Reading was the only Amusement I allow'd myself. — Benjamin Franklin · Smartyfair

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Reading was the only Amusement I allow'd myself. — Benjamin Franklin · Smartyfair

Reading was the only Amusement I allow'd myself.

Benjamin Franklin1706–1790 · inventor · 1700s AmericaBenjamin Franklin was an inventor, writer, and one of America's founding fathers.12 quotes

Source foundLearning

In plain words

Books were his treat, the one fun thing he always let himself have.

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reading
amusement
allow'd

Where these words come from

How sure this is: 95% sureThese words were traced back to where they first appeared. That source is listed below.
What turned up: The Autobiography (1818 first English publication), Part II.
Work: The Autobiography, Part II
Occasion: 1818 (first publication)
Sources checked: en.wikiquote.orgChecked using claude-sonnet-5, 20 August 2026Wikiquote Sourced section, named work
en.wikisource.org

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More on learning

A single conversation with a wise man is worth a month's study of books.Chinese proverb

1700s

Stories

Checked using claude-fable-5, 21 August 2026

Autobiography, Wikisource Section Thirty Four — verbatim incl. the archaic 'allow'd'; full sentence continues 'I spent no time in Taverns, Games, or Frolics of any kind.'

Nothing made from these words yet — Storyfaire is where they get made.

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Genius without education is like silver in the mine.

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Do not be guilty of possessing a library of learned books while lacking learning yourself.

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Reading is to the mind, what exercise is to the body.

Books think for me.

A man ought to read just as inclination leads him; for what he reads as a task will do him little good.

One child, one teacher, one book, one pen can change the world.

Malala Yousafzai