I'm currently rereading Richard Russo's, "Nobody's Fool", "Empire Falls", and "Straight Man" (my very favorite of his)...and every time I read these books, it's like visiting with people I know. Have you ever had a similar experience?
2007-01-13 05:38:19 · 22 answers · asked by gotalife 7 in Arts & Humanities ➔ Books & Authors
Great question!
I've re-read a lot of books in my lifetime for many different reasons, but the ones I keep coming back to are the ones who are my friends, who've helped me through hard times in my life.
The books I've read most often are the first 4 Harry Potter books (5 and 6 I've read less because only 1-4 were out when I started them). They've gotten me through reading adult lit that made me feel like crap (why I started reading them in the first place), breaking up with a boyfriend, the start of college, and feeling lost in a big (different) school. They even helped me to discover my love for children's literature, and now I'm in an MFA program for it! I owe those books a lot.
The other books I get an ache to revisit are those in the "Emily" trilogy by L. M. Montgomery. My mom gave me the first one when I was in 6th grade and I adored it, devouring it and the two sequels and then re-reading them numerous times.
I also like to spend time with "Aunt Jane" Marple, Hercule Poirot and Jim Qwilleran (The first two are Agatha Christie, the last Lilian Jackson Braun's characters). And every time I start a new book I can tell within the first few chapters if the characters are going to turn into old friends or one-time acquaintances.
2007-01-13 07:31:26 · answer #1 · answered by Kate 3 · 2⤊ 0⤋
I am currently rereading William Burroughs " The Naked Lunch." It certainly is food for thought. I can really sink my teeth into it. It is a novel that bares all. I occasionally reread Ross Lockridge's " Raintree County." It gets my vote for being a great American novel nominee. Also, I go back through the pages of Edward Abbey's " The Monkey Wrench Gang." Rudolf the Red knows rain dear. There are few books that I revisit, but sometimes it is like being with an old friend. "My Pet Goat" is also a book that is worth going over again and again. It is filled with nuances and hidden nuggets that even our president can appreciate.
2007-01-13 07:10:19 · answer #2 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
truly! there grow to be a stretch of about 10 years or so after I reread the Jane Austens (except Mansfield Park) once a year a minimum of! I make judgements about procuring books on even if i'd reread them. now and again after I truly were observing a secret adapted from a e book I own i bypass and get it to reread it to doublecheck what they kept in or disregarded! If a e book is nice the first time round it repays rereading. And with some books, fairly the large classics, you fairly have a good time with it the fourth or fifth time round.
2016-10-31 00:20:22 · answer #3 · answered by ? 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
I'm an English teacher. I'm constantly reading young adult literature picking out novels to teach in my classes. I like to keep current books available in case I decide to alter my curriculum. However, there are a few books I teach that I will keep and I will continue to teach. They are like my best friends. I have the read the book probably at least 7 or 8 times and each time I find more and more to share with my students. I get excited each time a certain time of the year comes around because I know it is time for a certain book. I know them inside out and backwards and forwards..... or should that be "forewards?" *wink* By the end of our unit, my kids love the book just as much. I guess I always pray that I've introduced them to a new friend that they'll keep around for a long time as well. :)
(great question)
2007-01-13 05:55:14 · answer #4 · answered by Marianne not Ginger™ 7 · 1⤊ 0⤋
I reread books but not because of how comforting they are. I don't get into those kinds of stories. I reread The DaVinci Code because it hooked me from page one, in fact, all of Dan Brown's books have had that affect on me. I am also rereading Harry Potter and the Order of the Pheonix because the film will be out soon and I love the books and films.
2007-01-13 05:47:20 · answer #5 · answered by freakyallweeky 5 · 0⤊ 0⤋
I have reread one business oriented book called "Nuts" many times. It's about Southwest Airlines and their unconventional way of doing business. The stories inside the book connect with me in a way that yes I feel personally touched. Especially everything that relates to their former C.E.O. Herb Kelleher. If I were wealthy or could run a major corporation he would definitely be my role model.
2007-01-13 05:45:47 · answer #6 · answered by albert_noodles 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
I have indeed. When I was in middle school I read, The Giver, by Louis Lowry. It enchanted me, mainly because it was about a young boy who broke free of the confines of his "world". I used this story as an escape from my very abusive mother. I have read it once since then, in high school and it still comforted me. I am older now and still remember everything about the story. I kind of identified with the story, and that helped me cope. It helped me forget, even just for an hour or so, the trouble in my life back then.
2007-01-13 15:32:57 · answer #7 · answered by kim 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
I have a few books that I have read at least 15 times...you're right, it is very comforting. It's also nice to know that I won't have to stay up until 2:00am to find out the end of the story (I have been known to "just one more chapter" myself into the wee hours of the morning on a work day).
2007-01-13 05:45:17 · answer #8 · answered by SUSAN N 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Oh hell yeah - I'm with some of the others who say old books practically ARE old friends. I've got old friends between classical covers and popular covers. Catch-22 I reread to rejoin the mayhem of Yossarian and pals.
Hugh Cook's "The Walrus and the Warwolf"...well damn...I'm going to start rereading that tonight, cos you just reminded me how cool it is. The Falco mysteries by Lindsey Davis, obviously. And "A stranger here myself" by Ian Pattison, which always reminds me of my dad and myself.
2007-01-13 08:05:46 · answer #9 · answered by mdfalco71 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋
I really like to reread two books: Peter Pan by JM Barrie and The Rain Catchers by Jean Thesman. I can read them pretty quick, but the stories are just really comforting to me. It's like hearing the song my grandma used to sing me to sleep with.
2007-01-13 06:11:03 · answer #10 · answered by Kristie 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋