--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: He was captured first by the…" description: "\"“He was captured first by the illustrations, and then he began to read, to start with, the stories that dealt with magic, and then the others; and thos..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b47/william-somerset-maugham-8684_books_he-was-captured-first-by-the-illustratio_2488480.jpg" --- # He was captured first by the illustrations, and then he… ![“He was captured first by the illustrations, and then he began to read, to start with, the stories that dealt with magic, and then the others; and those he liked he read again and again. He could think of nothing else. He forgot the life about him. He had to be called two or three times before he…” quote by William Somerset Maugham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b47/william-somerset-maugham-8684_books_he-was-captured-first-by-the-illustratio_2488480.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b47/william-somerset-maugham-8684_books_he-was-captured-first-by-the-illustratio_2488480.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b47/william-somerset-maugham-8684_books_he-was-captured-first-by-the-illustratio_2488480.jpg) > ““He was captured first by the illustrations, and then he began to read, to start with, the stories that dealt with magic, and then the others; and those he liked he read again and again. He could think of nothing else. He forgot the life about him. He had to be called two or three times before he would come to his dinner. Insensibly he formed the most delightful habit in the world, the habit of reading: he did not know that thus he was providing himself with a refuge from all the distress of life; he did not know either that he was creating for himself an unreal world which would make the real world of every day a source of bitter disappointment. Presently he began to read other things. His brain was precocious.”” [William Somerset Maugham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-somerset-maugham/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Reading can become an immersive escape, creating a personal fantasy that shields one from life's hardships. **In simple terms:** Reading offers a protective fantasy world. Key Takeaway Use reading to find healthy balance. Themes escape habit imagination Mood contemplative introspective Type literary psychological When to use this quote - personal growth - stress relief - creative inspiration - time management Key Concepts refuge psychology literature Questions to Reflect On - How does reading shape your perception of reality? - When does escapism become harmful? A Different Perspective Overreliance may isolate from reality. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Books](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/books/) [Reading](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/reading/) [Real world](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/real-world/) ## Related quotes > [Insensibly he formed the most delightful habit in the world, the habit of reading: he did not know that thus he was providing himself…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/w-somerset-maugham/insensibly-he-formed-the-most-delightful-habit-in-the-world-the-habit-2/) [W. 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Men and women say…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anthony-trollope/as-for-reading-i-doubt-whether-she-did-much-better-by-the-sea-side/) [Anthony Trollope](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anthony-trollope/) > [Did you get so caught up in the preoccupancy of a relationship that you lost who you were or were busy in life or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paula-white/did-you-get-so-caught-up-in-the-preoccupancy-of-a-relationship-that/) [Paula White](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paula-white/) > [The Best Times Of my life was the last remembers of like what I though of today I hope they always stay there but…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/finlay/the-best-times-of-my-life-was-the-last-remembers-of-like-what-i/) [Finlay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/finlay/) > [...long before the child learns to talk properly-and long before it learns to think philosophically-the world will have become a habit. 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His life falls…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lin-yutang/the-man-who-has-not-the-habit-of-reading-is-imprisoned-in-his/) [Lin Yutang](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lin-yutang/) > [The most common and the monstrous defect in the education of the day is that children fail to acquire the habit of reading.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlotte-mason/the-most-common-and-the-monstrous-defect-in-the-education-of-the-day/) [Charlotte Mason](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlotte-mason/) > [It is curious how tyrannical the habit of reading is...](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-russell-lowell/it-is-curious-how-tyrannical-the-habit-of-reading-is/) [James Russell Lowell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-russell-lowell/) > [To acquire the habit of reading is to construct for yourself a refuge from almost all the miseries of life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/w-somerset-maugham/to-acquire-the-habit-of-reading-is-to-construct-for-yourself-a-refuge/) [W. Somerset Maugham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/w-somerset-maugham/) > [“Newspapers are a bad habit, the reading equivalent of junk food. 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Some fine day you'll die of a misprint.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/markus-herz/be-careful-about-reading-health-books-some-fine-day-you-ll-die-of-a/) Markus Herz > [But editors are still the world's readers. And thus the eyes of the world.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/betsy-lerner/but-editors-are-still-the-world-s-readers-and-thus-the-eyes-of-the/) [Betsy Lerner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/betsy-lerner/) [Browse all 59,485 Books quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/books/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“He was captured first by the illustrations, and then he began to read, to start with, the stories that dealt with magic, and then the others; and those he liked he read again and again. He could think of nothing else. He forgot the life about him. He had to be called two or three times before he would come to his dinner. Insensibly he formed the most delightful habit in the world, the habit of reading: he did not know that thus he was providing himself with a refuge from all the distress of life; he did not know either that he was creating for himself an unreal world which would make the real world of every day a source of bitter disappointment. Presently he began to read other things. 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