Wednesday, February 6, 2013

The Daydreamer's Ramblings: To Reread or Not to Reread

The Daydreamer’s Ramblings is a semi-regular feature here at Ramblings of a Daydreamer. It ranges from discussion posts to rants to raves.
 
Late last year as I was going over my TBR list and mentally thinking of the books I wanted to read in 2013 - plus some of the requirements of challenges I'd signed up for - I realized there were several books I wanted to reread. Some are favourites that I've been wanting to reread for a long time, some are books I really enjoyed and want to be refreshed on certain aspects, and others are classics I enjoyed that I want to reread. 

Then I got thinking...there are so many new books I want to read - and by new, I don't necessarily mean new releases, just books that I haven't read yet. There's also the fact that I'm a pretty slow reader. This made me wonder if I should spend time rereading books when I could (should?) be reading new books and review books. 

I'm kind of torn. There are a few I know for sure I'll take the time to reread, but then others I'm not so sure about. The plus with rereading books is that almost all the ones on my list are books I read before I started blogging, so at least I'll get to write reviews for them this time around. That makes me feel a little less like I'm 'wasting time'. 

Some of the books on my reread list for 2013:
  • The Sugar Queen by Sarah Addison Allen  - I read this several years ago and loved it. I intended to reread it in November or December 2012, but still haven't gotten around to it. 
  • Anne of Avonlea by Lucy Maud Montgomery - the second book in the Anne of Green Gables series. I reread Anne of Green Gables last year, and I want to reread Anne of Avonlea (which I read in my teens) before continuing on with the series. 
  • Sisterhood of the Travelling Pants, The Second Summer of the Sisterhood, and Girls in Pants by Ann Brashares - I loved these when I read them several years ago, and I want to reread them before I read the final two books in the series.
  • That Summer, Keeping the Moon, and Someone Like You by Sarah Dessen - Someone Like You was one of my favourite books as a teen (I read it a few times, and was convinced Sarah Dessen had written it about my best friend and me - it was just one of those books), and I read the other two in my mid-teens, but can't remember what they're about. I'm planning on doing a Sarah Dessen reading challenge this spring, and I want to read/reread all her books. 
  • Zel by Donna Jo Napoli - an incredible retelling of Rapunzel that I read a couple times in my teens; it feels like it's time read it again. 
  • On Fortune's Wheel by Cynthia Voigt - another book I read in my teens and loved, but I honestly can't really remember what it's about now. 
  • The Iron King by Julie Kagawa - I bought the boxed set of Iron Fey books in 2012 and I have the novellas, so I want to reread the first book and then read the rest of the series.
 How do you feel about rereading books? Do you think it's a waste of time, or do you think of it as revisiting favourite characters and worlds? Do you reread previous books in a series before reading new installments? Is there something specific about a book that makes you want to reread it? What are some of the books you plan to reread this year? I'd love to hear your thoughts!

10 comments:

  1. I have the hardest time rereading books, which is just sad because I read super fast. Whenever I start rereading though, I get bored because I feel like I already know what's going to happen.

    There are a couple I can get away with though, one of which is Anne of Green Gables series- you have good taste. :) I think I like that one so much because it takes me back to being a younger and it's just so good.

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  2. I have two quirks when it comes to reading. I do not reread. I'm not sure why. I guess for the same reason I don't watch movies but one time. I already know the ending so my mind tells me to move one. There are too many books out there. That is the same reason if a book doesn't grab me in the first two or three chapters. It is history. No need to waste time on something I do not really love. Too many books out there.

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  3. Rereading books for me is not a waste of time. It's a revisit of my favorite characters and stories. This year I think I will reread "Ashfall" by Mike Mullin.

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  4. All the books on my shelf are ones that I love enough to want to reread, but I've only ever reread one and that was recently. Usually, I pick something new because there are so many books on my TBR pile and at times it can seem like a waste to reread something.

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  5. I think I would cry if I couldn't re-read books. :)

    I do it all the time, partly for pure enjoyment and partly to use my writer's eyes to pick out specific aspects of how the author made his or her plot work.

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  6. I love re-reading books. I've noticed since I started blogging and discovering all the amazing new to me books I have a harder time re- reading. So sad.

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  7. I re-read books from time to time. Nowhere near as much as I did before I started blogging and I feel that is a blessing and a curse. What's the point of having and keeping all these lovelies if I'm essentially sentencing them to eternal slumber the moment I turn that last page? It's actually kinda sad. but as you mentioned, there is this pressure to make sure I'm not wasting time by reading stuff I'll actually review. That can get really irritating, I must admit.

    The one book on your last that I agree with you on strongly is The Iron King. I read it back in 2011, I have all the others and I haven't touched one yet. I'm afraid I'll have lost my connection to Meghan, which is a shame because I really loved the first book, her as a character, etc.

    The thing for all of us to remember as bloggers, though, is that we started this because we love books and even more important then promoting new stories we love is doing whatever it takes to maintain our own love of stories that brought us here in the first place. Sometimes re-reading an old favorite can be as vital as watering a plant when it comes to recharging our reading batteries.

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  8. Rereads are nice once in awhile. I think they bring us back to a good place again, especially with books we read 10+ years ago. I barely remember everything about those books from all those years ago! That's why I want to read a few of them so badly. It's almost necessary to life to me. :)

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  9. I would love to have the time and motivation to reread more of the books I have loved but there are so many new to me books/authors on my TBR pile that I just never get around to it.

    In my pre-blogging days I did a fair bit of rereading and thoroughly enjoyed visiting characters and stories I adored, when things start to slow down, I may revisit a few of my old faves.

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  10. I'm a bit late, but wanted to chime in and say that I reread books frequently! It does help that I read quickly, but even if I didn't, I'd still reread. I like to revisit favorite characters, stories, and worlds. Don't feel like you're wasting time!

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~Marie

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