Can you re-read a book you enjoyed 20 years ago?

Just4kix · 12-07-2010, 02:05 PM

While working in a charity bookshop (book heaven) I was thrilled to come across a book I had read and enjoyed in my teens. When I said I was taking it home to read, one of the volunteers (an avid reader) said, "You won't be able to read it." Convinced she was wrong, I took it home, only to find I couldn't get into it at all. So when a new volunteer also found a book she had loved when in her early twenties, I suggested she wouldn't be able to read it. She was sure she would. But guess what, she brought it back the following week unread, and couldn't understand what she had seen in it in the first place.

I guess our reading tastes do change, except perhaps for the classics - which is why they are classics.

SeaBookGuy · 12-07-2010, 02:21 PM

Over ten years ago I read Blue Highways. While the American "scene" has changed quite a bit since then,
I was easily able to get into the book.

copyrite · 12-07-2010, 03:25 PM

I have a couple of favs I read a zillion years ago... that I still reread. Tolkien. Mary Stewart's 'Touch Not the Cat', a time travel book called 'The Mirror' by Marlys Millhiser (or some similar spelling). Sure, I pick through them a bit more than I did when I was a teenager, but they are still favorites!

gmw · 12-07-2010, 04:38 PM

Some yes, some no ... but then I wasn't in my teens twenty years ago

One particular author that I re-read fairly recently shows how some things have changed for me: William Horwood. Twenty years ago I would have placed his Duncton Wood series among my favourites (see the 11 top novels thread) but I didn't enjoy them as much the last time around. Whereas these novels of his: The Stonor Eagles and Skallagrigg (and even the short Callanish) I find just as powerful now as when I first read them.

Wilyumm · 12-07-2010, 04:47 PM

In my teens I read the Martian Series by Burroughs. A year or so ago I found them in ebook form and reread them. Still as good as ever. (I'm almost 67)

DuncanWatson · 12-07-2010, 05:18 PM

There are some books I cannot reread. My tastes have changed too much. OTOH there are numerous books I have reread that I first read 25-30 years ago.

In fact I just reread "To Reign in Hell" by Steven Brust which I first read in 1984. I have reread the entire Chronicles of Amber series by Roger Zelazny this past year as well. But there is some Heinlein I cannot reread, the whole rich people with mansions equipped with lime pits so they can dispose of people who dare visit them gets a bit old. John Norman's Gor books are too much to read now as well, I barely tolerated them the first time. I can't read most Piers Anthony nowadays either. Though I did reread Macroscope a couple of years ago.

So it depends.

SlowRain · 12-07-2010, 09:08 PM

I used to love the Dragonlance books by Margaret Weis and Tracy Hickman. Sadly, I can no longer read them. However, they still have a fond place in my memory.

leebase · 12-07-2010, 09:12 PM

I'm sure there would be some I wouldn't want to reread, but some I know I still love and have reread.

Lee

AintLDS · 12-07-2010, 09:21 PM

Heinlein's Tunnel In The Sky. Read it in the late 70's ... every bit as much fun to read today.

Gave a copy to my 11 year old daughter. When I asked her how she liked it, she disagreed with who married who in the story. Go figure . . .

DixieGal · 12-07-2010, 09:42 PM

I devoured Asimov, especially the Foundation books. Last year, I got ahold of a free e-version and tried to read it. Couldn't do it.

GA Russell · 12-07-2010, 10:06 PM

I read all of Chandler and all available Hammett ca. 1972-74.

I've been re-reading them this year and I've enjoyed them very much, but not as much as the first time.

SkyDream · 12-08-2010, 01:12 AM

Yes, i do.

Perry Rhodan....the complete series. Read as a teenage, now starting again and at book ~ 440.

Kiwimick · 12-08-2010, 01:08 PM

I read Space Prison by Tom Godwin back when it was called "The Survivors". I managed to lose the book (think my Mum gave it away with a load of other books when I moved away from home) and had also forgotten the title.

I then came across this book while browsing in a second hand shop and the story looked familiar so I snapped it up and read it to find out it was indeed an updayed version of Survivors. I really enjoyed it second time around and have made sure this copy is going nowhere

Penforhire · 12-08-2010, 01:54 PM

It varies. I can't enjoy rereading Robert E. Howard as much as I did back then. But I seem to enjoy Roger Zelazny even more than I did on the first pass.

Lemurion · 12-08-2010, 06:00 PM

Some I can, some I can't - though in general I don't reread anything as much now as I did before I was 25. As a teenager I'd often finish a book and then go back to the beginning and reread it immediately - without even getting up.

I don't do that anymore.

Also, I have different reasons for not rereading books - some I can't get into any more (I could never re-read anything by Weis and Hickman ever again) while I think others I simply over-read.

For example, I haven't been able to re-read Lord of the Rings in about the last decade -mainly because I read it twice a year for about twenty-five years and after fifty-odd readings I just don't feel the need to re-read.

12-07-2010, 02:05 PM	#1
Just4kix Zealot Posts: 135 Karma: 365040 Join Date: Oct 2010 Location: Durban South Africa Device: none	Can you re-read a book you enjoyed 20 years ago? While working in a charity bookshop (book heaven) I was thrilled to come across a book I had read and enjoyed in my teens. When I said I was taking it home to read, one of the volunteers (an avid reader) said, "You won't be able to read it." Convinced she was wrong, I took it home, only to find I couldn't get into it at all. So when a new volunteer also found a book she had loved when in her early twenties, I suggested she wouldn't be able to read it. She was sure she would. But guess what, she brought it back the following week unread, and couldn't understand what she had seen in it in the first place. I guess our reading tastes do change, except perhaps for the classics - which is why they are classics.

12-07-2010, 09:21 PM	#9
AintLDS No soliciting Posts: 55 Karma: 505122 Join Date: Nov 2007 Location: Utah Device: Kindle Voyage and iPhone 8 Plus	Heinlein's Tunnel In The Sky. Read it in the late 70's ... every bit as much fun to read today. Gave a copy to my 11 year old daughter. When I asked her how she liked it, she disagreed with who married who in the story. Go figure . . . Last edited by AintLDS; 01-11-2011 at 09:09 PM.

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12-07-2010, 02:21 PM	#2
SeaBookGuy Can one read too much? Posts: 2,015 Karma: 2487799 Join Date: Aug 2010 Location: Naples, FL Device: Kindle PW 3, Sony 350 and 650	Over ten years ago I read Blue Highways. While the American "scene" has changed quite a bit since then, I was easily able to get into the book.

12-07-2010, 03:25 PM	#3
copyrite Wizard Posts: 1,814 Karma: 4985051 Join Date: Sep 2010 Location: Maryland Device: ...lots! ;) mostly reading on a Kindle Voyage	I have a couple of favs I read a zillion years ago... that I still reread. Tolkien. Mary Stewart's 'Touch Not the Cat', a time travel book called 'The Mirror' by Marlys Millhiser (or some similar spelling). Sure, I pick through them a bit more than I did when I was a teenager, but they are still favorites!

12-07-2010, 04:38 PM	#4
gmw cacoethes scribendi Posts: 5,809 Karma: 137770742 Join Date: Nov 2010 Location: Australia Device: Kobo Aura One & H2Ov2, Sony PRS-650	Some yes, some no ... but then I wasn't in my teens twenty years ago One particular author that I re-read fairly recently shows how some things have changed for me: William Horwood. Twenty years ago I would have placed his Duncton Wood series among my favourites (see the 11 top novels thread) but I didn't enjoy them as much the last time around. Whereas these novels of his: The Stonor Eagles and Skallagrigg (and even the short Callanish) I find just as powerful now as when I first read them.

12-07-2010, 04:47 PM	#5
Wilyumm Wilyumm Posts: 9 Karma: 5010 Join Date: Jan 2009 Location: Charleston, WV Device: Sony prs505, Sony prs 950	In my teens I read the Martian Series by Burroughs. A year or so ago I found them in ebook form and reread them. Still as good as ever. (I'm almost 67)

12-07-2010, 05:18 PM	#6
DuncanWatson Kindle Convert Posts: 190 Karma: 62704 Join Date: Apr 2010 Location: Woodinville, WA, USA Device: Kindle Paperwhite, Nook (all)	There are some books I cannot reread. My tastes have changed too much. OTOH there are numerous books I have reread that I first read 25-30 years ago. In fact I just reread "To Reign in Hell" by Steven Brust which I first read in 1984. I have reread the entire Chronicles of Amber series by Roger Zelazny this past year as well. But there is some Heinlein I cannot reread, the whole rich people with mansions equipped with lime pits so they can dispose of people who dare visit them gets a bit old. John Norman's Gor books are too much to read now as well, I barely tolerated them the first time. I can't read most Piers Anthony nowadays either. Though I did reread Macroscope a couple of years ago. So it depends.

12-07-2010, 09:08 PM	#7
SlowRain Addict Posts: 311 Karma: 9553 Join Date: Feb 2010 Location: a Canadian expat in Taiwan Device: HTC 10, Asus Phonepad	I used to love the Dragonlance books by Margaret Weis and Tracy Hickman. Sadly, I can no longer read them. However, they still have a fond place in my memory.

12-07-2010, 09:12 PM	#8
leebase Karma Kameleon Posts: 2,934 Karma: 26616647 Join Date: Aug 2009 Device: iPad Mini, iPhone X, Kindle Fire Tab HD 8, Walmart Onn	I'm sure there would be some I wouldn't want to reread, but some I know I still love and have reread. Lee

12-07-2010, 09:42 PM	#10
DixieGal Hi There! Posts: 7,473 Karma: 2930523 Join Date: Feb 2008 Location: Ft Lauderdale Device: iPad	I devoured Asimov, especially the Foundation books. Last year, I got ahold of a free e-version and tried to read it. Couldn't do it.

12-07-2010, 10:06 PM	#11
GA Russell Montreal wins Grey Cup! Posts: 7,583 Karma: 31484197 Join Date: Aug 2009 Location: Raleigh, NC Device: Paperwhite, Kindles 10 & 4 and jetBook Lite	I read all of Chandler and all available Hammett ca. 1972-74. I've been re-reading them this year and I've enjoyed them very much, but not as much as the first time.

12-08-2010, 01:12 AM	#12
SkyDream Wizard Posts: 1,377 Karma: 9400 Join Date: Sep 2009 Location: Europe Device: PRS-650, iPod touch 4G, iPad 3	Yes, i do. Perry Rhodan....the complete series. Read as a teenage, now starting again and at book ~ 440.

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12-08-2010, 01:08 PM	#13
Kiwimick Addict Posts: 211 Karma: 37308 Join Date: Oct 2009 Location: London UK Device: Sony PRS650	I read Space Prison by Tom Godwin back when it was called "The Survivors". I managed to lose the book (think my Mum gave it away with a load of other books when I moved away from home) and had also forgotten the title. I then came across this book while browsing in a second hand shop and the story looked familiar so I snapped it up and read it to find out it was indeed an updayed version of Survivors. I really enjoyed it second time around and have made sure this copy is going nowhere

12-08-2010, 01:54 PM	#14
Penforhire Wizard Posts: 2,230 Karma: 7145404 Join Date: Nov 2007 Location: Southern California Device: Kindle Voyage & iPhone 7+	It varies. I can't enjoy rereading Robert E. Howard as much as I did back then. But I seem to enjoy Roger Zelazny even more than I did on the first pass.

12-08-2010, 06:00 PM	#15
Lemurion eReader Posts: 2,750 Karma: 4968470 Join Date: Aug 2007 Device: Note 5; PW3; Nook HD+; ChuWi Hi12; iPad	Some I can, some I can't - though in general I don't reread anything as much now as I did before I was 25. As a teenager I'd often finish a book and then go back to the beginning and reread it immediately - without even getting up. I don't do that anymore. Also, I have different reasons for not rereading books - some I can't get into any more (I could never re-read anything by Weis and Hickman ever again) while I think others I simply over-read. For example, I haven't been able to re-read Lord of the Rings in about the last decade -mainly because I read it twice a year for about twenty-five years and after fifty-odd readings I just don't feel the need to re-read.