Last year one of my yearly goals or “resolutions” was to focus my reading in a couple of areas:
- including some personal reading picks in addition to my review books, in the range of around one a month
- making more of an effort to read/study Christian nonfiction books
I did meet both of these goals, and as a good resolution will do, they each created new habits. I have been making sure that I always have a Christian nonfiction book in rotation (right now it’s The Fruitful Wife), and I’ve loosened my grip a bit on requesting review copies to leave some time to read books “just because.”
Along those same lines, I’ve decided this year to try to revisit certain books that are either all-time favorites or otherwise memorable reads. There is a comfort in reading the familiar, books I know that I’ll love, that have moved me or inspired me in some way. Back in the Mitford days, I turned to those books time and again for comfort, each time a new one came out, but now there are so many books out there that I have the opportunity to read, that even with series, I generally avoid re-reading. Revisiting a story in the form of the next installment in a series still serves to give me that familiar comfort.
But there are some books that I keep thinking about. They’ve impacted me, and I’ve recommended them to others, and I wonder if they’ll be as good a second time around.
Kite Runner — I started off with this one, reading it earlier this month (click through my link to enter to win your own copy!), and I did enjoy it, but there’s nothing like reading something for the first time. It will be interesting to see how these others fare.
My Own Country: A Doctor’s Story — Abraham Verghese’s novel Cutting for Stone has gained him some critical acclaim (click through to read my thoughts on the novel, and also a few on this memoir), but I like to say “I knew him when. . . . ” In fact, I picked up the novel because of the way that this memoir hit me. I read it back in the late 90’s, I think, when I would just browse the library looking for something interesting. This story about an immigrant’s experience in the U.S. (always interesting for me), living in rural Tennessee (an interesting setting always puts a book over the top), and during the early months of AIDS diagnoses, plus Verghese’s honest writing style made this memoir hit all the right notes with me.
Finny — I’ve read this book far more recently than others on the list. I first read it a few years ago when it came out, and I really liked it. It had the right mix of humor (which had me laughing out loud in places), and heart, quirky characters and real reactions. I really loved it, and often recommend it to others. There is some mature content and language in it, and so I’ve held off recommending to others (I lent my friend a pile of books, and her mother got to it before she did, and read Finny. It was a little different than her normal Christian fiction or historical fiction diet of reading, and widened her eyes a bit, but I think she liked it). So, I’d like to see what I think about it with a second look.
Stepping Heavenward — I read this book close to 20 years ago. I don’t remember who recommended it to me, but as a young wife, and someone on a journey to mature as a Christian, it was so helpful. It’s an autobiographical novel, written in a sort of journal form, written by Elizabeth Prentiss in the mid- 1800’s, but it’s so relevant today. I gave my copy to a young married friend last year, and she loved it too. It’s a book to be savored. I actually recommended that my teenager Amanda read it, but my replacement copy had an old weird-looking cover, and she was not at all interested. Perhaps we’ll read it together, either aloud or separately.
Into Thin Air — A book that my dad enjoyed, my husband enjoyed, I enjoyed, and anyone I’ve ever spoken to has loved. I read it at least 15 years ago, but It’s “interesting non-fiction” at its best. Talk about a unique and interesting setting — Mt. Everest! Jon Krakauer writes chilling prose, and I’d love to experience it again.
Every Mother is a Daughter — This was one of the first audiobooks I listened to once I got my ipod and started loading it up with titles six years ago. I loved it (follow the link there to read my initial thoughts). I bought the book, knowing I’d want to revisit it as some point, and even loan it out, but I never “read” it. I tried listening to the audiobook again, but got distracted. I’d like to read the book, because it’s a memoir of the best sort, involving mothers and daughters, travel, disagreements, unconditional love, told in alternating chapters from daughter Perri Klass and mother Sheila Soloman Klass. The Klass women are self-aware and self-deprecating at times. I truly fell in love. Now that my mother is gone, and my daughter is a full-fledged high schooler, so close to being on her own, I would bet it will mean even more to me.
Just reading over these books and writing up what I love about them has me smiling. I can’t wait to get to them during 2013.
I have some questions for you:
- Are any of these books on your list of favorites? I know that some are fairly well-known and others are rather obscure.
- Is there a book that keeps haunting you (in a friendly way)? Tell me about it in the comments.
You already know how much I love re-reading THE TIME TRAVELER’S WIFE. 🙂 I also have enjoyed re-reading THE CATCHER IN THE RYE and THE GREAT GATSBY over the last few years. I’ve really wanted to re-read THE COLOR PURPLE and THE JOY LUCK CLUB, since it’s been so long. I completely agree about the appeal of re-reads!
Yes, I do. The Time Traveler’s Wife would probably be a good re-read as well. And The Joy Luck Club was one that I really enjoyed the first time around, many many years ago. For that matter, Gone with the Wind is one I’ve been thinking about as well. I devoured it the first time. I might have to throw that one in as a wildcard pick.
I loved Into Thin Air. And all the Mitford books!
I am not a re-reader as a general rule. But one book I do go back to again and again is Alas, Babylon, by Pat Frank. It’s set in the area where I grew up in Florida at the time I grew up and deals with the aftermath of nuclear war in a small Florida town, much like my hometown. It is a story of the triumph of the human spirit in the very worst of circumstances. Easily on my top ten list of favorite all time fiction.
That’s a new one to me, Leigh. I’ll have to put it on that “just for me” reading list at some point, but I just do less of that now, so it might take a while!
LOVE Kite Runner. I’ve already read it about 3 times, but ever since I started this gig with 5MFB, I don’t have time for rereads. I miss rereading. The only books I’ve reread recently are some Shakespeare plays, some Wodehouse, Les Mis, and some light fiction like Dorothy Sayers. I’m rereading “In Search of the Sahara” off and on too. For me, most books are worth a reread, or more. I’ve never understood people who only read books once. I only do that if a book isn’t very good.
I re-read a couple books last year — Hunger Games and Catching Fire — but like you, with the gig and the deadlines and so much to choose from, I’ve let it go mostly.
I’ve read Stepping Heavenward a couple of times and enjoyed it. I loved the Mitford books, too, and am enjoying them again via audiobook now. I’m finding that audiobooks are really good for going back over books that I’d love to revisit. There are so many good new books, sometimes it’s hard to go back and reread old ones, but I do like revisiting the classics some times as well as some of my favorite missionary books (Through Gate of Splendor by Elisabeth Elliot, Amy Carmichael of Dohnvaur by Frank Houghton, Climbing by Rosalind Goforth, By Searching and In the Arena by Isobel Kuhn.) I feel I either glean more each time through or am blessed by being reminded of things I had forgotten.
Well, there are my obvious re-reads – anything by L.M. Montgomery and the Chronicles of Narnia which I re-read in part or in whole at least once a year.
The Fruitful Wife – which you are reading now -is going to be a re-read. Loving the Little Years by Jankovic has also been deeply impacting enough for one re-read so far and it’s only been a year since I’ve read it!
I have had nonfiction instructional type books that I’ve returned to pretty quickly as well.