Carolyn KY: "But people keep on writing new ones." LOL
Oh, this thread awakens so many memories. Well, here are some of my many-reads:
The first one, Racketty-Packetty House, by the writer of The Secret Garden. A friend lost it and I was heartbroken, but when I was in college, years later, it was reprinted and I snapped it up.
Then:
Most Georgette Heyers
Hammond Innes' books
Gone with the Wind
LOTR
James Herriott's four-book "All Things" series
In This House of Brede
The Nun's Story
Anne of Green Gables
Arthur Upfield's "Napoleon" mysteries
Mrs. Mike--Phaedosia, I just recently got this one through
Paperbackswap.com. I loved it as a teenager.
The Name of the Rose
The Secret Garden

Science Fiction:
A Canticle for Leibowitz
Non-stop
Orphans of the Sky

Reading your posts, I get the feeling that The Secret Garden may be the book that is on the most people's reread list. How about it?

Biwako - I just bought a new copy of Canticle...there are so many things in that book that I try to explain to people and they don't get it...the C-curve on the stone stairs, making blueprints by filling in the blue...things that make one stand back and think about the world around us...as it is and as it appears.

I rarely get the time to reread anything. There are so many books I still haven't read, that is what takes up most of my time. However, when I am in the mood for comfort reading or revisiting a favorite or challenging author, I find myself going back to:

Jane Austen or Mary Stewart when I want a little romance;
Milan Kundera when I'm in an intensely philosophical or irascible mood;
Italo Calvino for exploring the fabulous;
and Julio Cortazar for his amazing short stories. Reading Cortazar's short stories is like looking at a prism or watching particles dance in a ray of sunlight (obviously, I find his writing mesmerizing).

I used to re-read quite a bit, but since finding RP several years ago I now have so many books waiting for me to get to them, I haven't re-read much at all. Most recently I re-read The Lord of the Rings for the tenth time, but there had been a gap of nearly 20 years since I'd read it last. I also re-read the last two most recent Harry Potters when The Half-Blood Prince came out just to keep the story straight.

I used to re-read Nora Roberts and Mary Stewart quite frequently, and for years I would re-read The Sun Also Rises every spring (I generally don't like Hemingway at all, but there's just something about that time and place and Brett and Jake ...).

By reading with my kids I've been able to re-read the Little House books, Anne of Green Gables, The Three Investigators, Dana Girls, and Trixie Belden mystery series, Little Women and its sequels, and just loads of other fondly remembered kids' books.

Cindy, Laurie Lee died in 1997.

Veronica and others who like Gail Godwin: I highly recommend her poignant "Evenings at Five". You can read it at one sitting and I found it quite moving. What did you think of Godwin's "Finishing School"? I thought it one of her best. When I read "Father Melancholy's Daughter" I thought it perfectly captured the feel of an older small town in Virginia. I even wondered if Godwin knew the town of Lexington.... I also liked "The Good Husband" very much.

I did forget to mention on my list 3 others I often re-read:

Evenlyn Waugh's "Brideshead Revisited"
Annie Dillard's "Pilgrim at Tinker Creek" and her "An American Childhood"
and of course, "The Secret Garden"

Yes to The Secret Garden and Mrs. Mike.

I haven't reread The Secret Garden in decades, maybe four or more. I don't know why because I vaguely remember liking the story. Perhaps I will put it on my to-be-reread stack -- I like your "TBRR," mumby and will adopt it. :-)

biwako, which of Hammond Innes' novels do you reread most? I've read The Wreck of the Mary Deare several times, but I think that's the only one.

Mrs. Mike, oh yes! And Christy.

Sheri, that's funny the you reread The Sun Also Rises...well, not really funny, but it's a bit unusual, I'd say. I've always been fond of Jake Barnes, myself, but I've known several women readers who absolutely loathe Hemingway and boy! they give me an earful when I admit that I not only like TSAR but most of the rest of Hemingway, too.

Slice of life published in the 1940''s reminded me of a book I've borrowed from the library a couple of times. The Lemon Jelly Cake. Think the author's last name was Babcock. It's set in an Illinois town at the turn of the 20th century. The narrator is an 11 year old girl. It's funny but real. May have to go get it again. It was a bestseller at the time, sadly the author died of cancer shortly after it was published.

I'm another who loved the Secret Garden. I went to it again and again on the shelf of the tiny basement library in my Catholic school. Everything about was satisfying, the story of course, and that it was so fat with such a beautiful cover. A Little Princess, Anne of Green Gables, and the Little House books were also favorites. For awhile I was reading the Long Winter every winter.

Adult rereads include And Ladies of the Club, The Cazelet Chronicles, and Fried Green Tomatoes at the Whistle Stop CAfe.

> I just bought a new copy of Canticle

They just came out with a new edition a few years back, and since my copy has disintergrated, I picked it up. Definitely a book I re-read many times in college. Reading it again after all these years made me realize how precient it is, and how much scarier it has become. BTW, stay away from the sequel. A disappointment in comparison.

>I highly recommend her poignant "Evenings at Five". You can read it at one sitting and I found it quite moving.

I agree. Might be an interesting companion read to The Year of Magical Thinking by Joan Didion, about her husbands death.

>What did you think of Godwin's "Finishing School"?

I read it in close succession with a few of her others. I remember loving them all - and can't tell you what each one is...Think I need to re-read.

In some thread we were discussing how a title of a book conjures up images of where we were when reading it. The Good Husband is one of those for me. I was sitting in an empty cove near San Diego. I was listening to Beethoven's 9th, with the waves in the background. I was in tears at the end - it was such a wonderful book. I just sat there reveling in the books language and meaning, the music, the ocean, and the power that a good writer has to take you to a place you've never been and don't want to leave.

The only book I re-read consistently is "A Moveable Feast." Not sure why but I fell in love with it in college and never seemed to outgrow it as I did with others. There are so many lines in it that seem to pop up through life. Often, its not a re-read as much as just open somewhere and read a few paragraphs. I have been harmed by some re-reads---a book I thought was so wonderful seems considerably less so from an older perspective, and its kind of embarassing and sad.

While I am not big on re-reading, one I do re-visit regularly is "The Good Earth" by Pearl Buck; what a powerful and fascinating story. Like many others here, I will pick up children's books to re-read, usually out of my children's bookcases (often stocked with my old favorites) as well as their library picks.

That's another one I re-read frequently as a child. Wasn't till I read it in college that I caught the history, and realized that the main character was a jerk (product of his time, but still...)

I have have several perennial reads:

Gerald Durrell's books, especially My Family and other Animals and The Bafut Beagles. Any of his other autobiographical books will do in a pinch.
James Herriot's books.
Snorri's Edda.
Terry Pratchett's books. Good Omens is probably the one I have reread most often.
Anne of Green Gables.
Astrid Lindgren, especially Mio, my Mio.
The Hobbit.
The Secret Garden - I haven't read that one for ages, but probably read it twice a year when I was growing up.
I am David by Anne Holm.
Several Icelandic children's books.

I can't believe how many great comfort books I've missed. I Googled a lot of those mentioned and will be ordering several. Between my 2 book club selections every month,I plan to just ooze in comfort. Thank you for all the wonderful posts to this thread.

I'm not much of a re-reader. And I'm getting less so as I age. The last was a complete re-read of Douglas Adams when he died.

Biwako_of_abi, thanks for reminding me of Orphans of the Sky. Heinlein was one of my regular re-reads. My favorites were Glory Road and Tunnel in the Sky and The Moon is a Harsh Mistress (Tim Minnear of Firefly has written the script for a movie of Moon btw.)

Roger Zelazny is another writer I once reread frequently. His Amber series is comfort food.

Sharyn McCrumb has a couple of Ballad novels I've read more than once. But mostly, when I talk about rereading, I max out at about 3 times.

As a kid I would re-read fairy tales - and was quite embarrassed about how long past childhood I still indulged. I know better now.

I have always reread plays, for some reason. Cyrano De Bergerac, all of Shaw, Wilde, Shakespeare's comedies and King Lear, Fry's The Lady's Not for Burning

Georgette Heyer is someone I reread a lot.

Interesting thread. I'm now looking at books to pass on and am re-examining whether I will ever reread many.

I'd forgotten about Heinlein. Door into Summer was my favorite of his, and I re-read it many times in college. Besides loving the book, it always reminds me (with a smile) of the boyfriend who first recommended it to me.

Speaking of Heinlein, I just stumbled on a book blurb about a book called "Variable Star" that Heinlein started to write in the 50s but never completed. Spider Robinson was chosen to finish it and it is being published in the US in Sep-06. Not sure how successful posthumous novels ever are, but thought Heinlein fans might be interested.

Here is a link that might be useful: Variable Star

How could I have forgotten Fried Green Tomatoes? And I have a feeling that Pilgrim at Tinker Creek will become a multiple re-read, but I read it for the first time not long ago.
FriedaG: Probably Golden Soak, because I like the parts about down in the mine, but also The Wreck of the Mary Deare
I went to check my Innes books and noticed The Secret of Santa Vittoria, by Robert Crichton, which I have probably read at least three times and will read again. Did anyone else like this one? It may or may not be unfair to Germans, but it sure is funny, and books with a war-time setting do tend to favor one side or the other. Papillon was another multiple-read in the past. I hang on to all of these books because I feel sure I will be able to get back to them someday. But there are so many new books all the time! (Not really a complaint; lol.)

Frieda...
I am new to this board, and am not sure just how it works; I will read for a while...to learn. I sent you an email here??? re your inadvertant help in helping me find a book, 'Before the Sun Goes Down` by Howard. I read this book about 50+ years ago, and lost track of it. I am about to leave here for the south, so I cannot request it from the library just now, but I will. Again, thanks.

Bob

on a regular basis i re-read 84 Charring Cross road. but i've gotten lazy in my old age and just watch the video-- then go and get the book to re-read, because i'm sure i've missed some nuance.
same way about pride & predjudice.
some books are just good reads.
diggerb

As a child I reread the Bobbsey Twins, Nancy Drew, Cherry Ames and many others. I was obsessed with Enid Blyton's Adventure series.

As an adult my rereads have changed as time goes by. Some of my current comfort/rereads are:

anything by Bailey White
all the journals of Laurel Lee
Lying Awake by Mark Salzman
Stalking the Divine by Kristin Ohlson
In This House of Brede by Rumer Godden
Agatha Christie
Rumpole books
Virgin Time by Patricia Hampl
Not Without My Daughter by Betty Mahmoody
gbg

Friedag et al,
I got it!! Life if full of irony...After I got the title (from Frieda's post, I did an internet search, and found it in about 8 libraries in North America. I also searched Gutenberg, but no luck there. Then just for the heck of it, I looked at the online catalog of our local library system. It turns out the book was in the library of the small town that I grew up in, AND that I was driving there to see my son this morning. I called the library, and they put the book under the counter for me, and I borrowed it this morning. I shall have a very good read tonight, thanks to your interesting discussion on this board,

Regards,
Bob

Well this is interesting, mainly to catalog what I reread and to look at the list.
Everything written by Raymond Chandler
Everything written by P.G. Wodehouse (esp. his golf stories)
Heinlein: Stranger in a Strange Land
The Door into Summer (the cat character/aspect hooked me)...Heinlein was a fine writer period, not just a fine science fiction writer.
Twain: Huck Finn
Dostoevsky: Crime & Punishment
Tolkein: Lord of the Rings...the recent movies were quite decent...but Arwen Evenstar did not guide/protect Frodo on the flight to the ford in the book, and what happened to Tom Bombadil?
Kingsley Amis: Lucky Jim (identify with the triumph of the underdog?)
And I kid you not: I have a complete (well up to 1965 or so) Hardy Boys set stored in a suitcase...not that I reread them...but it is comforting to know that I could.....if I could find the suitcase....maybe I could retain Frank & Joe..."The Secret of the Misplaced Suitcase"

Wonderful, Bob! I'm always so thrilled when something I've posted about a seemingly obscure book connects with a person who recognizes it -- especially, as in your case, seven months after I originally wrote it.

Did you happen to grow up in Pennsylvania? I ask because the few people I've run across who have read Before the Sun Goes Down have been Pennsylvanians, though it has long been a special book in my family of Iowans.

Let us know how Howard's book holds up in your rereading. Not all books I've reread years later live up to my memory of them, but Before the Sun Goes Down did. It was as if I had just laid it down a few minutes before and picked it up again, instead of the thirty years that had actually passed.

Anyway, I hope you enjoy it. And I also want to welcome you to Reader's Paradise and hope you will visit frequently, after you get settled down South for the winter, if you will have Internet access -- or after you get back home, if you won't.

Frieda et al
Hi, I was going to wait until I had finished reading, but I was tired last night so today I was around pg 90. What I have noticed; I have to pay a lot more attention now that I did when I was young (about 12 yr old). OTOH, I see much more of the subtleness in her (Howard's) writing now, than before. I notice in a goggle search she was awarded $20,000, and subsequently another $125,000 for this book. I guess I should not be surprised at the quality, and the impression it left on me.

No, I have never been to PA; although I (and my family) have travelled to most states, except for the Eastern seaboard. I grew up in a small town in Saskatchewan, Canada; worked for a railway co. for about 15 years; went to University, and then taught Physics in a large highschool (2000 students). I retired two years ago, and now I have time to read and do all the other things I enjoy; and read, and read.
Yes, I will have satellite internet access down in Southern Calf. Only my wife and I go, as our two children are long gone, and gainfully employed...thank God.
I am enjoying the post here...problem is, I am seeing so many interesting reads being suggested, I know I am going to be frustrated. I will have to convince Linda (my wife) to help.
I have been made to feel very welcome. More comments later.

Regards to all;
Bob

Bob-that is the conundrum of RP-so many good titles suggested, and so many interesting conversations to contribute to-how to balance the time!

Hi all,
Well, I finished the book `Before the Sun Goes Down' by Howard. What did I think of it fifty years later?
The first thing that struck me, was that I needed to read slower, and much more carefully now, than when

I was young. I suspect the reasons are two fold: my younger mind was able to comprehende at a much

faster pace; and now I see much more depth to the author's writings, with more things to comprehende. I

found, especially near the beginning, that she used complex sentences, to the point of almost being

"run-on", and complex ideas were thusly strung together. (I was surprised to see her start a sentance with

"And"; my old English teacher's hair would have curled.) I had to really pay attention, and in some cases,

reread. Yes, it is a historical novel; describing the changes to a microcosm of US society during the

transition from horse and buggy and kerosene lamps, to steam railways and electrical lights; all through

the eyes of the people of Willowspring who were living that change.

Yet I can't help but think that there is more to it than a description of historical change. There seemed to

be a thread of a philosopy of the validity of "the rule by the aristocracy"; evidenced by the paternalism of

the Albrights and the Sargents, and by the sub-aristocracy of Ackley and the negro families that were

affected by his "sexual generosities". I still don't understand the latter, but that may be because I have

very little understanding of the intricacies of the old southern ways of life. I certainly did not notice these

ideas in my first read.

All in all, it was a good second read of a great novel; after the first third of the book, I was unable to put it

down until I finished (at 12:30 in the morning). I had to return it to the library, but I will watch for it to

show up in Gutenberg, and then have a third reading, paying closer attention to the philosophical aspects

of the novel. I am thinking that perhaps I should first find and read some books describing the peoples

and the history of the deep southern US.

Regards,
Bob

Bob, someone recommended that book to me a few years back. I was pleasantly surprised how good it was. Yes, it definitely made me read at a slower pace - but I didn't get impatient like I have with some books. Maybe because at that time life was at a slower pace? Its been a bit since I've read it, but I remember being interested not so much about the attitudes of the south (that was a given, at that time period), but how detailed day to day life was. And the part about the leopard (oh now I am forgetting, not sure what was about to attack) sent shivers down my spine.

I too would like to read it again, and look more closely at the attitude it was taking. As far as histories of the South, someone recommended that I read some of Conrad Joyner's works for a start (I need to check and see if his name is spelled correctly, and if I try Amazon I am liable to loose this link. Stay tuned.)works Never did - but many have praised him.

Hmm.. don't remember this...

"And the part about the leopard (oh now I am forgetting, not sure what was about to attack) sent shivers down my spine."

but the idea of the "night riders" and their relentless pursuits did send shivers down my spine. I wonder..did this sort of thing actually occur?

Regards,
Bob

Ach, my apologies! I read the Howard book on the heels of Lamb in His Bosom by Caroline Miller, a 1937 Pulitzer Prize winner about a farming community in Georgia pre Civil War. Margaret Mitchell said that this was a book that influenced the writing of Gone with the Wind "Your book is undoubtedly the greatest tht ever came out of the South about Southern people and it is my favorite book" in a letter from her to the author. Really quite excellent, and Im afraid since both books deal with some similar issues, well, I obviously have to read them both again to get it all sorted out. Oh, and the leopard part was in the Miller book. Well worth reading.

BTW, the author of several histories of the South is Charles Joyner, not Conrad.

Hi Cindy,
Looks like 'Lamb in His Bosom by Caroline Miller' is just what I would be wanting to read. I will chase it down...But we are headed for the warmer climes Saturday morning, so it will have to wait until we get to the Holtville library. I will check Gutenberg first; might be lucky. Gosh, I think the Gutenberg Project is the "Best Thing Since Sliced...."

Bob

Bob, my experience reading Before the Sun Goes Down, first as a child and then later as an adult, sounds very similar to yours. As a child I was entranced by the interactions of the characters; and since several of them are children and adolescents, I could relate to them. Even though their childhoods in the 1870s and 1880s were removed from mine in the 1950s and 1960s, I observed and felt the similarities rather than the dissimilarities that technologies had brought about in the eighty-year interval. I wonder if a child born in the 1970s or later, when reading this book, could have had as an instant empathy? Had technology changed their lives too much? Unfortunately, I have never met a person of that birth range, who has read Before the Sun Goes Down at the right time, that could give me some insight.

I think I was vaguely aware of the philosophical threads running through Before the Sun Goes Down when I was child because, for example, at one point I was confused about the identity of the traveling sage not being "The Wandering Jew." I asked my mother: what's a Wandering Jew? She told me it was a particular plant that spread its shoots in all directions and liked to escape its pot or bed. That made no sense at all, to me, at the time, so I shrugged it off. Later, when I heard Jesus referred to as "The Wandering Jew," my ears pricked up, but I still couldn't quite make the connection. As an adult, when I got to that part about the Wandering Jew, I had an aha! moment because I remembered my earlier confusion and at last I knew what the reference meant and how it tied in with the stranger visiting Willowspring, Pennsylvania. There seemed to be a thread of a philosopy of the validity of "the rule by the aristocracy"; evidenced by the paternalism of the Albrights and the Sargents, and by the sub-aristocracy of Ackley and the negro families that were affected by his "sexual generosities". I still don't understand the latter, but that may be because I have very little understanding of the intricacies of the old southern ways of life. I certainly did not notice these ideas in my first read.[emphasis mine]

I don't know that Howard's intent was to provide "validity" to an aristocratic way of life. It seems to me quite the opposite. Sure, she described the lives of the Albrights and Sargents and the advantages they had, but she also described how suffocating their lives were: Tim Albright, after all, ran away from home never to return
George married Pris Sargent instead of Vi Larson
Pris had a fantasy that Dan Field instead of George was Rufe's father
Rufus Sargent knew his wife Lou was a woman of limited affections -- Bert was her pride and joy -- so he loved his plain little daughter, Prissy, "more" to help balance the situation.

Contrast the older generations' acceptance of "what is proper" to that of the children's generation:
Bert, the scion, mingled with all the children, no matter their class.
Sammy Albright did,...

Oh, my posting above was getting so long that I forgot to comment about the "night riders."

I don't know how prevalent such tactics were -- the sensational always has a longer shelf life, it seems -- but such groups have been described in lots of literature and histories. New England writers, such as Hawthorne and even Elizabeth George Speare in her young adult novel The Witch of Blackbird Pond, have mentioned the actions of groups running undesirables out of town by such methods as tarring and feathering, riding out on a rail, branding (as was done in The Scarlet Letter), or just scaring people into leaving (bedsheet wearing, lawn torchings, cross burnings). Mark Twain wrote about the Arkansans despatching the Duke and the Dauphin on rails. That it was usually done by a bunch of hypocrites doesn't seem to be coincidental. I've read about equivalent practices in the literature and histories of the British Isles, France, Germany, and Australia, and I suspect it was used in other places as well.

I am a major re-reader. About once a year I have to clean out my bookshelfs because I don't have room to put any more books (and no room for more bookcases). The main criteria for getting rid of a book? Has it been reread in the last year or so, and do I plan to reread it again. No? Off the shelf it goes. Even with this process I have around 500 books in my room.

Hi Frieda,
Yes, there is more to Howard that first meets the eye. I would say that it ranks high in the top ten reads of my lifetime. And to think, when I was searching for the title, I was afraid that it would be so non-discript that it would never see the light of day on any bookshelf.
What I meant, and perhaps did not make clear, was that the paternalism (benevolence?) of the "best families" was replicated in their children. It was not an characteristic assumed for advantage, but was a part of their very beings; and regardless of intelligence, and/or money, another (Pettigrew) could never be the equal of the Allbrights or Sargents, as explicated by Ray Stoddard at two separate times. Yet, it is a good thing to help those who are in need; Pettigrew did. I do recall when reading the Ray Stoddard/Pettigrew dialogue; thinking this has echos of Ayn Rand. It was at that point that I started on the realization that Howard was writing on yet another level that I had not noticed when I was young, or even up to that moment in time. I stopped reading and did a bit of reflecting then. Since I was already 3/4 the way through, I decided then that I would read it again, to see if I were mistaken.
I had another look at google last night; and I found something like "Before the Sun Goes Down; the Growing up?? of a Layman" or something like that, written much later. I could only find one reference to it, and I dispair of ever finding it in print. I suspect that writing might shed some light on our discussions. I will keep an eye out for it, though.
Someone in the last few days, on this forum, remarked that latter day books do not seem to have the depth that older books do, and I believe that to be very true. I find that later books do not "stick in my mind" like many of the older works. Linda read one of those older works yesterday (Dinner at Antoines). She enjoyed it; I did not. Actually, we find that many books only last about half way through, and then they get set aside, never to be opened again. Linda and I don't keep new books anymore; rather we recycle them into book drops and the like. Usually, we don't take much to read from the drops. At this time in my life, I tend to more technical works, in an effort to learn some things (usually Physics related), that I did not have time for before I retired.
At any rate...we are headed into the city tomorrow to endure the dental appointment, and the next day we are taking the internet sat. dish down. So it will be about a week before we will have internet again.
Odd...this site is addictive..I find myself here more than a few times each day. Interesting, to say the least.
Best regards,
Bob

Hee, welcome to your newest addiction, um I mean habit :)

>remarked that latter day books do not seem to have the depth that older books do, and I believe that to be very true.

See, Im not sure I agree. I think it only seems that way. Remember that many of the 'classics' were books that rose to the top (tho not necessarily all the best books became classics, e.g. Before the Sun). We don't know about the junk, coz those books were not treated the same way. I would suggest that if we looked, we'd find a similar ration of chaff to wheat at that time period than we do today.

Today we have such an assortment of books of all types and styles. It is possible to find books that are as in depth as the ones we consider classic. A few come to mind: Time of Our Singing by Richard Powers, Possession by Byatt, Birds Without Wings by Louis de Berneries.

>I find that later books do not "stick in my mind" like many of the older works

I am the opposite - I find many so called classics cumbersome and tedious. I have read many wonderful ones, no question, and have reread many (seque back to topic). But I probably have as many classics stuck in my mind as I do modern.

BTW I hate to bring this up, but since I am about to enter the 50+ club in a few months, I think Im allowed. What we read as we were younger is likely to stick in our mind better. Aside from having better memory, we also had less experience and everything was so new. We were learning things for the first time. Now for me, much of what I read gets mixed up with others (see my problem with Sun and Lamb!) So I wonder if its a factor of our age, rather than the age of the book?

I also find myself reading more non fiction (tho I always read history and travel books). Learning new things has always intrigued me. Hopefully that will never stop being so!

Good luck at the dentist, and we'll see you on the flip side.

One book I read again and again is "The Awakening" by Kate Chopin. I love it esp since it's so feminist for when it was written (1899). It's also interesting to read about New Orleans back then.

Another book I reread is "Complications" by Atul Gwanda, a non-fiction book about a doctor and his more complicated cases. I am just fascinated by medical books.

I also reread the Get Fuzzy cartoon books and the Calvin and Hobbs ones as well. They crack me up over and over. Oh, and the Far Side books as well.

I've been avoiding posting on this thread since I wasn't sure if I wanted to list (or remember!) the books I've reread over the years.

Oh, well. Here we go.

When I was younger (and I can say that now), I used to read Machiavelli's The Prince at least once a year. I think I've now outgrown him.

I also find that I re-read the Harry Potter books every so often. Well, at least every time a new one comes out.

Ellery Queen mysteries were an addiction I used to have -- I'd reread his books (only the ones that actually featured Ellery, of course) constantly. I've outgrown him as well -- his books tended to be a bit formulaic.

Nero Wolfe mysteries are also another favorite for rereads. Luckily, I don't think I've outgrown them.

I occasionally reread Perez-Reverte's thrillers but only after a few years -- it takes me that long to forget the storyline. ;-)

As for Calvin and Hobbes, I read them constantly so I don't even consider it as rereading but more of a continuous, non-ending read!

We are the happy owners of the Calvin and Hobbes collection of books, and frquently reread them. I also have some Far Side, Outland, and some Doonesbury that are wonderful to reread (and the latter one isn't even that dated). I also have a book of NYer cartoons which I am not so much rereading as much as revisiting a bit more for much needed chuckles.

In addition to the Lord of the Rings, which I reread many times when I was younger, though not so much recently, I have reread Kristin Lavransdatter at least every 10 years since I first discovered it at age 17. As I have aged (I'm now 61), I become more and more astonished at the power of the this novel and the way it captures the complexities of love in all its forms--spousal, parental, young passion, though calling it a love story is like calling Crime and Punishment a murder mystery.

The old translation, which I loved, was a heavily archaized English and proved so offputting to everyone I pressed the book on to that only one person in all those years ever read it! But Tina Nunnally's new translation is very accessible and it's brought this magnificent novel to many who just couldn't make it through the old version. (Oddly enough, I always wondered if the original Norwegian was archaized and it turns out that it was not. Sigrid Undset wrote in modern Norwegian, so the first translator took great and unwarranted liberties.)

My re-reading goes with the seasons, includes mostly comfort books, and revolves mostly around authors instead of specific books.
It's cold outside, snowed yesterday, and for the umpteenth year, I have taken The Hobbit down from the shelf and will pick at it all winter.
In the fall its Lovecraft, Bradbury, Poe and all their wonderfull short stories.
Summer time is Patrick O'Brian and his Seafaring novels.
Spring...time to be in the yard working outside....
peace

Although I do enjoy listening to a book after reading it, some times reading one after listening to it, I rarely reread much. I have read some of BrysonÂs books more than once, and I have read some Twain and Hemingway two and three times, but I sadly have no "return to" or "Comfort" book :::Sniffles::: : (

Childhood books I reread often are Lewis Carroll, and Kenneth Grahame's Wind in the Willows. Love Calvin & Hobbes and Gary Trudeau's Doonesbury.

E.F.Benson's Lucia series. Armistead Maupin's Tales of San Francisco.

Somerset Maugham's shortstories. Balzac's shortstories and novels. John Galsworthy and Anthony Trollope. J.D.Salinger.

Jan Morris is a favorite writer to savor again, also several books by John McPhee and Bill Bryson I've reread and saved for a later time.

Pepy's Diary. And so to bed ~grin~ josh

Josh, did you read the entire Pepys' diary or a volume of excerpts?

cjoseph, Mine are thriftshop finds. I have one slim volume, an abridgement edited by Isabel Ely Lord covering 1660-69, which got me hooked. Later found an old slipcased edition entitled Vol. !! covering 1665-69, transcribed by Henry B. Wheatley, unabridged, published 1942.

I know there are undoubtedly later and better transcriptions out there...I've just enjoyed these. So no, I haven't read the entire diary (I wasn't sure to be honest until you asked)...but I think I'll look for Vol.1 now that it's so easy to buy old books on the net.

In my post I was just thinking of books I can pick up after an interval of months or even years and immediately settle into as if I'd been reading the night before...Pepys fits in there...josh

Josh, Did you know you can read Pepy's diary online? Link below:

Here is a link that might be useful: Pepy's Diary

Thanks, Sheri, I did know about the books online but had forgotten, and others may be glad to know. Actually though I'm oldfashioned with respect to books...I must have the real thing...it's part of the total experience. I do think it's a priceless resource though to check out before purchasing a "classic". Some I love and cherish...others I'm afraid aren't for me no matter how hard I try. josh

Sheri..I feel so foolish. I clicked on your link after my last post thinking I might read a little of the early years of Pepys' diary and found the site has a marvelous "Pepys Encyclopedia" and annotations which are a delight. I always want to know more about everything mentioned when reading and this will be so handy. So thank you again...I will indeed use and value your link. josh

Josh, glad you liked it! Someone here had provided the link a while back, I'm pleased to pass it on again.

Being a fan of John Steinbeck,I have read The grapes Of wrath more than once,
Also Travels with Charley is one of my favorites.