I’m not a re-reader. With the exception of Harry Potter, which I usually read every year, once I have finished a book, I move on. There is a certain guilt in feeling like I shouldn’t waste time living in worlds I have already experienced with so many exciting new stories to get to. Something has changed though, and I have recently started having very strong urges to re-read old favorites.
In this crazy time of uncertainty and stress, I find myself wanting to crawl up inside books that bring me comfort and a sense of familiarity. Books like Twilight and The Princess Diaries series are calling to me from the shelves in my bedroom at my parent’s house. My excitement and anticipation for new stories is still here, but deep down I’m fighting the urge to revisit the feelings of contentment that these old stories stirred in me once upon a time. It probably doesn’t help that I am back living with my parents and sisters again, in ways reverting back to the time when these books meant so much to me, and worrying about what the future will bring. I have talked to a few people about this feeling, because it is a strange and new one for me, and I have found that I am not alone. Several of my friends have been grappling with the same urge to re-read their old favorites as well! I finally gave in the other day when I found an old middle school favorite, Bras and Broomsticks by Sarah Mylnowski, with an inscription from my grandma who has been gone for a few years now. The lightness my heart felt, for the first time in a while, was incredibly rejuvenating. The story held such meaning for me as a pre-teen, and revisiting it as an adult still brought me so much joy. This is gonna sound corny, but I could actually feel the love in the pages- both from my grandma and from my pre-teen self. I had so much fun experiencing Rachel and Miri’s shenanigans again, and also scream laughing over the descriptions of the “cool” and “unstylish” 2000’s clothing. The story is heartfelt, witty, and still relatable today, and while the stakes are high- it was middle school, when were they not?- it is, overall, a very simple and lovable story. I needed it.
New stories are exciting, but there is also an excitement in knowing you’re about to experience something you love again. With my ever growing TBR and trying to stay up to date for my blog, I always feel the pressure to push forward into new books. I don’t think that feeling will ever go away, but I have been reminded that sometimes it is ok, and maybe even necessary, to give your self a break and give in to the desire to look back at some guaranteed happiness. ❤
Reading In The Wings 
Oh God yes!! I am an unregenerate re-reader. I will often be reminded (while reading a new book) of passages, or plot elements from much loved past books that incite me to go back and revisit them. I do it a LOT. I’m a sucker for great detectives (John Sanford’s “Lucas Davenport”, and “Virgil Flowers” novels – at least 30 of them; Michael Connelly’s “Harry Bosch”; Conan Doyle’s “Sherlock Holmes”; Sara Paretsky’s “V.I. Warshawski”… etc). Stephen King’s “The Stand”, “The Dark Tower” series, “the Talisman”… maybe a dozen more.
They’re like old friends. They never get older, they stay the same “age” as I was when I read them. Does that make sense?
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Yes! Absolutely!
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