42 Children'S Book Quotes

When it comes to the enchanting world of children's literature, the magic often lies within the memorable quotes that captivate the hearts of both young readers and adults alike. These timeless nuggets of wisdom and whimsy can inspire, comfort, and ignite imagination in ways that resonate for a lifetime. In this carefully curated collection, we've gathered the top 42 children's book quotes that stand out not just for their charm, but for the profound messages they convey. Whether you're revisiting childhood favorites or discovering new gems, these quotes will invite you to journey back to the delightful pages that shaped so many of our early adventures.

1. “A children's story that can only be enjoyed by children is not a good children's story in the slightest.” - C.S. Lewis

2. “She'd always been a little excitable, a little more passionate about books than your average person, but she was supposed to be -- she was a librarian, after all.” - Sarah Beth Durst

3. “One of my rules is never to look sideways at what other people are doing but instead, do what I feel is right.” - Annie Bryant

4. “Anything can become a children's book if you give it to a child...Children are actually the best (and worst) audience for literature because they have no patience with pretence.” - Orson Scott Card

5. “One may enter the literary parlor via just about any door, be it the prison door, the madhouse door, or the brothel door. There is but one door one may not enter it through, which is the child room door. The critics will never forgive you such. The great Rudyard Kipling is one of a number of people to have suffered from this. I keep wondering to myself what this peculiar contempt towards anything related to childhood is all about.” - Michael Ende

6. “Ole Golly: You know what? You're an individual, and that makes people nervous. And it's gonna keep making people nervous for the rest of your life.” - Louise Fitzhugh

7. “To delight a child, to add a new joy to the crowded miracles of childhood, is no less worth doing than to leave a Sistine Chapel to astound a somewhat bored procession of tourists; or to have written a classic that sells by the thousands and is possessed unread by all save an infinitesimal percentage of its owners. It is, then, not an ignoble thing to do one’s very best to give our coming rulers – children – a taste of the Kingdom of Art.” - Gleeson White

8. “Dancing. I couldn't understand the fascination my brother had for it, but I could respect what it meant to him. How could one imagine and wonder about something so simple? An action most take for granted, yet to those with limited abilities, it's as special as floating on a cloud and snatching the nearest star from the sky to stuff in your pocket so you might wish upon it whenever you choose.” - Veronica Randolph Batterson

9. “Believe it, achieve it.” - Susan Ross

10. “Start each day in such a way that satan screams, OH NOOOOO...He's getting up!” - Jay Miller

11. “When Mary Lennox was sent to Misselthwaite Manor to live with her uncle everybody said she was the most disagreeable-looking child ever seen. It was true too . . . she was as tyrannical and selfish a little pig as ever lived.” - Frances Hodgson Burnett

12. “I used to think that when I grew up there wouldn't be so many rules. Back in elementary school there were rules about what entrance you used in the morning, what door you used going home, when you could talk in the library, how many paper towels you could use in the rest room, and how many drinks of water you could get during recess. And there was always somebody watching to make sure.What I'm finding out about growing older is that there are just as many rules about lots of things, but there's nobody watching.” - Phyllis Reynolds Naylor

13. “A male frigate bird blows up a wild red pouch on his neck. He can keep it puffed up for hours. It is his way of impressing the girls.” - Julie Murphy

14. “Spiders don't chew. They send a special liquid into their prey. The prey's insides turn to mush. Then the spider sucks up its tasty lunch!” - Julie Murphy

15. “What a schmuck!” - Lemony Snicket

16. “On a certain level, homeschooling is all about socialization. Whatever the teaching methods used in school or homeschool, it is ultimately the social environment itself that distinguishes homeschooling from conventional school. This social environment includes the nature and quantity of peer interaction; parental proximity; solitude; relationships with adults, siblings, older children, younger children, and the larger community; the ways in which the children are disciplined and by whom; and even the student-teacher ratio and the overall environment where the children spend their time.” - Rachel Gathercole

17. “Roger left the cricket stumps and they went into the drawing room. Grandpapa, at the first suggestion of reading aloud, had disappeared, taking Patch with him. Grandmama had cleared away the tea. She found her spectacles and the book. It was Black Beauty. Grandmama kept no modern children's books, and this made common ground for the three of them. She read the terrible chapter where the stable lad lets Beauty get overheated and gives him a cold drink and does not put on his blanket. The story was suited to the day. Even Roger listened entranced. And Deborah, watching her grandmother's calm face and hearing her careful voice reading the sentences, thought how strange it was that Grandmama could turn herself into Beauty with such ease. She was a horse, suffering there with pneumonia in the stable, being saved by the wise coachman. After the reading, cricket was anticlimax, but Deborah must keep her bargain. She kept thinking of Black Beauty writing the book. It showed how good the story was, Grandmama said, because no child had ever yet questioned the practical side of it, or posed the picture of a horse with a pen in its hoof. "A modern horse would have a typewriter," thought Deborah, and she began to bowl to Roger, smiling to herself as she did so because of the twentieth-century Beauty clacking with both hoofs at a machine. ("The Pool")” - Daphne du Maurier

18. “Fred Olmsted sat at the edge of the stagecoach seat, chattering to his father about their trip. How exciting to see the towns and forests of western New York! Suddenly, Fred stopped talking. That roar in the distance could only be one thing. Niagara Falls!” - Julie Dunlap

19. “Even the smallest light shines bright in the darkness” - Donna Raye

20. “If you believe, have faith and hope then you'll discover love” - Donna Raye

21. “You have brains in your head.You have feet in your shoes.You can steer yourself any direction you choose.” - Dr. Seuss

22. “Beauty comes from the inside, beyond your fair skin.” - mellyberry

23. “Wait," Honey said to herself, as she realized something amazing. "I’m already an excellent flyer. Maybe I can fight crime too.” - Emlyn Chand

24. “You are not too small. No one is ever too small to offer help.” - Emlyn Chand

25. “Good call, Bob.” - Jan Thomas

26. “If the colour of life turns grey turn the palette the other way” - Benny Bellamacina

27. “Oh no, princess. I would never carry out anything which could harm your being. This was just something I was told to say. I'm not sure what is planned, if, you go against their wishes. But, I'm sure you're smart and won't test them.” - Chayada Welljaipet

28. “Two is the beginning of the end.” - J.M. Barrie

29. “Dreams are glimpses into life’s truths.” - Larry Itejere

30. “Fairy dust is very useful. I use it to turn oatmeal into cake.” - David Shannon

31. “Every child deserves to be read to. It is a great bonding time for you and your baby.” - Abha C.

32. “Words have always swirled around me like snowflakes-each one delicate and different, each one melting untouched in my hands.” - Sharon M. Draper

33. “Sensing that this stranger was not the dangerous kind, and being the caring, big-hearted dog that he had built his reputation on, Lucky decided that a good dose of tongue licking would put matters right. However, in a twist of bad timing, unluckily for Lucky, he landed his lick just as Felicity rolled over onto her back. So, instead of a friendly lick across the ears as he intended, Lucky’s long slobbery, pink tongue made a trail from Felicity’s chin to her cherry red lips and up to her forehead.‘AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAARRRRRRRRRGHHHH!” - Kaal Kaczmarek

34. “You have made the moon," The Jester said. "That is the moon.” - James Thurber

35. “I'm planting a tree to teach me to gather strength from my deepest roots.” - Andrea Koehle Jones

36. “But my friend IS the sea, Mr. Diego. He has been my friend since I was very young, my only friend, and I can't bear to hear him crying. he's lonely. I came here to keep him company.""Boy, the sea is not your friend, especially not today." "Excuse me, Mr. Diego, but I think you are wrong. He is my friend, he says good morning to me every day.” - Tracy Aiello

37. “I don't know anyone who remembers meeting their parents when they were a baby so i'm just like everybody else. -Zoey (100% Real)” - Tara Michener

38. “He also learned to regard each port of call as part of the journey and not as destination. Every voyage begins when you do.” - E.L. Konigsburg

39. “An ordinary man can enjoy breakfasting on juice and rye bread.But when you are underfed, scorned, miserable or just plain bored, you don’t want to eat dull wholesome food.You want something a little more colourful, exciting, tastier, meatier and juicier.” - R.S. Vern

40. “Je pense, donc je suis...Descartes” - Barbara Ann Mojica

41. “What would your shoes say about the things you do everyday?” - Sherley Mondesir-Prescott

42. “Hiçbir yerden tek ses bile duyulmuyordu. Şeftalinin üzerinde yolculuk yapmak hiç de bir uçak yolculuğuna benzemiyordu. Uçak gökyüzünde patırtılar, gürültüler çıkararak hareket eder ve o kocaman bulut dağlarına gizlenmiş duran bir şeyler varsa, uçak gelirken koşup saklanırlar. İşte bu yüzden, uçakla yolculuk edenler hiçbir şey göremezler.” - Roald Dahl