"No one is fit to judge a book until he has rounded Cape Horn in a sailing vessel, until he has bumped into two or three icebergs, until he has been lost in the sands of the desert, until he has spent a few years in the House of the Dead"

This quote by Van Wyck Brooks is an allegory for life experience. He is suggesting that no person can genuinely judge a book till they have experienced the hardships of life. He is saying that till a person has actually undergone the battles of life, they can not absolutely recognize the intricacies of a book. He is suggesting that life experience is essential to understanding the world around us. He is suggesting that till somebody has gone through the battles of life, they can not absolutely understand the complexities of a book. He is indicating that life experience is important to understanding the world around us. He is saying that up until someone has actually rounded Cape Horn in a cruising vessel, bumped into two or 3 icebergs, been shed in the sands of the desert, as well as invested a few years in the House of the Dead, they can not really judge a book. He is recommending that life experience is important to recognizing the world around us and that it is just through life experience that we can genuinely understand the intricacies of a publication.