What was the favorite book you read, cover to cover, in the last year or so? Why is it your favorite? (It can be fiction or nonfiction, faith-based or not.) Feel free to tell us in the comments about yours. We all want to expand our reading lists!
Read It Again
Now that you’ve identified the book, read it again. As Vladimir Nabakov wrote:
Curiously enough, one cannot read a book: one can only reread it. A good reader, a major reader, an active and creative reader is a rereader” (from Nabokov’s speech “Good Readers and Writers” (pdf link) delivered in his 1948 collection Lectures on Literature).
That may seem like an overstatement. After all, we have only so much time in a day. Why am I suggesting this?
Learn From the Best
The first time you read a book, if you are able to turn off your editing instincts, you are caught up in the story, the characters, or the nonfiction point the teacher is trying to make. But this time, while you reread, look for the technique of the writer. Look at the structure and argument trail. Note how a character is described for the first time and when that happens. Try to discover what made this a magical book for you.
The beauty of this analysis is that you are no longer entranced by the what-if or the conclusion. You know where the book is going. So now you can use the book as a teacher of writing.
I even recommend reading with multicolored pencils or pens at the ready. (A little harder to accomplish with an e-reader.) Use one color for emotion. Another for major points. Another for descriptions. Another for anecdotes. (I’m mixing fiction and nonfiction in my examples on purpose.) Let the great writers teach you.
Immersive Reading
In addition, the second or third time through a book you may find an idea you missed the first time. For example, I suspect you may have read C.S. Lewis’s Mere Christianity a while ago. I can almost guarantee that if you reread it today, it will speak to you again but in a new way because you are likely in a different place spiritually, physically, mentally, and emotionally than you were the first time. (And if you’ve never read it? Put it at the top of your list.)
Even a great novel can do the same. In the last decade, I have reread Dune by Frank Herbert, twice. It is considered to be one of the greatest science-fiction novels of all time. I am continually struck by the power of religion in the lives of each character, something I glossed over the first time because of the extraordinary saga that was told.
Enjoy your (re)reading experience. Tell us what you discovered!
(A version of this post was published in January 2013.)
Fun Fridays – March 25, 2022
My education started in a one-room country school. When I’d read every book in its little library, my folks paid for the privilege of using the nearest public library. Every two weeks, my mother would make the drive, and I’d check out my limit of seven books. I’d read them all, and then re-read them until the next trip. Fast-forward 60 years, and I often re-read books I enjoy. As I read your post, Steve, I realize it’s made me a better writer — an unintended consequence of living in the sticks.
Sycamore Row by John Grisham and The Masterpiece by Francine Rivers.
Simply Tuesday by Emily P Freeman
“The Histories”, by Polybius (for a course at Hillsdale College), tipping the scales at 450 pages. Please don’t make me read it again . . .
“Knowing God” by J. I. Packer. I’ve put a reminder in Outlook to reread if later this year.
The Bumps Are What You Climb on by Warren Wiersbe and Higher is Waiting by Tyler Perry.
Adorning the Dark: Thoughts on Community, Calling, and the Mystery of Making by Andrew Peterson
Wordsmithy: Hot Tips for the Writing Life by Douglas Wilson
The Broken Road by Richard Paul Evans. His characters are so vivid and believable. Their personalities come through, mostly through dialogue. Really enjoyed that book!
“Fawkes” by Nadine Brandes
I just read it in January, and reading it again will be a joy.
I loved that book. Romanov was even better!
I’ve read Mere Christianity a couple of times and probably need to do so again. I loved rereading Little Women and the Little House on the Prairies books many times over the years. I identified with different characters at different stages of life. I could read any of Jen Wilkin’s books multiple times. C. S. Lewis’ Narnia books, especially The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe, are just as rich the fifth time.
By the way, I read ebooks via the Kindle app on my iPad Mini, and it has a highlight function with four colors.
It’s worth reading, yet again,
in your heart you know it’s true
that there is a faithful friend
a-waiting on the shelf for you.
You made acquaintance, long before,
and find yourself called to return
to that always-open door,
to that bourn for which you yearn,
and going back you find it changed,
deeper, richer, but the same,
the jewels and fabric rearranged,
but always harking to the name
by which was introduction made,
an accord not set to fade.
“Fathered by God” by John Eldredge.
I listened to it while driving and am now reading the actual text. So much encouragement and direction. It is by far the best explanation of authentic masculinity I have seen in a long while…maybe ever.
I am an eclectic reader. I read The Secret Garden every spring, usually just about the time green things start poking up out of the ground. I’ve read Robert Jordan’s Wheel of Time series three times, beginning to end – for the battle between good and evil, for the exploration of free will vs predestination, for lessons on perspective and POV, for insight on how to sustain a story for that many books. I read the Bible with colored pencils – red for salvation, green for commands, blue for promises, yellow for insight/truth. And my favorite romance authors I read again and again when I need a mental vacation, just because they’re good at creating that continuous dream that carries you away.
“Unspeakable: Facing Up to the Challenge of Evil” by Os Guinness
I loved To Kill Mockingbird.
I read “Little Women” once a year as a teenager.
“God of the Garden” by Andrew Peterson is going on my reread list.
“Thief of Glory” by Sigmund Brouwer stills haunts me. Would be a great book to study POV.
Some favorite reads lately have been, Whose Waves These Are by Amanda Dykes. Thought provoking and very very good writing. Also, Pride and Prejudice, I read it almost every year and see something new every time. And Nolyn by Michael J Sullivan which really made think about father/son relationships, misunderstanding, and what love looks like.
The Good Nurse, by Charles Graeber, is a cautionary tale of what happens when evil goes unchecked. I remember reading a newspaper article years ago about a serial killer nurse, Charles Cullen, when I was on the cusp of beginning my career in healthcare. I had a Pollyanna optimism about what it would be like to work in a hospital. The tragedy, and expanse, of Cullen’s murderous spree shocked and grieved me. Cullen’s role was to heal, not harm, and there were numerous hospitals that allowed his crimes to continue. Now, many years later, while looking for comps, I found The Good Nurse, which tells how this gripping tale unfolded.
The story covers 359 pages, in a style reminiscent of Truman Capote’s In Cold Blood. A movie based on the book began production in April 2021, and will be released on Netflix.
Since part of my book takes place in a hospital, I marked sections of Graeber’s book with color-coded tabs, each with a short note, for reference.
In the last year, Dust by Kara Swanson blew my mind. I listened to it on audiobook so it would a great one to read, in one sense, for the first time.
I love rereading favorite novels or rewatching favorite videos. It’s like spending time with old friends. 🙂
I’ve heard it’s good to do what you say in rereading a novel – to learn and all. I’ve never done it, though. Not underlining lines and words, etc. But I have taken notice of how other authors develop characters, use dialog and description, and create settings. It’s helped me a lot when writing for middle grade and YA.
What’s helped me most for picture books is working with my best friend, who is an illustrator. She sees stories differently than I do, of course. And it’s improved my craft so much! I’m very thankful.
One thing I’ve found helpful is to alternate reading novels and craft books. Craft books by themselves tend to be a bit dry. And with novels by themselves, I’ll tend to miss the underlying structure. But read one and then the other and suddenly you’ll start making connections, in the context of how it’s applied in the book. By far the most effective “study reading” I’ve ever done.
I just finished “On Writing Well” by William K. Zinsser. A classic. Not just a how-to but entertaining instruction.
Beast by Chawna Schroeder. I became so emotionally invested in this book that I contacted the author. I needed to know whether the ending would leave me an emotional wreck. I told her, if it would, then I couldn’t finish it.
She encouraged me to continue reading. I did. What a blessing. I’ve passed it on to a friend who was also gripped by the intensity. I highly recommend Beast.
What awesome readers…thank you for sharing.
I do this with the Bible. I mark hearts near the verses on love.
I use read pencil on all the times “Jesus said” or “the word of the Lord” or “the voice of the Lord” and so forth, such as “God commanded”.
Whenever the words mind, wisdom, believe, think, reason, consider or know appear, I mark them with another color. Interpreted to mean any words which have to do with thinking. Wow! That was a learning experience, and it certainly refutes the critics who believe Christians are clueless or ignorant as we are learning the mind of God.
Opps, I misread “red” pencil.
I’ve always been a re-reader. I’m blessed (cursed?) with a memory that allows me to forget the ending to books I’ve read once, allowing me to enjoy them fully again. I reread my favorites over and over again. In the interest of downsizing I’ve moved from having hundreds of books in my home to having hundreds of books on my Kindle. Every few years I revisit favorite series or stand-alones. I couldn’t pick a favorite. But among them are Jane Austen’s books; Anne McAffrey’s Pern series; The Harry Potter series; Lillian Jackson Braun’s Cat Who mysteries; a number of romance authors whose books can be read over and over; anything by Erma Bombeck; and a number of books from my youth, including everything by Laura Ingalls Wilder and her daughter, Rose; and the Anne of Green Gables series, and a biography of Harriet Tubman. Standout stand-alone books I’ve really enjoyed that come to mind at the moment include The Shack, Memoirs of a Geisha, The Red Tent, The Fault in our Stars, The Number 1 Ladies Detective Agency, The Help – there are too many to mention. Suffice to say I’m an avid reader, and often reread my faves!
Over the years, I have reread more than twice, Francine Rivers’s – And the Shofar blew , Susan Howatch’s’s – Sins of the Fathers and Lola Shoneyin’s – The Four Wives of Baba Segi and my own book – Their Journry on Earth to Heaven.
I enjoy relieving and basking in the pleasure I derive rereading these books. They are the kind of stories you remember for life because of their relatable essence,unique narration and true to life themes.
What a great idea, to read with markers! Thanks for suggesting it. I love the C. S. Lewis books by Patti Callahan.
Now you’ve made me re-read Dune which I probably read thirty years ago. I can’t believe I missed noticing the power of religion in the lives of the characters. At least I don’t remember that aspect of the story.
On my first read through She Walked Before Us by Jill Eileen Smith, a new author to me, I felt like we were sitting across the table from each other. She also has a unique style of weaving fact and fiction and adding details from her travels. Yet the setting did not overpower the story. I sent Jill an email and she answered me.
My most re-read book, besides the Bible, has been John Bunyan’s The Pilgrim’s Progress. That’s why I’ve written a companion book that includes recap of Bunyan’s allegory, personal devotion, and journaling. Not published yet, the working title is Journey with Bunyan’s Pilgrim.
Steve,
Great post! I am not one to reread a book, not when there are so many books that I have yet to read. However, I can certainly see the strengths that accompany rereading a book that captivated me. Mere Christianity was definitely one of those books – it’s been years since I’ve opened it, so that may be my next (re)read!
In the fiction department, I was completely entranced with Peadar Ó Guilín’s novel, “The Call.” It’s a YA fantasy novel, which isn’t my typical choice (it came recommended), but I have to admit that the plot swept me off my feet from page one!
Steve,
Great post! I am not one to reread a book, not when there are so many books that I have yet to read. However, I can certainly see the strengths that accompany rereading a book that captivated me. Mere Christianity was definitely one of those books – it’s been years since I’ve opened it, so that may be my next (re)read!
In the fiction department, I was completely entranced with Peadar Ó Guilín’s novel, “The Call.” It’s a YA fantasy novel, which is not my typical choice (it came recommended), but I was swept off my feet within the first few pages!
You mentioned my favorite read from last year–Dune! I can’t wait to read it again! Once I read a couple sequels.
One of my favourite novels, which I reread in the last year, is Watership Down, by Richard Adams. It’s full of nature, atmosphere, description, tension, great characters, leadership and courage – all contained in a story about rabbits! If you’ve never read I really encourage to you to do so, and be inspired by Hazel, Fiver and Bigwig.