Reflections, Myths, Tips and Tricks for Re-reading . . . and why you should do it this year!

Given that not a lot of people read quantities of books per year, period, why am I making the case for re-reading? Especially to you, dear reader, whose to-be-read pile of books you haven't read yet is probably around 20-100 titles?

During the first few months of 2023, when I'm indoors and at home more, I figured it would be a great time to revisit some books that have been helpful to me over the years. As you've been seeing from my reading list posts from 2021 and 2022, I've biased myself towards books that are new to me. Not necessarily recently published, but plenty that I haven't read before and some that I don't care to read again.

Why Me?

Why am I setting this goal of specifically re-reading a few books first? There are a couple of reasons:

1. People change and grow as they work through life. I am no exception, and I'm interested to see how my thoughts and emotions react to a book years after the first read.
2. The mind forgets things if not regularly reinforced and tested. This is a pretty basic concept in neuroscience, psychology, and many other fields. I don't want to forget the best stuff.
3. I feel less guilty about the vast areas in our home library that I haven't read, once I can pinpoint on the shelves books that I'm familiar with. (Side note: of the 1000+ books we own, I brought in maybe a quarter of them to the marriage. Someone in the family is a librarian familiar with all the titles, and it isn't me.)

However, I'm only one person, with one person's opinion. Why should you think about rereading this year? According to Alison Doherty and Basmo, there are several strong reasons to selectively re-read some books, at certain times.

Why and How Should You (Not) Reread?

Benefits of rereading books include better reading fluency applicable to other material, deepening our understanding of the original material, improving our memory for the material (I'm looking at you, students), rekindling our love for reading after a dry season (I'm looking at you, self), and giving ourselves comfortable feelings.

There are a few drawbacks to rereading as well. When I was reading these in the Basmo article, these helped me formulate the how of rereading so that it wouldn't set me back in my reading and knowledge goals that are always burning in the back of my mind.

The first drawback is the time spent rereading. This cannot be spent reading something new at the same time. Therefore, I would spread out and punctuate my new reads with rereads. (While I'm rereading the 5 in my list below one right after the other, I am simultaneously working through some new books like The Robe.)

Second, excessive rereading means that all the new books on the shelf stay there. While they're pretty, that makes me sad. I'm using the same strategy, being selective about what I want to reread, and keeping that ratio rather low, to avoid this pitfall.

Third, people change over time, and thus might not enjoy a reread that they enjoyed the first time, whether for knowing what will happen (and not being surprised), being distracted by children and work in a later stage of life, or something else.

Given those pros and cons, Basmo recommends a five-part strategy for how to reread:

• Choose high-worth books, not just the easy ones.
• Allow yourself to skip very familiar passages.
• Slow down and ponder the details.
• Analyze the particulars of the language the author used.
• Keep track of what you read and reread.

What Should I Reread?

What am I rereading for the year? At this point, here's my short list, with reasons for each:

1. Holy Bible (New King James Version). I am a Christian, and have read the Bible roughly once per year since 7th grade. I see no reason to stop. 😊
2. Structure of Scientific Revolutions (T. S. Kuhn). The first time I read this book--in the previous edition (there are 6!), it was required for a class. That was approximately 5 years, one marriage, two job changes, and one baby ago. Because of the philosophy-related reading over the last few years, plus more research experience, I wanted to see the book with fresh eyes. Hopefully I'll finish it this week. The first time around, I found using an outline really helpful. 
3. Mama Bear Apologetics (H. Ferrer). As this one was a lot newer, I first read this on the recommendation of a few friends. In the intervening time, reading Carl Trueman brought history and apologetics together in a much sharper light and broader perspective. I want to see how Ferrer's book compares, given it was written for a similar audience.
4. The Charlotte Mason Companion (K. Andreola). I can't remember how old I was when I first read this book, but the bottom line is that my education was a hybrid of Mason's principles and a classical model. Now that I have a little pre-student of my own, it's high time to reevaluate and formulate my educational philosophy.
5. Wheelock's Latin (F. Wheelock). I think I went through the 6th edition of this around when I read the previous book on this list. Not to be outdone by my husband who is reviewing his Greek and learning Hebrew, I need to refresh my language skills.
6. Update 1/31/23: I usually don't count audiobooks in my reading or re-reading. However, Husband and I are far enough through Out of the Silent Planet (C. S. Lewis) that I'm going to count it. Technically, the only book of the Space Trilogy I've read before is Perelandra. More to come . . .

 

Beyond my picks, here are the top 10 classics that Goodreads recommends for re-reading.

1. Pride and Prejudice (J. Austen). I read this back in college on the recommendation of a strong Jane Austen fan, can't recall liking it very much, but have been assured that it is worth re-reading for the veiled sarcasm alone. Adding it to the list . . .
2. The Great Gatsby (F. Scott Fitzgerald). I haven't read this, period. Oops!
3. 1984 (G. Orwell). I've read this twice, I think. Scary dystopian novel. Done!
4. Jane Eyre (C. Brontë). I can't remember whether I've read this, which probably means I haven't. 2 for 2 so far.
5. To Kill a Mockingbird (H. Lee). Haven't read this either, but based on what I've read about it, I probably should before my little reaches high-school age.
6. The Catcher in the Rye (J. D. Salinger). Haven't read this one. My batting average is down to 0.33.
7. Sense and Sensibility (J. Austen). I may have read this, but can't remember.
8. Wuthering Heights (E. Brontë). I did read this one once, and somewhat enjoyed it. Given that Jane Austen has 3 books in the top 10 list, I should probably prioritize her instead.
9. Brave New World (A. Huxley). I've read this once, as an adolescent. Quite scary. Maybe again later.
10. Emma (J. Austen). Since I felt I had done my duty by reading Pride and Prejudice, I know I didn't read this one ever.

Conclusion

Re-reading a book every once in a while, even with a long to-read list, is a good thing to do. I've prioritized five somewhat-related re-reads for early this year. How about you?