I picked up and read my first book when I was 9 years old. This was a pivotal moment for me, because I realized that I could enter another world and leave mine behind. From that moment on, I was hooked, and I devoured every book I could get my little hands on. Many books have impacted my life and changed the way I looked at the world. They shaped who I am and what I stand for. Through the years, some have stood the test of time, and I have read them multiple times.
Judy Blume was one of the first authors that wrote books I could read over and over again, until they fell apart. I loved the Fudge books and suffered with Margaret, in Are You There God? It’s Me, Margaret. I cried every time I read, Tiger Eyes, and will never forget reading, Forever. Judy Blume gave me a world I yearned for. They were my friends no matter where we moved to.
Over the years, my list of re-reads has grown to include books like, Where the Red Fern Grows, Reckless, The Twilight Series, and of course the ever wonderful, Harry Potter books. I will not shock you with the number of times I have re-read these books, but now, I’m curious to know how many of you have your own favorite re-reads. Which books impacted your lives and changed the way you look at the world? 😮
Author Tiffany 
Mar 09, 2011 @ 21:16:28
My list of re-reads:
Watership Down by Richard Adams
Gone with the Wind
3 favs from Stephen King: The Stand, Night Shift, & Skeleton Crew
Love Medicine by Louise Erdrich
Mar 13, 2011 @ 10:55:00
Brenda,
I love The Stand by Stephen King. I read both versions of the book and liked them both a lot. 😮
Mar 09, 2011 @ 21:23:13
My fave rereads are The Time Travelers Wife & the Vampire Diaries! 🙂
Mar 13, 2011 @ 10:58:56
Jamie,
I have never read Time Travelers Wife but now I want to really bad but of course it’s playing “hard to get” on Amazon. 😮
Mar 09, 2011 @ 21:24:46
You know I have never re-read a book. But if I were to re-read one, it would definitely be The Time Traveler’s wife as well. Loved it. Plus I am a time traveling junkie so!
Mar 13, 2011 @ 11:00:24
Second comment about Time Travelers Wife, must be a really good book!! 😮
Mar 09, 2011 @ 21:27:39
My most reread book was one from Fabio…dont remember the name but not a truth I wanted to tell!! Hahaha!! He was a pirate!! LMAO!!
Mar 13, 2011 @ 11:01:07
Kara,
HAHAHAHAHA you crack me up!!!! 😮
Mar 09, 2011 @ 21:59:49
As a kid, anything Judy Blume or Beverly Cleary. (In fact, I grew up in the same Portland neighborhood that her books are set AND she came to my school when I was a little kid! LOVED her so much!) I’m a Shakespeare nerd so I seriously love Hamlet and Titus Andronicus. For reals. The Gargoyle by Andrew Davidson is friggin’ AMAZING. And I might re-read The Hunger Games, simply because Suzanne Collins is just that good.
Thanks for asking us this. How lovely of you!
Mar 13, 2011 @ 11:03:26
Jenn,
Judy Blume and Beverly Cleary were my life when I was a kid. I loved all the books from both of them!!! 😮
Mar 09, 2011 @ 22:14:11
Interesting blog. Oddly, I never read books over and over again because the list of ones I want to read was always (and still is) too long. That said, there are some I would read again now because it has been so long. The same cannot be said for films. I have watched some films an extraordinary number of times.
I think the books that drew me in most were the classics, especially character-driven novels by Balzac, and gorgeously written prose by writers such as F. Scott Fitzgerald and Thomas Wolfe. There are just so many.
Mar 13, 2011 @ 11:05:53
That’s crazy! I’m not sure how many books I re-read when I was a kid but I bet it was a hundred different titles and some of them multiple times. Books like The Outsiders and Tiger Eyes got read probably 20 times each. 😮
May 06, 2011 @ 18:18:23
Tiger Eyes is the best, I need to find that book and read it again lol
Mar 09, 2011 @ 22:21:31
It might seem strange but I remember reading The Great Gatsby and feeling changed by that book. For one thing, I realized that the scandalous actions that make for a good story now are the most basic of human interactions that have always been around. It seems to all come back to the same themes; love, money, power etc. It also made me realize that I might really like books I was avoiding, that is anything considered “classic.” I learned that great stories are transcendent of time, meaning just because they wear corsets or don’t have telephones yet doesn’t mean I won’t be able to connect to it. I am not sure if all that counts as changing the way I look at the world, but it changed the way I looked at books for sure!
Also, I suck at rereading books. I can not remember ever reading a book more than once unless it was to my children. I have read “But Not the Hippopotamus” about 7 million times! My kids laugh every time though so it has been worth it.
Mar 13, 2011 @ 11:09:23
Shannon you and Lisette have a lot in common! It seems “wild” to never re-read a book but my sister hates to re-read books too. 😮
Mar 09, 2011 @ 22:32:04
I love this book Oh, Kentucky! by Betty Layman Receveur. I cannot even tell you how many times I have read it. It just feels so comfortable to me. I love the story, the characters are familiar, it’s just nice. What a great topic, Tiffany!
Mar 13, 2011 @ 12:48:11
Talking about books I like to read is my favorite thing to do. I love it when someone likes a book as much as me! 😮
Mar 09, 2011 @ 22:40:51
Loved Watership Down too when I was younger, re-read several times. The Yearling, Tuck Everlasting were also really memorable multi-reads. And of course The Long Walk by Stephen King is my most re-read novel. Odd choice, maybe, but it is just so telling of human nature.
Mar 13, 2011 @ 12:50:29
Rachel,
The Yearling is a book I always meant to read. One of these days I need to finally read it. 😮
Mar 09, 2011 @ 23:18:44
I have re-read the Harry Potter books several times. I truly love them. I expect I will eventually re-read the Twilight books and Jane Eyre. I read Where the Red Fern Grows whenever I want a guaranteed cry. I also enjoy reading Dickens’ A Tale of Two Cities.
Books that have changed the way I think include The Celestine Prophecy and Peck’s The Road Less Traveled.
Mar 13, 2011 @ 12:55:46
Corinne,
I love re-reading the Harry Potter series and I agree Where the Red Fern Grows is a guaranteed good cry. 😮
Mar 10, 2011 @ 00:03:56
This is a great post. To be honest, I always loved reading and writing, but it wasn’t until I read the Harry Potter series when I realized exactly what I wanted to do in life: create a place for others to escape and visit a world of characters they would truly want to spend time with. I have re-read the Potter books and will continue to do so.
Mar 13, 2011 @ 13:02:43
I agree, I plan on reading the Potter books over and over again. The books are like a long-lost best friend of mine! 😮
May 06, 2011 @ 18:15:04
I have loved Harry Potter for a long while now and still wants to just pick one of them up and start reading. But I have my TBR books too… Lol
Mar 10, 2011 @ 00:29:04
Like you, I’ve re-read the Twilight and Harry Potter books many times. I have to say that there are two particular books that I’m drawn back to all the time. #1 The Plant that ate the Dirty Sock series and #2 John Grisham’s Skipping Christmas.
#1 – Yes, you read correctly – The Plant that ate the Dirty Socks. I read them back in elementary school. Can’t get enough of em. Haven’t read them again for a long time, though. Sad. There is one scene that takes place in a RV that cracks my up every time.
#2 – This is the only Grisham book I’ve ever read. It is totally not in his typical style. When I lived in England 10 years ago, I saw it on a bookstore shelf. I bought it, read it, laughed hysterically at it, and have read it again and again. If you’ve seen Christmas with the Kranks, you have to read the book–it’s way better. I would recommend these books highly!
Mar 13, 2011 @ 13:01:15
Julia,
How funny I have never heard of The Plant that ate the Dirty Socks. I do love the Skipping Christmas book like you. I am a huge fan of John Grisham books. 😮
Mar 10, 2011 @ 08:38:43
The Twilight Saga is at the to of my list, oddly though just Twilight and Breaking Dawn. (mostly because I like to see how quickly I car get through BD with no cheating, my record is 5 hours!)
Also, The Mortal Instruments series by Cassie Clare – Love it! Every time I go through it I find new things I love about them!
Great blog topic!!
Mar 13, 2011 @ 08:43:44
Haha your comment cracked me up. I have often re-read books just to see how fast I can get through them (without cheating)! 😮
Mar 10, 2011 @ 09:18:09
Before I started blogging, I would re-read books. I’ve read Harry Potter and Twilight multiple times! Now, I feel so overwhelmed with my to-be-read list I can’t really justify re-reading now.
Mar 13, 2011 @ 08:42:31
Serena,
I agree there are many books on my must read list too but I just can’t seem to stay away from my favorites! 😮
Mar 10, 2011 @ 15:50:03
I’m so surprised at the number of people who don’t re-read their books! I have so many books that have become friends and are dear to me. Books that have traveled with me far and wide wherever I’ve gone.
The first book is Judy Blume’s ‘Are you there God, it’s me, Margart and Tiffany, I have to tell you, you are featured again on my blog in a weird sort of way, LOL. Check it out!
You inspired me once again!
Mar 13, 2011 @ 08:40:33
Kristi,
I loved your blog post! It’s nice to pay homage to a classic book! 😮
Mar 11, 2011 @ 17:40:48
The Vampire Diaries 😀
Mar 13, 2011 @ 08:38:43
I have never read the Vampire Diaries! Am I missing out? 😮
Mar 11, 2011 @ 20:15:01
You read a book for the first time and you instantly get into your own world within that book. Once you re-read that book again you get into your own world in the book all over again but the more you read a book again the more powerful those feelings become. This happens every time I re-read the Twilight and the Harry Potter series. Once I start reading I feel like I’m in the action of the book. Going to school in Forks with Edward and Bella. Or learning to be a wizard at Hogwarts with Harry. The more you read a book again the better the book becomes. Based on the sneak peaks of Meant to Be by Tiffany King I believe I will get these same feelings once I read it.
Mar 13, 2011 @ 08:37:34
Ashlynn,
I agree I always feel like I become a part of the story the more times I read it. 😮
Apr 07, 2011 @ 07:52:27
Chicken Soup for the Soul. I consider it to be a masterpiece!
Apr 09, 2011 @ 17:10:05
A Confederacy of Dunces by John Kennedy Toole – Toole’s story is a tragic one, but his book is an amazing work. I read it sometimes two times a year.
May 06, 2011 @ 18:12:15
Tiger Eyes was one of my first favorites and I read a lot of Agatha Christie because my grandmother had all the books