“A good book is the purest essence of a human soul.”

“It is with the soul that we grasp the essence of another human being, not with the mind, nor even with the heart.”

“Art is the one thing man creates not out of need or luxury; therefore, it is the purest essence of his individuality.”

“For books are not absolutely dead things, but do contain a potency of life in them to be as active as that soul was whose progeny they are; nay, they do preserve as in a vial the purest efficacy and extraction of that living intellect that bred them.”

“Souls were webs of light that contained the essence of a human's life. Memories and loves, children and families. Every moment of life, pressing in”

“Some say they get lost in books, but I find myself, again and again, in the pages of a good book. Humanly speaking, there is no greater teacher, no greater therapist, no greater healer of the soul, than a well-stocked library.”