Wednesday, June 6, 2012

books as comfort food.

(image -- and a really cute shop too!)

Do you have certain books that you return to over and over again? My husband never reads books more than once unless it's for work, but I am definitely a repeat offender when it comes to my favorite titles. I actually wrote one of my college application essays about the multiple times I read George Orwell's Animal Farm (not a favorite, by the way) and how I had come to realize that, though the book seemed different every time, it was really because it kept revealing to me how I had changed. Deep stuff for a 17 year old -- wish I still had a copy!

Here are some of the books I'm guilty of rereading:

Pride and Prejudice. Enough said.

Agatha Christie novels and Sherlock Holmes short stories. I can tear through them really fast, and I always know I'm going to enjoy them, so it satisfies my book craving when I'm in between reads.

Something Foolish, Something Gay and Freaky Friday. When I was in junior high and high school, I read each of these countless times (waaay before the Lindsay Lohan movie, thankyouverymuch). Why? I guess I envied the lives of the girls in them for some reason -- smart, sarcastic, independent, cute.

Ian McEwan's Saturday. I love how this novel reveals the power of stories (and the desperate need for them) in our lives, and I also feel a pretty strong affinity for the family McEwan portrays -- it reminds me a lot of my own, in certain ways.

M. Scott Peck's The Road Less Traveled, when I'm feeling like I need to do some soul-searching.

What books do you turn to time and again? I'd love to know your put-it-on-repeat picks!

And speaking of books I've read many times, I'm excited to announce the winners of Lorelei's Baby Book Club giveaway from last week. Thanks to random.org, the proud new owners of copies of I Love You, Mouse are Margaux and Finley! Send me your contact info so I can get your books in the mail -- and don't forget to post about the book sometime on your blogs, too. :)

11 comments:

  1. Oh Pride and Prejudice FOR SURE. Re-reading it RIGHT NOW. : )

    Also, I read my mystery novels over and over. It's ridiculous too, because they aren't even a mystery any longer. But I love them. : )

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    1. I read mysteries so fast that sometimes I forget "whodunit" and so I don't mind reading them over again!

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  2. I don't often re-read, but when I do, I go straight to the classics!

    Love the aesthetic of your blog!

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  3. Wow, thanks Courtney! I'll send my info your way.

    And I'm not much of a re-reader. I guess there are just too many new things I want to explore.

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  4. I have never been a rereader myself. I am only just learning to allow myself to simply savor good literature instead of getting caught up in trying to finish a list of books I feel the need to read. Revisiting a book I love seems like it could be a great next step!

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    1. If you do end up rereading something, Melissa, I'd love to know what you pick!

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  5. I have never read Pride and Prejudice! But I should! and I've even read "Saturday" how crazy is that! And I think that the Harry Potter books are the only series I've ever re-read. haha. is that lame? :)


    xo, Lulu

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    1. Totally not lame -- Harry Potter is definitely worth rereading :)

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  6. I've ready The Secret Garden countless times. I still adore that book. Recently I've been thinking of going back and re-reading some of those junior high/high school classics like "The Giver" and "Are You There God? It's Me Margaret" just for the fun of it!

    Oh and as for Harry Potter re-reads...GUILTY!

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    1. Childhood rereads are the BEST, I think. It's fun to go back and relive the glory days!

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  7. I LOVE this. I may write out my own list - I'm definitely a rereader, and it's like coming home sometimes.

    Island of the Blue Dolphins is one I revisit every few years, as is To Kill a Mocking Bird. And The Slaughterhouse Five.

    But the one that always feels like home, as cheesy as it is, are the three first Dragonlance Chronicles books (written to go with D&D playing...). They were the first "fantasy" series I read, besides the hobbit and part of LoTR, and they were just the start of something exciting. A different magical world that I completely escaped into.

    I didn't know other people did that until Harry Potter came along.

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