they-love-cannot-feign/) Will Advise > [“When dreams can real already be, away goes sorrow, forth comes glee, yet always we will craft new dreams, our hearts on fire, that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/will-advise/when-dreams-can-real-already-be-away-goes-sorrow-forth-comes-glee-yet/) Will Advise > [“Whenever a river reaches the ocean, it waits to go back..”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/will-advise/whenever-a-river-reaches-the-ocean-it-waits-to-go-back/) Will Advise > [“The morning sky is a thought of the stars.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/will-advise/the-morning-sky-is-a-thought-of-the-stars/) Will Advise > [“One must be a lotus to emerge from mucky waters clean.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/will-advise/one-must-be-a-lotus-to-emerge-from-mucky-waters-clean/) Will Advise > [“Nothing brings home closer than going home...”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/will-advise/nothing-brings-home-closer-than-going-home/) Will Advise > [“Once a cat loves you, it loves you till the end.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/will-advise/once-a-cat-loves-you-it-loves-you-till-the-end/) Will Advise > [“People skills are useless with cats, because cats are immune to training, and do whatever they decide in any situation... And most importantly they…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/will-advise/people-skills-are-useless-with-cats-because-cats-are-immune-to/) Will Advise > [“Love is that which doesn't die.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/will-advise/love-is-that-which-doesn-t-die/) Will Advise > [“To adore one has to yearn.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/will-advise/to-adore-one-has-to-yearn/) Will Advise > [“To feel is to go to the places you were.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/will-advise/to-feel-is-to-go-to-the-places-you-were/) Will Advise Explore all 67 Will Advise quotes ## More Approval quotes > [Anyone who's read my 'Terror in the Skies' series knows that I have not been writing with an eye toward approval from any government…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/annie-jacobsen/anyone-who-s-read-my-terror-in-the-skies-series-knows-that-i-have-not/) [Annie Jacobsen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/annie-jacobsen/) > [we need not avoid our active lives, but simply bring to them a new vision and shift of gravity. for in the center we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sue-monk-kidd/we-need-not-avoid-our-active-lives-but-simply-bring-to-them-a-new/) [Sue Monk Kidd](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sue-monk-kidd/) > [Lean too much on the approval of people, and it becomes a bed of thorns](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tehyi-hsieh/lean-too-much-on-the-approval-of-people-and-it-becomes-a-bed-of-thorns/) [Tehyi Hsieh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tehyi-hsieh/) > [But I always reassure them that as far as my contractual rights can go, I will protect them and make sure that they have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jay-roach/but-i-always-reassure-them-that-as-far-as-my-contractual-rights-can/) [Jay Roach](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jay-roach/) > [Growing up in that fashion is a breeding ground for insecurity and doubt; it also leaves you questioning motives. It took me a long…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/damon-runyon/growing-up-in-that-fashion-is-a-breeding-ground-for-insecurity-and/) [Damon Runyon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/damon-runyon/) > [A year ago, my approval rating was in the 30s, my nominee for the supreme court had just withdrawn, and my vice president had…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-w-bush/a-year-ago-my-approval-rating-was-in-the-30s-my-nominee-for-the/) [George W. Bush](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-w-bush/) > [Approval is a greater motivator than disapproval, but we have to disapprove on occasion when we correct. It’s necessary. I make corrections only after…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-wooden/approval-is-a-greater-motivator-than-disapproval-but-we-have-to/) [John Wooden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-wooden/) > [These days people are mean to people just because they don't like the way they look. No-one should be hated because of their flaws.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sonya-parker/these-days-people-are-mean-to-people-just-because-they-don-t-like-the/) [Sonya Parker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sonya-parker/) > [I got this emptiness inside that got me fighting for approval because I missed out on my daddy saying, Way to Go.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lecrae/i-got-this-emptiness-inside-that-got-me-fighting-for-approval-because/) [Lecrae](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lecrae/) > [My dad taught me swears when I was a toddler, and I saw, at a really early age, that if I shocked people, I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roseanne-barr/my-dad-taught-me-swears-when-i-was-a-toddler-and-i-saw-at-a-really/) [Roseanne Barr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roseanne-barr/) > [If torture is going to be administered as a last resort in the ticking-bomb case, to save enormous numbers of lives, it ought to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-dershowitz/if-torture-is-going-to-be-administered-as-a-last-resort-in-the/) [Alan Dershowitz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-dershowitz/) > [Comedy is a very approval-oriented field.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dave-chappelle/comedy-is-a-very-approval-oriented-field/) [Dave Chappelle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dave-chappelle/) > [Whenever you are too worried about someone else's approval, that person loses respect for you.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sherry-argov/whenever-you-are-too-worried-about-someone-else-s-approval-that/) [Sherry Argov](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sherry-argov/) > [Pleasure is Nature's test, her sign of approval.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oscar-wilde/pleasure-is-nature-s-test-her-sign-of-approval/) [Oscar Wilde](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oscar-wilde/) > [Do you really mean the only reason you try to be good is to gain God's approval and reward? That's not morality, that's just…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-dawkins/do-you-really-mean-the-only-reason-you-try-to-be-good-is-to-gain-god/) [Richard Dawkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-dawkins/) [Browse all 904 Approval quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/approval/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“A book about books is like a poem about poetry: Books are knowledge, paid for, all. Readers - horses in a stall. Stallions should always run. Lest they stale become, in turn. Running waters are most clear. In some books, you disappear – lose yourself, and track of time. How I wish that one was mine... Mine, to have, to write, to read... Mine, just like a flying steed. Mine, forever, - to improve. Would I then, of me, approve? I would not, I can't... myself. I'm but dust, swept off a shelf. Fly, can I, just 'til I'm settled, down, beside my flower, petalled.”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Will Advise" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/will-advise/a-book-about-books-is-like-a-poem-about-poetry-books-are-knowledge/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Approval" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/will-advise/a-book-about-books-is-like-a-poem-about-poetry-books-are-knowledge/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/620/will-advise-10236_approval_a-book-about-books-is-like-a-poem-about_1882900.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/620/will-advise-10236_approval_a-book-about-books-is-like-a-poem-about_1882900.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/620/will-advise-10236_approval_a-book-about-books-is-like-a-poem-about_1882900.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“A book about books is like a poem about poetry: Books are knowledge, paid for, all. Readers - horses in a…” — Will Advise", "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": "Will Advise", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/will-advise/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "“A book about books is like...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/will-advise/a-book-about-books-is-like-a-poem-about-poetry-books-are-knowledge/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/will-advise/a-book-about-books-is-like-a-poem-about-poetry-books-are-knowledge/#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 } } ] } ```