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When you re-read a classic, you do not see more in the book than you did before; you see more in yourself than there was before. -Clifton Fadiman, editor and critic (1904-1999)
May I respectfully call the the attention of the Board that nobody has cited a single instance of the above quotation having any merit whatsoever. It is a piece of burbling balderdash.
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Carpal Tunnel
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May I respectfully call the the attention of the Board that nobody has cited a single instance of the above quotation having any merit whatsoever. It is a piece of burbling balderdash.your claim may well have some merit, bill.  but I will cite one instance in opposition, which may be a special case. I have had occasion to recommend a volume of some weight to friends only to be met with weighty questions I had not considered upon their completion of said volume. in such circumstances, when rereading the volume in question, one surely will learn things about his original reading, and perhaps himself.
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Carpal Tunnel
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Carpal Tunnel
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May I respectfully call the the attention of the Board that nobody has cited a single instance of the above quotation having any merit whatsoever. It is a piece of burbling balderdash.Well, what can you expect, after all? Look at the occupations of the author!  (No offense, wow--I know you're the exception to the rule.) There is certainly merit in what you say, wwh. Many times I have read a book for the second or even third time, and found something I hadn't noticed before. EDIT: Dag nabbit, tsuwm! You snuck yours in two seconds ahead of mine, and now everybody will think I copied off you! [mock frown emoticon]
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bridget96
Every single night i include in the selection of bedtime stories one or more of the same books: Where the Wild Things Are (any parent can tell you how immensely cute it is to listen to a 2-year old recite the 'rolled there terrible eyes, showed their terrible claws, etc. passage), Goodnight Moon (kids particularly like the Little Old Lady Whispering Hush part, and also delight in the Goodnight Nobody paradox) and -- my personal favorite -- Max Lucado's "Just In Case You Ever Wonder", which has to be one of the sweetest books ever written.
I am glad for the list Bridget. I will add them to my collection for my future grandchildren.
Just recently I learned of the existence of a child's book, playful and childlike in its subject, but when I read it, I cried. The book is the Runaway Bunny and it was the book read to a dying Emma Thompson by her mentor in the great movie adaptation of the play "WIT".
chronist
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Bobyoungbalt
I have, conservative estimate, 500 books at home and of the total, I have re-read at least 400 of them at least once, some favorites maybe 10 times over the last 50+ years since I have been able to read (which was before I went to school -- I don't remember a time when I couldn't read and don't really know how I learned). Part of this is that I am such a voracious reader I'm always running out of books to read and can't afford to buy as many as I would like, so it's read the old ones.
You must be a most scintillating person at a party. I sure would love to have you at my table for an evening of dazzling conversation. (A caveat: is it possible that of your 500 and my 500, no two books are alike?)
chronist
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Well, the divine Jane, of course. When I was living in Banjarmasin (Kalimantan Selatan), there was no source of English language reading material near to hand so re-reading the books I had brought with me was all there was. Of course there's AWAD these days, so who has time to read books for the first time  Bingley
Bingley
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Until very recently we had about 2000 books. We're now down to maybe 1000 for THE BIG SHIFT. Looking around the two bookcases I have in THIS room, I've read all of the novels at least twice with only a couple of exceptions. The technical books - well, some of them I only ever look at one chapter, the one I bought the book for in the first place.
I find that I pick up more the second time through the book because I'm not so focussed on "what happens next". I tend to agree with Bill that the statement in the first post is at the least a gross overstatement. Some books make you look inwards, but I prefer books which take me out of myself! If a book doesn't do this I tend to give it the heave fairly quickly.
The idiot also known as Capfka ...
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Jackie
Well, what can you expect, after all? Look at the occupations of the author! (No offense, wow--I know you're the exception to the rule.)......
Jackie, my friend, the curious part of my brain is intrigued by this statement. I have no clue. Please share.
It is not easy to reread something. There are obstacles on so many fronts. Time, mood, time, distractions, and the list goes on and on. Becasue of this it is so interests me to know what other people are rereading nowadays, because they must be very special books.
I consider it my greatest literary feat last year to have finished reading the first of the series of Proust's Remembrance...I have been carrying the book all around the globe for the last 15 years, hoping to get past the first chapter at least. Finally last year because of a medical incident which allowed me the luxury of being waited hand and foot, I was able to do it. While I was reading it , I kept thinking I will reread this book, definitely.
So far the only books I have read twice are Pride and Prejudice, The Sportswriter by Richard Ford, Amsterdam by Ian McEwan
I am 20 years behind in my reading, compared to all the other people on this forum, so I shouldn't even be thinking of rereading!
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Pooh-Bah
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I reread for various reasons. One is to sort revisit an old friend. Just as I enjoy watching reruns of M*A*S*H or whatever, I can enjoy a story all over again, but a great book is particularly enjoyable to reread. Also, when I reread a book I know that it's going to be a good book! It is also nice to be in the company of the many characters found in great books, such as Atticus Finch, or Huckleberry Finn, or Yossarian from "Catch 22".
Some of the books I have reread are "Pride and Prejudice," which I think I have read about 4 times (I lost count); "The Moviegoer" by Walker Percy (which I actually liked less the 3rd time around); "Day of the Jackal" by Frederick Forsyth; "The Giver" by Lois Lowry; "Moby Dick" (a really great book--I don't know why it has this awful reputation, except that we are forced to read it in 10th grade when we'd all rather be doing something else); "The Name of the Rose," (what a wonderful book--talk about always finding more to dig out!); and "To Kill a Mockingbird."
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Carpal Tunnel
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Yes, I think I am somewhere along the same paths you guys take. Like you, CK, there are few books on my groaning shelves (in every single room of the house bar none!) that I have not read at least twice, unless they are the squirrel store I lay up for future choice.
And like you, Alex, I re-read for quite a variety of reasons - one of which is very definitely along the lines of the quote. If a book's reading does not entail some change in state of the reader, why bother?
But sometimes I will go back out of curiosity or other reasons. For example, when ill I took the time in bed to slice through all the Hornblower novels which I last read when I was ten-twelve. It was largely triggered by several mentions in this forum.
I re-read collections and anthologies of poetry on a fairly regular basis, re-read bridge books in a hopeless attempt to land that 7NT on a combined Vienna Coup and revolving squeeze, re-read some light fiction just for fun, and some classics to sharpen my mind's teeth.
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