pues no hay libro tan malo, que no tenga alguna cosa buena.

Un livre ne commence ni ne finit: tout au plus fait-il semblant.

Um livro por pior que seja tem sempre algo de bom.

A book with the genuine power to stir and comfort its readers.

Advice to Readers

Good friends who come to read this book,
Strip yourselves first of affectation;
Do not assume a pained, shocked look,
For it contains no foul infection,
Yet teaches you no great perfection,
But lessons in the mirthful art,
The only subject for my heart.
When I see grief consume and rot
You, mirth's my theme and tears are not,
For laughter is man's proper lot.

It is from books that wise people derive consolation in the troubles of life.

...for literature had always been a solace for him, something that the ugliness of facts could not spoil.

What the eye doesn't see, the heart doesn't grieve over.

When he needed to calm his mind, he opened a book. Any book. He had never failed to feel refreshed, even if the book was no good.

Reading nurtures the soul, and an enlightened friend brings it solace.

Good novel are written by people who are not frightened.

There is no need to be dismayed if love sometimes follows torturous ways.
Grace has the power to make straight the paths of human love.

No one is completely unhappy at the failure of his best friend.

the fact that unjustified beliefs can have a consoling influence on the human mind is no argument in their favor.