--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: If ever there was a book calculated to…" description: "\"If ever there was a book calculated to make a man in love with its author, this appears to me to be the book,\" — William Godwin" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/10f/william-godwin-1978_book_if-ever-there-was-a-book-calculated-to-m_2386087.png" --- # If ever there was a book calculated to make a man in love… ![“If ever there was a book calculated to make a man in love with its author, this appears to me to be the book,” quote by William Godwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/10f/william-godwin-1978_book_if-ever-there-was-a-book-calculated-to-m_2386087.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/10f/william-godwin-1978_book_if-ever-there-was-a-book-calculated-to-m_2386087.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/10f/william-godwin-1978_book_if-ever-there-was-a-book-calculated-to-m_2386087.png) > “If ever there was a book calculated to make a man in love with its author, this appears to me to be the book,” [William Godwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-godwin/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. A book that deeply captivates readers may cause them to fall in love with its author. **In simple terms:** Powerful books inspire love for the writer. Key Takeaway Read critically to separate author from work. Themes literature influence author-reader relationship emotion Mood thoughtful introspective Type analytical literary When to use this quote - book clubs - personal reading - academic study Key Concepts psychology of reading cult of personality literary impact Questions to Reflect On - What makes a book emotionally compelling? - How to balance admiration with critique? A Different Perspective Adulation may blur critical judgment. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Appears Book](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/appears-book-5926213/) [Author Appears](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/author-appears-1393763/) [Book](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/book/) [Book Calculated](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/book-calculated-5926212/) [Books](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/books/) [Ifs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ifs/) [Inspirational](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/inspirational/) [Love](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/love/) [Love Author](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/love-author-2955016/) [Man In Love](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/man-in-love/) [Man Love](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/man-love/) [Men](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/men/) ## Related quotes > [You do not question an author who appears on the title page as "T.V.N. Persaud, M.D., Ph.D., D.Sc., F.R.C.Path. (Lond.), F.F.Path. (R.C.P.I.), F.A.C.O.G.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-roach/you-do-not-question-an-author-who-appears-on-the-title-page-as-t-v-n/) [Mary Roach](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-roach/) > [“I am paralyzed. This is not me. I am an invention created by an invention, which was created by an author whose name appears…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-higgs/i-am-paralyzed-this-is-not-me-i-am-an-invention-created-by-an/) [Christopher Higgs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-higgs/) > [It is something wonderful when one can love another author. That happens so rarely, without any kind of misgivings that authors often have between…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/liao-yiwu/it-is-something-wonderful-when-one-can-love-another-author-that/) [Liao Yiwu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/liao-yiwu/) > [“If you fall in love with a character, then you are actually falling in love with the author that wrote the character. Therefore, you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/heather-dowell/if-you-fall-in-love-with-a-character-then-you-are-actually-falling-in/) [Heather Dowell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/heather-dowell/) > [I love an author the more for having been himself a lover of books.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-wadsworth-longfellow/i-love-an-author-the-more-for-having-been-himself-a-lover-of-books/) [Henry Wadsworth Longfellow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-wadsworth-longfellow/) > [If there is no love between the author and the story, there is no love between the reader and the story.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elif-safak/if-there-is-no-love-between-the-author-and-the-story-there-is-no-love/) [Elif Safak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elif-safak/) > [An old man in love is like a flower in winter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/portuguese-proverb/an-old-man-in-love-is-like-a-flower-in-winter/) [Portuguese Proverb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/portuguese-proverb/) > [“(a man in love speaking) "I don't notice much of anything anymore but Marie." He laid his hand on his chest. "This force," he…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kurt-vonnegut/a-man-in-love-speaking-i-don-t-notice-much-of-anything-anymore-but/) [Kurt Vonnegut](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kurt-vonnegut/) > [“A man in love once never is out of love again”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eureka-vonmims/a-man-in-love-once-never-is-out-of-love-again/) [Eureka VonMims](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eureka-vonmims/) > [A man in love is like a clipped coupon - it's time to cash in.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mae-west/a-man-in-love-is-like-a-clipped-coupon-it-s-time-to-cash-in/) [Mae West](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mae-west/) > [When my father made 'Jean de Florette' and 'Manon des Sources' back to back, everybody said, 'Why two movies?' But you need two movies…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-langmann/when-my-father-made-jean-de-florette-and-manon-des-sources-back-to/) [Thomas Langmann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-langmann/) > [There is none of my uncle's marks upon you; he taught me how to know a man in love; in which cage of rushes…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-shakespeare/there-is-none-of-my-uncle-s-marks-upon-you-he-taught-me-how-to-know-a/) [William Shakespeare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-shakespeare/) > [A man in love can do extraordinary things, I dont care if youre an angel, youre my angel, and I wont let you go](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/a-man-in-love-can-do-extraordinary-things-i-dont-care-if-youre-an/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“But it is easy to call a man in love a mad man.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brendan-connell/but-it-is-easy-to-call-a-man-in-love-a-mad-man/) [Brendan Connell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brendan-connell/) > [There is no man at once so unselfish and selfish as a man in love.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-bailey-aldrich/there-is-no-man-at-once-so-unselfish-and-selfish-as-a-man-in-love/) [Thomas Bailey Aldrich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-bailey-aldrich/) ## More by William Godwin > [I know nothing worth the living for but usefulness and the service of my fellow-creatures. The only object I pursue is to increase, as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-godwin/i-know-nothing-worth-the-living-for-but-usefulness-and-the-service-of/) [William Godwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-godwin/) > [He that loves reading has everything within his reach.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-godwin/he-that-loves-reading-has-everything-within-his-reach/) [William Godwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-godwin/) > [There must be room for the imagination to exercise its powers; we must conceive and apprehend a thousand things which we do not actually…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-godwin/there-must-be-room-for-the-imagination-to-exercise-its-powers-we-must/) [William Godwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-godwin/) > [In infamy, it is wisely provided that he who stands highest in the ranks of society has the heaviest load to sustain.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-godwin/in-infamy-it-is-wisely-provided-that-he-who-stands-highest-in-the/) [William Godwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-godwin/) > [No man knows the value of innocence and integrity but he who has lost them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-godwin/no-man-knows-the-value-of-innocence-and-integrity-but-he-who-has-lost/) [William Godwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-godwin/) > [Study with desire is real activity; without desire it is but the semblance and mockery of activity.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-godwin/study-with-desire-is-real-activity-without-desire-it-is-but-the/) [William Godwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-godwin/) > [“Godwin on Fenelon and his Valet \* Following is an excerpt from William Godwin's Enquiry Concerning Political Justice, Book II, Chapter II: “Of Justice”:…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-godwin/godwin-on-fenelon-and-his-valet-following-is-an-excerpt-from-william/) [William Godwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-godwin/) > [Tenderness is the name for a lover's most exquisite sensation; protection is implied in his most generous and heart-thrilling impulse.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-godwin/tenderness-is-the-name-for-a-lover-s-most-exquisite-sensation/) [William Godwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-godwin/) > [Whenever government assumes to deliver us from the trouble of thinking for ourselves, the only consequences it produces are those of torpor and imbecility.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-godwin/whenever-government-assumes-to-deliver-us-from-the-trouble-of/) [William Godwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-godwin/) > [During my academical life, and from this time forward, I was indefatigable in my search after truth. I read all the authors of greatest…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-godwin/during-my-academical-life-and-from-this-time-forward-i-was/) [William Godwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-godwin/) > [Was ever a great discovery prosecuted or an important benefit conferred upon the human race by him who was incapable of standing and thinking…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-godwin/was-ever-a-great-discovery-prosecuted-or-an-important-benefit/) [William Godwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-godwin/) > [The real or supposed rights of man are of two kinds, active and passive; the right in certain cases to do as we list;…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-godwin/the-real-or-supposed-rights-of-man-are-of-two-kinds-active-and/) [William Godwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-godwin/) > [Soundness of understanding is connected with freedom of enquiry; consequently, opinion should, as far as public security will admit, be exempted from restraint.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-godwin/soundness-of-understanding-is-connected-with-freedom-of-enquiry/) [William Godwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-godwin/) > [Power is not happiness. Security and peace are more to be desired than a man at which nations tremble.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-godwin/power-is-not-happiness-security-and-peace-are-more-to-be-desired-than/) [William Godwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-godwin/) > [“Strange that men, from age to age, should consent to hold their lives at the breath of another, merely that each in his turn…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-godwin/strange-that-men-from-age-to-age-should-consent-to-hold-their-lives/) [William Godwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-godwin/) [Explore all 193 William Godwin quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-godwin/) ## 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. There is nothing like a child who knows more about…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/floyd-cooper/i-have-many-who-keep-me-going-i-am-very-fortunate-in-this-sense-there/) [Floyd Cooper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/floyd-cooper/) > [I think books in which people are really happy and things are going well are probably the most challenging novels there are to write,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anna-quindlen/i-think-books-in-which-people-are-really-happy-and-things-are-going/) [Anna Quindlen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anna-quindlen/) > [It's like the query letter problem that I just mentioned, magnified a hundredfold. You might be good at telling a story, but that doesn't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patrick-rothfuss/it-s-like-the-query-letter-problem-that-i-just-mentioned-magnified-a/) [Patrick Rothfuss](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patrick-rothfuss/) > [I don't think I have made as much of my life as I should have. I should have written more books.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-m-schlesinger-jr/i-don-t-think-i-have-made-as-much-of-my-life-as-i-should-have-i/) [Arthur M. Schlesinger, Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-m-schlesinger-jr/) > [Some books are not read in the right way because they have skipped a stage of opinion, assume a crystallization of information in society…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/doris-lessing/some-books-are-not-read-in-the-right-way-because-they-have-skipped-a/) [Doris Lessing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/doris-lessing/) > [“People talk about books that write themselves, and it's a lie. Books don't write themselves. It takes thought and research and a backache and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-gaiman/people-talk-about-books-that-write-themselves-and-it-s-a-lie-books/) [Neil Gaiman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-gaiman/) > [There are great books in this world and great worlds in books.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-bronte/there-are-great-books-in-this-world-and-great-worlds-in-books/) [Anne Bronte](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-bronte/) > [The purpose of this book is to supply, in the form suitable for laymen, guidance in the adoption and execution of an investment policy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benjamin-graham/the-purpose-of-this-book-is-to-supply-in-the-form-suitable-for-laymen/) [Benjamin Graham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benjamin-graham/) > [But I think that of all the literature that I studied, the book that did more than any other to fire my enthusiasm was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kwame-nkrumah/but-i-think-that-of-all-the-literature-that-i-studied-the-book-that/) [Kwame Nkrumah](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kwame-nkrumah/) > [It's amazing to see things that are suggested in the book fully developed and so brilliantly realized through the artistry of the designers.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/suzanne-collins/it-s-amazing-to-see-things-that-are-suggested-in-the-book-fully/) [Suzanne Collins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/suzanne-collins/) > [“But I’ve developed a great reputation for wisdom by ordering more books than I ever had time to read, and reading more books, by…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marilynne-robinson/but-i-ve-developed-a-great-reputation-for-wisdom-by-ordering-more/) [Marilynne Robinson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marilynne-robinson/) [Browse all 29,378 Book quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/book/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "If ever there was a book calculated to make a man in love with its author, this appears to me to be the book,", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "William Godwin" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-godwin/if-ever-there-was-a-book-calculated-to-make-a-man-in-love-with-its/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Book" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-godwin/if-ever-there-was-a-book-calculated-to-make-a-man-in-love-with-its/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/10f/william-godwin-1978_book_if-ever-there-was-a-book-calculated-to-m_2386087.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/10f/william-godwin-1978_book_if-ever-there-was-a-book-calculated-to-m_2386087.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/10f/william-godwin-1978_book_if-ever-there-was-a-book-calculated-to-m_2386087.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“If ever there was a book calculated to make a man in love with its author, this appears to me to be the book,” — William Godwin", "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 Godwin", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-godwin/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "If ever there was a book...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-godwin/if-ever-there-was-a-book-calculated-to-make-a-man-in-love-with-its/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-godwin/if-ever-there-was-a-book-calculated-to-make-a-man-in-love-with-its/#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 } } ] } ```