Discussion: Are you a re-reader?
What are the books so good you've read them again and again?
I recently started re-reading The Lord of the Rings and was quickly reminded why it’s one of my favorite books of all-time (if not the favorite). It’s my third time through and it certainly won’t be the last.
I know a lot of folks who love re-reading their favorites, and I know a lot of folks who have no interest in doing that.
So, are you a re-reader? What are the books you love so much you’ve read them multiple times?
There are plenty of reasons to re-read, but for me the biggest one is simply that we see new things every time we revisit a book. We glean fresh ideas and notice previously unnoticed details. The first time we read anything, we’re just trying to keep track of characters and plot points. It’s only when you know those things at the outset that you can focus on a book’s deeper qualities.
-Jeremy
A big re-reader here! I feel that if a book is worth reading it is worth re-reading. Each re-read reveals more and the experience gets richer and richer.
Big, big, BIG re-reader. I've read Jane Eyre dozens of times, The Picture of Dorian Gray a handful, and I'm currently on my 4th or 5th re-read of the Wolf Hall trilogy, thanks to the brilliant @footnotesandtangents.
Those are all books that deliver more on subsequent readings — and I experience them differently each time because *I'm* different each time.
I also have a few comfort reads that I go back to: the Dick Francis mysteries (set in British horse racing of the 60s and 70s), Elizabeth George (British murder mysteries), the Gabriel Allon series by Daniel Silva (excellent espionage novels).
I would also happily re-read A Gentleman in Moscow, Still Life by Saran Winman, and Station Eleven right now. In fact, BRB... ;-)