Books that have become classics — books that have had their day and now get more praise than perusal — always remind me of retired colonels and majors and captains who, having reached the age limit, find themselves retired on half pay. – Thomas Bailey Aldrich

There are certain books in the world which every searcher for truth must know: the Bible, the Critique of Pure Reason, the Origin of Species, and Karl Marxs Capital. – W. E. B. Du Bois

The literary man must needs be a thinking one, and every day he lives he becomes wiser—if wiser, then better—if better, then happier. – Charles Lanman, “Thoughts on Literature,” 1840