

“He was a one-book man. Some men have only one book in them; others, a library.”
Vol. I, ch. 11
Lady Holland's Memoir (1855)
"William Gurnall", p. 391
Light from Old Times (1890)
“He was a one-book man. Some men have only one book in them; others, a library.”
Vol. I, ch. 11
Lady Holland's Memoir (1855)
Pudd'nhead Wilson's New Calendar, Ch. LIX
Following the Equator (1897)
From the thirteenth book, "The Book of the Dead"
The Pillow Book
“Some books are to be tasted, others to be swallowed, and some few to be chewed and digested.”
Essays (1625)
Context: Some books are to be tasted, others to be swallowed, and some few to be chewed and digested: that is, some books are to be read only in parts, others to be read, but not curiously, and some few to be read wholly, and with diligence and attention.
Of Studies
“The reason why so few good books are written is, that so few people that can write know anything.”
Shakespeare
Literary Studies (1879)
Context: The reason why so few good books are written is, that so few people that can write know anything. In general an author has always lived in a room, has read books, has cultivated science, is acquainted with the style and sentiments of the best authors, but he is out of the way of employing his own eyes and ears. He has nothing to hear and nothing to see. His life is a vacuum.