Welcome to February and the second reading prompt of our 2024 Read with MLC challenge: reread a book you love. There's something incredibly special about a book you enjoy so much that you want to reread it. Setting aside a wedge of time to experience something again is a unique act, but especially when it's something as time consuming as reading a book. I don't do a lot of rereading--there are so many books out there I want to get to--so I was curious about what drives other readers to reread. Here is what a few of my fellow library workers had to say about their favorite rereads.
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Ingathering: The Complete People Stories by Zenna Henderson
The first time I read this collection of linked stories I was fourteen years old, and it grabbed my attention like nothing else I've ever read, before or since. As a teenager growing up with a disability, I already felt isolated, overlooked, and misunderstood by my peers. Then I read this collection. My take on the work is that we're all on the same journey, but we're all looking out of different windows. I've read it many times since, and each time I get a slightly clearer picture of the author’s message.
The first time I read this collection of linked stories I was fourteen years old, and it grabbed my attention like nothing else I've ever read, before or since. As a teenager growing up with a disability, I already felt isolated, overlooked, and misunderstood by my peers. Then I read this collection. My take on the work is that we're all on the same journey, but we're all looking out of different windows. I've read it many times since, and each time I get a slightly clearer picture of the author’s message.
- Margaret Smitherman, Talking Book Services Patron Services Librarian
There’s a reveal in the middle of the book (no spoilers!) that puts the first half in a new light. Rereading the book with that reveal in mind is an absolute delight.
- Katie Gill, Cataloging Librarian
Paradise Lost by John Milton
There's a soliloquy in the epic poem that's very touching to me and it's one of my favorite rereads.
- Jessica Parson, Library Services Coordinator
Shadow of the Torturer by Gene Wolfe
Wolfe's work is deeply seeded with foreshadowing and double meanings that a reader would be entirely unaware of on their first read. Considering how much I enjoyed the story while unaware of the foreshadowing, I'm excited to go on the journey again now that I know where it leads.
- Zach Burton, Reference and Archives Librarian
A Man Called Ove by Fredrik Backman
I’ve
already read it twice, and will probably revisit it again. It does a
great job of pointing out how important human connection is and how
people's demeanor is influenced by things we don’t see.
- Charlie Simpkins, Special Collections Coordinator
Link to MLC catalog
Link to TBS catalogLink to MLC catalog
It seems that I need to dig out my old copy of A Wrinkle in Time. Turns out that books, especially ones that meant a lot to us on our first go-round, have a lot to offer on successive rereads. The joy of revisiting a beloved plot, new perspectives on the author's intent, and the anticipation of favorite scenes can make rereading a book even more enjoyable than the initial read-through. If it's been a really long time since you read a book you liked, I encourage you to revisit it this month. And hey, if it's been so long that you've forgotten the title, contact MLC's reference staff. Give them a few hints... "It had a blue cover." "They slept overnight in a museum." and they'll find it for you in no time.
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