Before I became a writer, I was a reader (I still am). I remember many books I’ve read; others, I’ve forgotten. There are some I’ve loved, others I’ve liked, and a few that disappointed me. I won’t tell you what the last ones are because this is entirely subjective, but I’ll say they either had endings that were way too abrupt, character development went down the drain in the final act, or they had nothing to do with their blurbs (the reason why I’d bought them). Some of my favorite books keep recurring in my life. Do you have any books you like to re-read? Either completely or a chapter or specific part? I do!
I’ve re-read Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice (1813), Persuasion (1818) and Northanger Abbey (1817), and the second one especially I’ve come back to from time to time. There’s something about Anne Elliot and Captain Wentworth that I just can’t get enough of.
I’ve also gone over Mhairi McFarlane’s It’s Not Me It’s You (2014) a few times. There’s a part near the end that I love, and I re-read it sometimes when I need to smile.
And William Shakespeare’s Much Ado About Nothing (1598-99)… How can I not want to go back, time and time again, to Beatrice and Benedick?
I’ve also re-read Ian McEwan’s Atonement (2001) and Kate Atkinson’s A God in Ruins (2015) as I wrote my thesis on them, and the more detailed, analytical read offered a whole new perspective and a deeper understanding (or so I tell myself).
I’ve also re-read a couple of Agatha Christie novels (I binged them as a teenager, and over ten years later, I wanted to go back to them). And Then There Were None (1939), Murder on the Orient Express (1934), and Death Comes as the End (1944) are the three I’ve gotten to, although I’d love to re-read them all, if I’m honest.
I’ve also returned to dictionaries and style guides (for obvious reasons), and it’s something I actually enjoy doing.
Are there any books you go back to or re-read? Which ones and why, or why not?
