Whatcha Re-Read?
Over the last couple of weeks, I’ve read two Patricia McKillip works I hadn’t read before, the novel Kingfisher and the short story collection, Wonders of the Invisible World.
Places and People to Revisit
While I found much in both books to like, re-reading them made me crave the opportunity to re-read McKillip’s “Riddle of Stars” series (The Riddlemaster of Hed, Heir of Sea and Fire, and Harpist in the Wind). Therefore, I pulled out an omnibus edition and happily re-entered the kitchen at Akren where Morgon and his siblings were in spirited debate.
As I slid into the story, I found myself thinking how very odd it is that reading may just be the only hobby related to an art form where people question or apologize for the desire to revisit a work of art.
I’ve heard some variation of the following so many times: “I know I have a lot of new books on my to-be-read shelf, but I just wanted to re-read this one.” What’s very odd is I hear this even from those who read enough new material that they certainly shouldn’t feel a need to justify their choice.
No one would ever say this about repeatedly listening to an album, nor would anyone ever say “But why are you doing that? You know all the songs by heart!” Indeed, with music, most people seem impressed when someone knows all the songs by an artist, including the correct lyrics. Equally, no one questions leaving the same painting or drawing on the wall for years and years.
Do viewers get criticized for re-watching a favorite show? Movie-goers seem to get praised, rather than otherwise, for having seen the same film ten or twenty times. In both cases, re-watching seems to be regarded as proof of their devotion, rather than otherwise.
So, why is re-reading viewed differently? Why is the re-reader regarded as lazy or seeking a “comfort zone,” when repeated listening or viewing is considered admirable?
I have no idea. All I know is that the reasons I re-read are many and varied.
How about the oft-mentioned and oft-disregarded “comfort” element? Although I rarely re-read to put myself in a comfort zone, during a few very stressful periods of my life, I’ve certainly done so. However, actually, I find reading something new is just as able of bestowing comfort, because the twists of an unfamiliar plot can distract me sufficiently that, for a time, I’m not capable of thinking about whatever is stressing me.
During the worst period of my life, immediately after the death of Roger Zelazny – with whom I was living, and with whom I was beside when he died, (if you’ve missed that long-ago chapter of my biography) – I read extensively and obsessively. But I didn’t re-read. I read new works, including, most memorably, a huge number of Terry Pratchett novels.
One reason I re-read is because the first time through a book I tend to read as quickly as possible, since I’m caught up in finding out what happened. For the plot to hold my attention, I need to care about the characters. But rather than slowing me down, my interest in the characters makes me read even faster. This isn’t to say that I’m not aware of style or other details, but I’m not as analytic. Re-reading gives me a chance to appreciate how the story was told, to savor the little elements of characterization or setting that made the story grab my soul and hold tight. This is a good thing for a reader who is also a writer.
Another reason I re-read is that I’ve fallen in love with some aspect or aspects of the story. Sometimes these are characters. More rarely it’s the setting. In the best books, it’s both. For example, I love the impossible, richly historical, twisted and convoluted setting Patricia McKillip put together for the “Riddle of Stars” series, but I also love many of the (equally impossible, twisted and convoluted) characters. As a writer, I appreciate how, in McKillip’s work, the bizarre and outré are gloriously rooted in those characters and places that are completely normal.
Yum.
There are many other books – both series and individual novels – that I have re-read over the years. Although I buy fewer books than I’d like (Jim and I and the animals need to be able to move through the house), those that I do buy are the ones I know I’ll be re-reading somewhere down the road – and that I don’t want to take the risk of being unavailable when I want to do so. On my short list for purchase right now are the four volumes of Maggie Stiefvater’s “Raven Cycle.”
So, do you re-read? If so, what do you re-read? Why do you re-read?
