--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: If a book is worth reading at all, it is…" description: "\"“If a book is worth reading at all, it is worth reading more than once. Suspense is the lowest of excitants, designed to take your breath away when the..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ff2/william-gerhardie-57283_appreciation_if-a-book-is-worth-reading-at-all-it-is_491578.jpg" --- # If a book is worth reading at all, it is worth reading… ![“If a book is worth reading at all, it is worth reading more than once. Suspense is the lowest of excitants, designed to take your breath away when the brain and heart crave to linger in nobler enjoyment. Suspense drags you on; appreciation causes you to linger.” quote by William Gerhardie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ff2/william-gerhardie-57283_appreciation_if-a-book-is-worth-reading-at-all-it-is_491578.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ff2/william-gerhardie-57283_appreciation_if-a-book-is-worth-reading-at-all-it-is_491578.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ff2/william-gerhardie-57283_appreciation_if-a-book-is-worth-reading-at-all-it-is_491578.jpg) > ““If a book is worth reading at all, it is worth reading more than once. Suspense is the lowest of excitants, designed to take your breath away when the brain and heart crave to linger in nobler enjoyment. Suspense drags you on; appreciation causes you to linger.”” [William Gerhardie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-gerhardie/) ## 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 multiple times deepens understanding; suspense is a fleeting thrill, while true appreciation lingers. **In simple terms:** Re‑read for depth; suspense is short‑lived. Key Takeaway Read again, savor fully. Themes literature appreciation depth Mood reflective thoughtful Type philosophical inspirational When to use this quote - studying classics - book clubs - personal growth - academic research Key Concepts re‑reading suspense mindful engagement Questions to Reflect On - How does rereading change your perception? - When does suspense become a distraction? A Different Perspective Repeated reading can be time‑consuming and may not suit all readers. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Appreciation](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/appreciation/) [Book](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/book/) [Books](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/books/) [Books and reading](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/books-and-reading/) [Brain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/brain/) [Brain And Heart](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/brain-and-heart/) [Breaths](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/breaths/) [Causes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/causes/) [Crave](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/crave/) [Drag](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/drag/) [Enjoyment](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/enjoyment/) [Enjoyment Suspense](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/enjoyment-suspense-4206109/) [Heart](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/heart/) [Heart and brain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/heart-and-brain/) [Ifs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ifs/) [Lowest](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/lowest/) [Reading](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/reading/) [Reading more](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/reading-more/) [Reading Suspense](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/reading-suspense-4206108/) [Reading Worth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/reading-worth-2868831/) [Suspense](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/suspense/) [Worth reading](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/worth-reading/) [Writer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writer/) ## Related quotes > [I do try not to spend much time reading in the suspense genre.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-perry/i-do-try-not-to-spend-much-time-reading-in-the-suspense-genre/) [Thomas Perry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-perry/) > [I want books written out of a brain and heart and soul crowded and vital with Life, spelled with a big L. I want…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gertrude-atherton/i-want-books-written-out-of-a-brain-and-heart-and-soul-crowded-and/) [Gertrude Atherton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gertrude-atherton/) > [You can exist without your soul, you know, as long as your brain and heart are still working. But you’ll have no sense of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/you-can-exist-without-your-soul-you-know-as-long-as-your-brain-and/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [I believe that there is something far nobler than loyalty to any particular man. Loyalty to the truth as we perceive it - loyalty…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-green-ingersoll/i-believe-that-there-is-something-far-nobler-than-loyalty-to-any/) [Robert Green Ingersoll](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-green-ingersoll/) > [In running it is man against himself, the cruelest of opponents. The other runners are not the real enemies. His adversary lies within him,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/glenn-cunningham/in-running-it-is-man-against-himself-the-cruelest-of-opponents-the/) [Glenn Cunningham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/glenn-cunningham/) > [A soft, easy life is not worth living, if it impairs the fibre of brain and heart and muscle. We must dare to be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/theodore-roosevelt/a-soft-easy-life-is-not-worth-living-if-it-impairs-the-fibre-of-brain/) [Theodore Roosevelt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/theodore-roosevelt/) > [If at large gatherings or parties, or around people with whom you feel distant, your hands sometimes hang awkwardly at the ends of your…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicole-krauss/if-at-large-gatherings-or-parties-or-around-people-with-whom-you-feel/) [Nicole Krauss](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicole-krauss/) > [But you cannot know a place without loving it and hating it and feeling everything in between. You cannot understand a complex people by…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/silas-house/but-you-cannot-know-a-place-without-loving-it-and-hating-it-and/) [Silas House](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/silas-house/) > [I spend several years trying to get inside the brain and heart of my subjects, listening to the interior monologues in their letters, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/irving-stone/i-spend-several-years-trying-to-get-inside-the-brain-and-heart-of-my/) [Irving Stone](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/irving-stone/) > [I turn you out of doors tenant desire you pay no rent I turn you out of doors all my best rooms are yours…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alain-chartier/i-turn-you-out-of-doors-tenant-desire-you-pay-no-rent-i-turn-you-out/) [Alain Chartier](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alain-chartier/) > [Peace appeals to the hearts; studies to the brain. Both are needed, indeed indispensable. But equally indispensable is a valid link between brain and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/johan-galtung/peace-appeals-to-the-hearts-studies-to-the-brain-both-are-needed/) [Johan Galtung](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/johan-galtung/) > [There were no shortcuts, I realized. It took years of racing to build up the mind and body and character until a rider had…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lance-armstrong/there-were-no-shortcuts-i-realized-it-took-years-of-racing-to-build/) [Lance Armstrong](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lance-armstrong/) > [“Because when I read, I don't really read; I pop a beautiful sentence into my mouth and suck it like a fruit drop, or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bohumil-hrabal/because-when-i-read-i-don-t-really-read-i-pop-a-beautiful-sentence/) [Bohumil Hrabal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bohumil-hrabal/) > [The cause of Sense, is the External Body, or Object, which presseth the organ proper to each Sense, either immediately, as in theTaste and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-hobbes/the-cause-of-sense-is-the-external-body-or-object-which-presseth-the/) [Thomas Hobbes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-hobbes/) > [I love lawyers and bankers, they are my family, but I don't want to live with them. It doesn't make a city. You need…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/agathe-snow/i-love-lawyers-and-bankers-they-are-my-family-but-i-don-t-want-to/) [Agathe Snow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/agathe-snow/) ## More by William Gerhardie > [“Our life was an inept play with some disproportionately good acting in it.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-gerhardie/our-life-was-an-inept-play-with-some-disproportionately-good-acting/) [William Gerhardie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-gerhardie/) > [“But to dwell prematurely on the sadness of one’s death to others, Uncle Kostia, is like asking for money in advance. It’s commercially unsound.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-gerhardie/but-to-dwell-prematurely-on-the-sadness-of-one-s-death-to-others/) [William Gerhardie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-gerhardie/) > [We are like icebergs in the ocean: one-eighth part consciousness and the rest submerged beneath the surface of articulate apprehension.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-gerhardie/we-are-like-icebergs-in-the-ocean-one-eighth-part-consciousness-and/) [William Gerhardie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-gerhardie/) > [“No fiction is good fiction unless it is true to life, and yet no life is worth relating unless it be a life out…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-gerhardie/no-fiction-is-good-fiction-unless-it-is-true-to-life-and-yet-no-life/) [William Gerhardie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-gerhardie/) > [There are as many fools at a university as anywhere? But their folly,I admit, has a certain stampthe stamp of university training, if you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-gerhardie/there-are-as-many-fools-at-a-university-as-anywhere-but-their-folly-i/) [William Gerhardie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-gerhardie/) [Explore all 6 William Gerhardie quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-gerhardie/) ## More Appreciation quotes > [You'll seldom experience regret for anything that you've done. It is what you haven't done that will torment you. The message, therefore, is clear.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/you-ll-seldom-experience-regret-for-anything-that-you-ve-done-it-is/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Gratitude isn't just a feeling, it's an action. Expressing gratitude by writing in a journal, taking a photo, or shooting a video creates a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/janice-kaplan/gratitude-isn-t-just-a-feeling-it-s-an-action-expressing-gratitude-by/) [Janice Kaplan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/janice-kaplan/) > [Time can but make her beauty over again.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-butler-yeats/time-can-but-make-her-beauty-over-again/) [William Butler Yeats](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-butler-yeats/) > [The writings of latter-day prophets clearly teach that the sorrows and sufferings endured by Adam and Eve upon their leaving the Garden of Eden…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-k-judd/the-writings-of-latter-day-prophets-clearly-teach-that-the-sorrows/) [Daniel K Judd](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-k-judd/) > [Wine is one of the most civilized things in the world and one of the most natural things of the world that has been…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ernest-hemingway/wine-is-one-of-the-most-civilized-things-in-the-world-and-one-of-the/) [Ernest Hemingway](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ernest-hemingway/) > [A very small percentage of the people in this world will actually experience and live today. So many people will be stuck on another…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steve-maraboli/a-very-small-percentage-of-the-people-in-this-world-will-actually/) [Steve Maraboli](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steve-maraboli/) > [Stop chasing the things you want and embrace all that you already have.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/stop-chasing-the-things-you-want-and-embrace-all-that-you-already-have/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Appreciation is the purest vibration that exists on the planet today.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/esther-hicks/appreciation-is-the-purest-vibration-that-exists-on-the-planet-today/) [Esther Hicks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/esther-hicks/) > [“My thank-yous always come out rather labored. I often don't give them at all. People do what they're supposed to do and then wait…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gillian-flynn/my-thank-yous-always-come-out-rather-labored-i-often-don-t-give-them/) [Gillian Flynn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gillian-flynn/) > [“Like gratitude, authentic appreciation in the workplace is a realisation that can be nurtured and accessed with daily mindful practice. By and large, people…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-dines/like-gratitude-authentic-appreciation-in-the-workplace-is-a/) [Christopher Dines](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-dines/) > [Think of your mind, your emotions, and your spirit as the ultimate garden. The way to ensure a bountiful, nourishing harvest is to plant…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tony-robbins/think-of-your-mind-your-emotions-and-your-spirit-as-the-ultimate/) [Tony Robbins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tony-robbins/) > [“Recognize and appreciate little things, and enjoy what Life has to offer”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cesar-nikko-caharian-iii/recognize-and-appreciate-little-things-and-enjoy-what-life-has-to/) [Cesar Nikko Caharian III](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cesar-nikko-caharian-iii/) > [Men, when it comes to women, value diamonds and put no stock into copper. Diamonds are rare. You can find copper anywhere.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/enhance-dreams/men-when-it-comes-to-women-value-diamonds-and-put-no-stock-into/) [Enhance Dreams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/enhance-dreams/) > [“Everything we perceive to be solid and static is made up of almost entirely empty space.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-p-kauffman/everything-we-perceive-to-be-solid-and-static-is-made-up-of-almost/) [Joseph P. Kauffman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-p-kauffman/) > [Be very slow to believe that you are wiser than all others; it is a fatal but common error. Where one has been saved…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-caleb-colton/be-very-slow-to-believe-that-you-are-wiser-than-all-others-it-is-a/) [Charles Caleb Colton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-caleb-colton/) [Browse all 2,528 Appreciation quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/appreciation/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“If a book is worth reading at all, it is worth reading more than once. Suspense is the lowest of excitants, designed to take your breath away when the brain and heart crave to linger in nobler enjoyment. Suspense drags you on; appreciation causes you to linger.”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "William Gerhardie" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-gerhardie/if-a-book-is-worth-reading-at-all-it-is-worth-reading-more-than-once/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Appreciation" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-gerhardie/if-a-book-is-worth-reading-at-all-it-is-worth-reading-more-than-once/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ff2/william-gerhardie-57283_appreciation_if-a-book-is-worth-reading-at-all-it-is_491578.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ff2/william-gerhardie-57283_appreciation_if-a-book-is-worth-reading-at-all-it-is_491578.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ff2/william-gerhardie-57283_appreciation_if-a-book-is-worth-reading-at-all-it-is_491578.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“If a book is worth reading at all, it is worth reading more than once. Suspense is the lowest of excitants…” — William Gerhardie", "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": "William Gerhardie", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-gerhardie/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "“If a book is worth reading...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-gerhardie/if-a-book-is-worth-reading-at-all-it-is-worth-reading-more-than-once/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-gerhardie/if-a-book-is-worth-reading-at-all-it-is-worth-reading-more-than-once/#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 } } ] } ```