My summer reading- re-reading books form my past!

[hooker29]

So instead of reading 'new' books this summer, I'm re-reading old one's that I remember reading years ago. There are really only a few that I recall, but I remember them being really good reads (at the time) so I'm going to revisit them and see if they're just as good!
They are;
Lace by Shirley Conran.My first real bonkbuster!9 many moons ago....)
The Angel in the Corner by Monica Dickens. I first bought this about 30 odd years ago from a book stall at a village fete on holiday,but when I got home,I discovered that every other page was blank!! I was gutted. Managed to find a copy that looked exactly the same on ebay so looking forward to that!
Paint the Wind by Cathy Cash Spellman.Went on holiday as a babysitter with a close family friend and couldn't put it down.
September by Rosamund Pilcher.
A Farewell to France by Noel Barber.I used to work in a hardware shop on a Sunday morning and it was deadly boring and I remember reading this while I was there and I loved it. I couldn't remember the title of it and have been wracking my brains for ages before thinking that it may have the word 'Farewell' in it and a picture of a house on the front. So I just typed 'Farewell' into the ebay search bar and there it was;I only found it today and I nearly cried!!
Who else likes reading books from the past?

[MiddleAgeMiddleEngland]

I do! Sometimes it's really comforting to read a book you know well, or remember reading years ago, even in childhood or as a teenager.

I read a mixture of new and old books, but I think it's a lovely idea to devote a summer to re-reading favourites.

[lizzieM58]

Tragic I know but I even re-read childrens' books that I loved as a child! All those Enid Blytons and the Chalet School!

[mistymeanour]

I used to never re read books but have been ill a lot in the past few (and hard up) and have really enjoyed doing this (as many are now free on Kindle). It is really interesting to see if the books are still as good as I remember and to consider why they spoke so strongly to me at the time. With some books I have a completely different reaction to certain characters as I get older and so the story speaks to me in a new way.

Enjoy

[highlandcoo]

I've just reread the Horseman Riding By trilogy by RF Delderfield. I came across the three books, very cracked and yellowed, while clearing out the attic, and decided to read them again before throwing them out. I couldn't recall much about them apart from having really enjoyed them first time round.

As before, I found the portrayal of a rural community between the wars very well done; I like to get absorbed into a whole imaginary world when reading a book sometimes. However, the chauvinistic attitude of most of the male characters was pretty dated : "she was a fine filly - he made sure to give her a good slap on her ample rear-end from time to time and she was all the better for it" sort of thing.

Did enjoy reading them but they're getting chucked out now and not replaced.

[mistymeanour]

I agree highlandcoo. I didn't like that the main guy, despite not being well off as a child and inheriting the estate became a complete paternalistic toff landowner. Felt dated. Prefer The Avenue books (Dreaming suburb and Avenue at War)

[highlandcoo]

Oh, I haven't read them misty, maybe they'd be worth a try. Have just had a look at RFD's Wikipedia entry - apparently in his autobiography he does say he was often criticised for his "very conventional views of women's social roles". No kidding. I honestly don't think I noticed when I read them more than thirty years ago.

[RuggerHug]

re read Revolutionary Road on holiday this summer for the ooooooh 15th (?) time. Love going back to loved books. Valley of the Dolls got read every summer for several years before aswell

[RuggerHug]

re read Revolutionary Road on holiday this summer for the ooooooh 15th (?) time. Love going back to loved books. Valley of the Dolls got read every summer for several years before aswell

[madamehooch]

Flowers in the Attic! In fact the New (new new) 'Virgina Andrews' has just brought out a sequel to the original books set in the present day.

[dirtyprettything]

please don't go by Peggy Woodford. read it as a teenager and found it again on ebay a few years ago. cheese cover belies the content - it was the start of a life long love affair with France and I re read it every year on our holiday in France

[nyldn]

re-read A Fine White Dust by Cynthia rylant every few years. IMO pretty heavy for a YA book, and get something new out of it with each read. I find it very comforting, and find, in retrospect, that I reach for it during trying times.

[hooker29]

I'm hoping they're as good as I remember them and won't be disappointed otherwise I'll be looking for a charity shop to buy something else!

[drudgetrudy]

Sometimes its interesting to re-read something you read as a teenager as a much older person. Some of the people I regarded as romantic heroines (Anna Karenina, Catherine in Wuthering Heights, Sue in Jude the Obscure) I found very fickle and selfish on the second reading. I also saw some things from a very different perspective.
Its a bit of a treat too.

[mrsdavidbowie]

I reread all the Tales of the city books every couple of years

[hooker29]

.....just started re-reading 'Lace' by Shirley Conran.Think my eyesight has deteriorated over the past 30 years 'cos the writing is tiny lol!

[Davegrohlsgirl]

I said to DH only yesterday that I would not be taking my ipad on holiday for reading purposes....I am instead re reading The Stand by Stepher King...cant wait actually!!

[hooker29]

Haven't read a Stephen King for years....may have to revisit one of his too!