Which Book Have You Read/Re-Read All Your Life?

[FlorenceArt]

I think comfort is the reason for me. The books I keep re-reading are not necessarily the best ones. They're the ones that make me feel good. I think that's the reason my re-reads don't last forever. The books I re-read 20 years ago are not the same I re-read now. Or maybe it's just that I get tired of them after a while.

There are many ways to be a book lover. My mother is a great book lover and she doesn't re-read books. I'm a book lover too and I re-read often.

[kennyc]

Originally Posted by SmartyPants

well to me its similar to re-watching the movie i love. Being immeresed in the story again. Escapism if you wish.
Sometimes i re-read my favourite childhood books just to take me (for a little while only lol) back to 'child' frame of mind.
And then i have my 'comfort' books. Its like wearing your favourite pijamas..
You really have to be a book lover to understand this!

Thanks, but I am befuddled by your last comment. I AM a book lover and do re-read a book now and then, but rarely as I said. I don't think it's re-reading books that makes one a book lover.

[nomesque]

Originally Posted by kennyc

Thanks, but I am befuddled by your last comment. I AM a book lover and do re-read a book now and then, but rarely as I said. I don't think it's re-reading books that makes one a book lover.

It makes one a lover of less books, I guess!

Ahhh, the old differences between polygamists and those who prefer the one-night-stands...

[poohbear_nc]

I have to agree with all the "comfort" reasons - going back to books is like a pair of old slippers molded perfectly to your feet, your flannel pj's, etc. Re-reading books is like meeting old friends after a separation - you're likely to say the same things again but often notice something new or something you've never noticed before in all the years you've known them.

For example, I've re-read the James Herriot books and seen the TV adaptations. When I re-read them now I can hear the voices and picture the characters - sort of a multi-media experience in my head.
Just this summer I re-read Moby Dick (which I HAD to read in various college courses I think 5 times) - and found both broad comedy I had never noticed before and an impressive range or literary/historical references I had never appreciated before.
I'm currently re-reading the Ngaio Marsh Inspector Alleyn mysteries - and am discovering a comedic depth I'd never appreciated before.

So, re-reading for me constitutes both comfort and discovery.

[kennyc]

Originally Posted by poohbear_nc

...
For example, I've re-read the James Herriot books and seen the TV adaptations. ...

Are they available as ebook?????

I keep looking for them and want to read them but....

[FlorenceArt]

Originally Posted by nomesque

It makes one a lover of less books, I guess!

Ahhh, the old differences between polygamists and those who prefer the one-night-stands...

Don't you mean more? If you don't re-read, you have time to read more (different) books, right?

[poohbear_nc]

Originally Posted by kennyc

Are they available as ebook?????

I keep looking for them and want to read them but....

Not yet - they have gone through multiple publishers - and no one I've contacted has the digital rights.

[glowhappy]

Originally Posted by kennyc

Corollary question: What is it anyone gets out or re-reading the same book as often as every year?

Just seems a bit boring to me as I rarely re-read a book.

Re-reading a story seems boring if you only read it to discover the ending. For me its the journey, reconnecting with "old friends" and the comfort of knowing a familiar "face". Besides, more times then not I discover little details and insights I may have missed before. my 2 cents.

[DMcCunney]

Originally Posted by kennyc

Corollary question: What is it anyone gets out or re-reading the same book as often as every year?

Just seems a bit boring to me as I rarely re-read a book.

Are there pieces of music you listen to over and over, even though you might have the particular song memorized? Why do you do so? You've already heard them.

As it is with music, so it is with any of the other arts. There are works that affect us strongly, that we like to revisit. In the case of books, they create a mood and provoke feelings we wish to re-experience. An old friend had what he called a "comfortable old shoe" mood, where he would revisit stuff he treasured. He had read and reread the works, often many times, but he didn't tire of the experience reading them provided.

I re-read Tolkien's _The Lord of the Rings_ once a year or so. I first read it when Tolkien was still alive, but the experience has never palled. The work is sufficiently deep and rich that I discover new things each time.

Most books I don't e-read (and a very few I haven't even finished), but some become personal classics, and re-reading them is a walk down a favorite path, revisiting favorite places.
______
Dennis

[SmartyPants]

Originally Posted by kennyc

Thanks, but I am befuddled by your last comment. I AM a book lover and do re-read a book now and then, but rarely as I said. I don't think it's re-reading books that makes one a book lover.

lol, i didnt mean to offend anyone with my comment! We are ALL book lovers here, thats a given! What i meant was it would take a book lover to UNDERSTAND the concept of re-reading books... this is not to say you HAVE to love re-reading in order to be a book lover! My dad is a biggest book lover you would find, but he rarely re-reads. Nevertheless, he would never EVER throw a book out. On the other hand, I have plenty of friends who dont read books at all, let alone re-read then - wouldn't expect them to understand why i seem to always have an odd copy of a, say, Ray Bradbury book on my bedside table along with thatever i am reading now.
In fact, sometimes i'd rather re-read than make an effort to read a new book - not a particularly good thing.

Phew, hope i made sense there!

[kennyc]

Originally Posted by SmartyPants

lol, i didnt mean to offend anyone with my comment! We are ALL book lovers here, thats a given! What i meant was it would take a book lover to UNDERSTAND the concept of re-reading books... this is not to say you HAVE to love re-reading in order to be a book lover! My dad is a biggest book lover you would find, but he rarely re-reads. Nevertheless, he would never EVER throw a book out. On the other hand, I have plenty of friends who dont read books at all, let alone re-read then - wouldn't expect them to understand why i seem to always have an odd copy of a, say, Ray Bradbury book on my bedside table along with thatever i am reading now.
In fact, sometimes i'd rather re-read than make an effort to read a new book - not a particularly good thing.

Phew, hope i made sense there!

AH, yes, I see what you mean now. I was reading it in a different way.

And for Dennis, yes I love to re-listen to music, but I guess for me that is a very different experience than re-reading a novel. I really don't get the same feeling at all from the two. I do see your analogy though.

[SmartyPants]

Originally Posted by kennyc

AH, yes, I see what you mean now. I was reading it in a different way. .

no prob

we are all different like that... for example, i dont like poetry or non-fiction. I wish i did, but i just don't. I read an occasional self-help book, but perceive it as something that i do for a particular purpose, not enjoyment. I have great respect for people that love poetry.. but its not something that i can see myself enjoying, at least not at this stage in my life.

uh-oh, this is getting seriously ..

[kennyc]

Originally Posted by SmartyPants

no prob

we are all different like that... for example, i dont like poetry or non-fiction. I wish i did, but i just don't. I read an occasional self-help book, but perceive it as something that i do for a particular purpose, not enjoyment. I have great respect for people that love poetry.. but its not something that i can see myself enjoying, at least not at this stage in my life.

uh-oh, this is getting seriously ..

Ah, that's just cause you haven't found the right poet or poem etc. Most people have had a bad experience with poetry from school. It's not really like that at all. There has been much disservice done to the art-form at the hands of the literati.

Check out my favorite poets page links (in my sig) and/or
check out this page that has videos of poets reading some of their best poems: http://forum-network.org/series/poetry-month-series-2

We now return you to your regularly scheduled topic.

and on-topic, I have re-read a few select books of poetry as I have several favorites that I go back to and re-read quite often....hmmm.....must think about this....

[Iphinome]

Originally Posted by SmartyPants

no prob

we are all different like that... for example, i dont like poetry or non-fiction. I wish i did, but i just don't.

Give Sylvia Plath a chance.

[cearbhallain]

Originally Posted by Iphinome

Give Sylvia Plath a chance.

Sylvia's hard. She writes about her pain beautifully, but I find that it's easy to get sucked in.

Once upon a time, my husband had a band. He used Tulips as the basis for one of their songs so I'll forever have that phrase about "a country as far away as health" stuck in my brain. Even with the pleasant association, it hurts.