Andrew Olmsted dot com: Books Worth Reading Twice (Or More)

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November 29, 2004

Books Worth Reading Twice (Or More)

Hugh Hewitt wonders what modern novels are good enough to be read more than once. I'm probably not the person to ask that question of, since I am apparently odd: I reread lots of novels. If I like them, I often read them many times over the years. Still, I'll throw my hat into the ring. Robert Heinlein's Starship Troopers; I don't know how many times I've read it, but I can guarantee you that I'll read it again. It's short, it's powerful, and it's a fun read to boot. J.R.R. Tolkein's Lord of the Rings; you've got to read it at least twice, once as a child and then again as an adult to catch everything you missed as a child. And it's so rich, I like to pick it up again every few years to recapture the elements memory allows to fade. Frank Herbert's Dune; the sequels were awful, but the original was absolutely awesome. The scenes of Paul in the desert are fun, but to me the highlight of the novel is the battle without weapons fought over dinner. Stephen King's It; I know that it's traditional among King fans to prefer The Stand, but for me, It was King's best work (although Bag of Bones was awfully good, too) and is always worth reading again. Finally a classic, but still worth mentioning: Mark Twain's The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn. Probably the greatest American novel of all time, and a capsule history of the U.S. into the bargain. There are many other novels I've read more than once, but those are all ones that I would (and almost certainly will) read again. Enjoy.

Posted at November 29, 2004 09:29 PM

Andrew Olmsted

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Comments

May I recommend Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance?

Posted by: jed at November 30, 2004 12:16 AM

You gotta include "To Kill A Mockingbird" and "Gone With the Wind". Those are classics.

Posted by: mom at November 30, 2004 06:00 AM

I've never been all that into Zen.

I considered To Kill A Mockingbird, but I haven't actually read it that often. And I confess I've never read Gone With the Wind. One more for the to-do list.

Posted by: Andrew at November 30, 2004 08:04 AM

To say that Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance is about Zen is like saying that Starship Troopers is about slaughtering bugs. (The movie has really ruined my memory of the book -- alas.) It isn't about motorcycle maintenance either. It's about the philosophy of life, and one man's struggle to reconcile his life with his own personal demons, and the journeys and travails which attend. IIRC, Pirsig used the term "chattagua" to describe it, but I can't find a definition of that term which captures the essence of the thing -- in fact, I can't find an English definition at all, but I'm sure I did at one time.

JMHO, but any thinking person should find ZatAoMM worthy. Just google "Pirsig". I'll even loan you my copy (err, assuming I can find it -- I'm pretty sure I know which box it's in) and I'm loathe to loan books, since they too often don't return (sigh).

Posted by: jed at November 30, 2004 12:56 PM

I'll check it out, Jed. But I can't promise how soon; my reading list is appallingly long, and it seems to be growing faster than I can read.

Posted by: Andrew at November 30, 2004 01:01 PM

Heh. OK, whose reading list isn't appalingly long? :) I have about 16 feet of bookshelf, plus 4 "bankers box" size boxes of books waiting. And I keep buying more at the library and garage sales.

Posted by: jed at November 30, 2004 04:42 PM

I just started reading Persig's second book. Zen took me a while because I like to read many things at once to keep from getting bored with one things and one of my other choices for that period was the Qu'ran.

I actually liked Zen more for father/ son issues.

I believe that chataqua is a Native American term that roughly translated means spiritual journey. My old professor could have been lieing to me though and it could mean drug trip.

I am a simple man who loves history books and most John Grisham. I read about politics and military history. My favorite 2 books though are "Why Should White Guys have all the Fun" and "Of Mice and Men." I also like to reread Whitman and Frost books fo poetry

Posted by: Scott at December 1, 2004 10:29 AM

If you want a superior read pick up Earth Abides by George Stewart. Although the book was written in the 1940's, it is an end of the world type story where the end comes due to a plague. the book focuses on the aftermath, following the lives of the very few people who manage to survive, and, actually manage to prosper. Fascinating study of how societies develop.

Also, another interesting book is Ursula LeGuin's book Changing Planes. Anyone who has ever been stuck at an airport will enjoy this one.

Posted by: dad at December 1, 2004 01:28 PM