To read and to not have been changed in the reading is to have picked up a book without it ever having picked you up.

If the words are just words, then the book is just pages. But if the words capture great ideas and intimately frame them so that our lives are transformed by the weight of them, then you have a book that can never be defined by its pages.

A good book leaves you better than the way it found you.

Sitting down with a great book means that when you stand up, you will be a completely different person from who you were when you sat down.

A good book delivers a great message.  And while such a message should touch the reader in a good way, it must transform them in a great way.

Writing is easy. It’s actually saying something that’s hard.

Words are not given depth by the richness of them or the manner in which they are thoughtfully woven together in perfect syntax. Rather, they are given depth when what they speak is truth regardless of how rich the words or perfect the syntax.

I can read a thousand words and have every one of them drift past my heart without touching any part of it. Or I can read a handful of words and have them seize my heart with such a grip that I will be forever held fast. Such is the difference between the art of writing and the lesser task of arranging words.

When you sit down with a good book, you will stand up as a better person.