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7 books I read over and over again

I’ll re-read a book for one of two reasons: because I love it, or because I need it. This list features a healthy mix of both.

Happier at Home

Happier at Home

Author:
I re-read this book because I need it. Happier at Home prompts me to think about whole categories of my life that I don't think about on a regular basis. She offers practical tips on what, exactly, I could be doing to boost my family's happiness. Above all, Happier at Home reminds me to make the effort. I need the reminder. More info →
The Seven Principles for Making Marriage Work

The Seven Principles for Making Marriage Work

Author:
Gottman is the famed researcher who can watch a couple interact for 5 minutes and then predict with 91% accuracy if they'll divorce down the road. Successful marriages have a lot in common, and Gottman shows you how to incorporate these things into your own relationship. There's nothing revolutionary about his advice: successful couples know each other well.  They like each other. They solve their solvable problems. His insights are simple to grasp, if not easy to put into practice. I like to re-read this book every few years to remind me what we're doing right—and what we maybe could be doing better. And it's fascinating and fun to read. More info →
Jayber Crow

Jayber Crow

Author:
I resisted reading this one for a long time because I thought the name "Jayber" was ugly. Please don't make that mistake. This gorgeous novel has an impressive sense of place. It's a book you can see and feel. It's contemplative, beautiful, and sad. It's a book that stays with you. More info →
Emma

Emma

Author:
Emma is different from the others. It's witty, of course. All Jane Austen is. But it's bright and fresh and thoroughly modern, and Emma--despite her flaws--is so winning and relatable I find myself cheering her on more than any other Austen heroine. (Yes, even more than Lizzie.) More info →
A Circle of Quiet (The Crosswicks Journals)

A Circle of Quiet (The Crosswicks Journals)

This is my favorite Madeleine L'Engle book. Reading these pages, I feel like she gets me. Of course she does: she coined the phrase “the tired thirties,” after all. On these pages L'Engle is clearly a work-in-progress, but she's working it through, and this peek into her thought process gives me hope that I can work it through, too. More info →
The Well-Trained Mind

The Well-Trained Mind

I read this book for the first time when I was 22, and had no intention of ever homeschooling my someday-children. But the author was my college prof, and when I found out she'd written a book I wanted to read it, whether it addressed rocket science or ancient Persia or homeschooling. But reading this book made me wish I'd been educated this way, and for the first time I considered home education as a possibility for my future children. Now I'm a homeschooling mom of 4, and I turn to this book again and again to remind me why we're doing it, to help me get unstuck, and to encourage me to keep it up.

More info →
Brideshead Revisited

Brideshead Revisited

Author:
What can I say to capture why I love this book? It's haunting and melancholy, wistful and reverent. I'm entranced by the story of the Flyte family’s unraveling–along with the rest of Britain’s aristocracy–and by its themes of love, loss, and grace. More info →

What books do you read over and over again?

I re-read books for one of two reasons: because I love it, or because I need it. This list features a healthy mix of both. Photo by Leigh Kramer

96 comments

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  1. Naomi says:

    Some great books that i have never heard about, i have downloaded samples for a few of them so thank you for sharing. I usually only re-read non-fiction books like self help books or anything to do with health, business etc

  2. Emily M says:

    I am so pleased that you are also a fan of Waugh’s Brideshead Revisited! I read it last summer while following along with the BBC adaption from the ’80’s. It has also become one of the books that I return to time and time again! It is such a moving story and the writing is so well crafted!

      • Emily M says:

        The BBC adaption from the 1980’s is excellent, very faithful to the book and its spirit! I highly recommend it! I strongly disliked and cannot recommend the adaption from 2008 as it distorted many of the characters and the relationships.

  3. deborah says:

    Can I confess that while I have watched the movies and mini series, I don’t think I’ve READ Jane Austen’s books. I will have to peruse my local library shelves!

    Brideshead Revisited is capturing my attention too. I always like checking out other people’s lists of favorites. I really like The 7 Principles for Making Marriage Work. Good read!

  4. Great choices! I’m so glad you’re a fan of Brideshead. It’s my absolute favorite novel and I have to read it every year. Did you see the Andrew Davies adaption with Emma Thompson? It had a great cast but it’s probably the worst thing I’ve ever seen. I was so upset and disappointed. Davies seems to have completely missed every important theme of the novel! I should stop before this becomes an angry rant 🙂

    • Anne says:

      No, I haven’t! I’ve been afraid that seeing the adaptation will ruin the book for me! I’m glad the film didn’t ruin the novel for you, even if you did think it was horrible. 🙂

    • I’ve been told to stay away from the movie, too. The BBC miniseries comes highly recommended from different sources that I have read. I love Brideshead! I read it for the first time about a month ago, and it’s going on my reread list. I also reread The Harry Potter series, Bird by Bird, To Kill a Mockingbird, and Pride and Prejudice. I’m reading The Happiness Project now, and I have Happier at Home checked out, too. Oh, and I haven’t purchased the Well-Trained Mind, but I need to. I’ve read it 3 times now.

  5. Breanne says:

    I love Gretchen Rubin’s books, both Happier at Home and The Happiness Project. I always find myself loving my space and family more and inspired to be happier. =)
    I”ve never read Brideshead Revisted but I’m going to try it. And I want to read The Well-Trained Mind as well. It’s been on my mom’s shelves for years but I never read it.

  6. HopefulLeigh says:

    Rubin’s books will definitely be rereads for me. I gained so many insights from them the first time around. I read A Prayer for Owen Meany every few years. There are a few series that I’ll either reread or just read certain passages from when the occasion calls for it. The same goes with select nonfiction books, like A Sacred Thirst and Bird by Bird.

    • Anne says:

      I’ve been wanting to re-read A Prayer for Owen Meany ever since I read Irving’s interview with The Paris Review earlier this year.

      I love Bird by Bird (of course!) but have never heard of A Sacred Thirst. I need to look into that one.

  7. Catherine says:

    _A Circle of Quiet_ is among my all time favorite books too! I also keep _A Well Trained Mind_ as a ready reference. I will have to put some of the others on my reading list. 🙂

  8. Tim says:

    I just re-read Emma last month. I can’t tell you what number re-read it was, but I loved it as always. (Then I went straight to Persuasion and finished the cycle of six once again.) Emma certainly is different from the others, but then again they each stand alone and apart in some way.

    If you’d like to know what I’m like, pay close attention to John Knightley. That guy could have been modeled on me.

    Tim

  9. Jeannie says:

    Thanks for the great ideas here. I have read articles in magazines by Gretchen Rubin and liked them; I’ll try to read her book as well, and I’ll check out Wendell Berry for sure.

    I also enjoy re-reading Emma and other Jane Austen as well as some of my other classic favourites like Jane Eyre, Rebecca (Daphne DuMaurier), and The House of Mirth (Edith Wharton).

  10. I reread C.S. Lewis’s first two space trilogy books now and then. The first, Out of the Silent Planet, for the story, and the second, Perelandra, for the heartbreakingly beautiful language (“Blessed be he…”). I love Berry’s novels and short stories — rereading those is like visiting with an old friend. Austen gets reread for the same reason. Stephen King’s The Stand and The Green Mile have been repeats, widely spaced. Ingalls Wilder’s Little House series…

    • Tim says:

      I love the first two books in the space trilogy as well, Lori, and have read them and re-read them a ton. But my favorite is the third book, That Hideous Strength. Lewis draws everything to conclusion, and shows vividly that even the most innocuous seeming decisions have consequences. It’s a masterpiece.

      Cheers,
      Tim

  11. Jillian Kay says:

    Great list! the only one I’ve read is Emma, but I’ll add the rest to my library holds.

    My list: Emma, Jane Eyre, Little Women, A Tree Grows in Brooklyn, Animal Vegetable Miracle by Barbara Kingsolver, and Into Thin Air (I read it at Christmas time a lot because my climate isn’t snowy enough for me — weird, I know).

    • Anne says:

      I’ve never read A Tree Grows in Brooklyn, but I know so many people (including my mom) who love it dearly. I love Into Thin Air and Animal Vegetable Miracle. I’ve read them each once, but both would be good re-reads for me. Thanks for the reminder!

      • Allison says:

        Please read A Tree Grows in Brooklyn! Heartbreakingly beautiful. Then go ahead and read her Joy in the Morning as well. Not sequel but in the same vein. Ok I feel better now, I think I’ll go reread Animal Vegetable Mineral. 🙂

  12. Stephanie says:

    I read “A Circle of Quiet” about six months ago for the first time. Resonated with me so much.

    My latest read was the 2nd book in the “Call The Midwife” series. Simultaneously fascinating and heartbreaking.

    Our oldest daughter is in 1st grade and we mostly focus in on reading, writing, and math – with informal doses of science, history, and the arts.

    • Anne says:

      Hmm. I’ve heard the “fascinating” part of Call the Midwife, but no one’s mentioned the “heartbreaking” part to me. People keep telling me I need to watch the series: do I need to see the series before I read the books?

  13. Ginger says:

    Another I just can’t wait to chime in on … I have a silly little rule for myself (because I love to reread)… whenever I go somewhere unfamiliar (vacations, trips, a move, etc.), I’m allowed to bring along and read old favorites. There’s something comforting in this funny little tradition of mine.

    I have read Emma a couple times, as well as Jane Eyre. I have reread all of John Eldredge’s multiple times (especially Wild at Heart), and I keep meaning to reread The Happiness Project. There was so much great practical advice to glean. I’m also currently reading A Celebration of Discipline and I keep thinking to myself that this will be a reread, possibly yearly.

  14. cheryl says:

    I have a very real fear of dying (I’m 54!) before I can read all the books I want to read. So I feel like I don’t dare re-read anything, even though I sometimes want to. Sometimes I get panicky when I think of it. Is that weird?

    • mom2triplets04 says:

      I’m 45 and haven’t re read a book in my life until this year. I re read to kill a mockingbird because I read it about 30 years ago and couldn’t remember it. There are so many books I still want to read.

  15. Sarah B. says:

    OK…..I am going to have to give Emma another chance. Its the ONLY Austen I haven’t been able to get through. She drives me insane and I have flung it aside more than once. But many readers whose opinions I appreciate LOVE Emma. Sigh.

    I re-read the Harry Potter series every few years. I always take away something new.

    • Anne says:

      I’ve read Emma a half dozen times now. When I’m not actually reading the book, it’s easy for me to forget how horrible she is at the beginning! But I’m watching the web series Emma Approved right now (the follow up to The Lizzie Bennet Diaries), and it’s only on episode 4 or so, and this Emma is AWFUL so far! I don’t mean the acting–she’s just conceited, bossy, and a total busybody! Which is pretty much how she starts out in Jane Austen’s version.

      (If you have no idea what I’m talking about, I’ll be happy to explain.)

    • Molly says:

      I agree that Emma can be maddening. I have reread that book a few times, but I really have to be in the mood to put up with her snobbishness. The Austen novel that I couldn’t get through was Mansfield Park. I have tried, and I just can’t stand how Fanny is treated (and how she refuses to stand up to her tormentors).

  16. Abbey says:

    Emma is my favorite book of all time! I’ve read it three times in the last year, and it just never gets old. It’s so simple on the surface, but so complex. I get something new out of it every time I read it! 🙂

  17. Kendall says:

    Emma is one I read over and over. I have also re-read Eight Cousins and Rose in Bloom by Louisa May Alcott and Jane Of Lantern Hil, A Tangled Web, Blue Castle, the Emily series and the Anne series all by L.M. Montgomery. I also never get tired of Tex by S.E. Hinton. I’ll stop there before I get carried away!

    • Anne says:

      The Blue Castle! YES. I still need to read Jane of Lantern Hill and Eight Cousins. I’ve never even heard of Tex–thanks for the recommendation!

  18. Shelley says:

    I have a couple of questions and I wasn’t sure where to pose them. First off, I wanted to say that I’m fairly new to your blog and it is already my all-time favorite blog! I’m totally addicted to it and look forward to a new addition each day. 🙂 I was wondering where you find your book ideas, and if you get your books from the library or if you buy them to keep. Also, I’d love to hear a blog post about where to keep one’s books because we are always running out, with five people in our family who love reading! 😉 Finally, thank you for expanding my literary world and opening me up to try new genres! I’m excited.

    • Anne says:

      Thanks so much! I used to have a hard time finding fiction recommendations, but now I get so many from my readers (who have really great taste 🙂 ) that I’m never short of books to read.

      I’m not sure I could help you with where to keep your books—I struggle with that myself! (Although you may find the Other People’s Bookshelves link-up a great resource.)

      Is that helpful? What did I forget?

      • Shelley says:

        Thank you. 🙂 I found a link about if you buy or borrow books from one of your posts, so I already got an answer to that question. 😉 Thank you and keep the great posts coming! I’m learning and relating so much!! Loved the one on HSP & de-cluttering, etc. etc. I’m still rather in awe of how your work part-time, blog, read and homeschool four kids!! I just homeschool three kids and take them to their various classes and activities, read, workout, clean house, cook and hang with family or go places and it feels FULL! WTG!

        • Anne says:

          There aren’t very many places where one would say, “I “just” homeschool 3 kids.” Welcome, Shellley–glad you’re finding this a nice space to hang out. 🙂

    • Kathy Floyd says:

      my very favorite Christian fiction books! Best ever! There’s another series of two based on Ruth and Naomi, also set in Scotland.

  19. Bridget says:

    My annual rereads include Harry Potter series, Pride and Prejudice, Emma, Persuasion, . Rereads also include the Percy Jackson series, the Lunar Chronicles, to Kill a Mockingbird, Lion the witch and the Wardrobe, Hunger Games and Catching fire. I love that i can read a series like HP so many times and still find new things as I read them! Its good to know I have these books as a comfort or as a palate cleanser between other books. Sometimes when I read a book that is powerful I have to read an old favorite before starting a new book. its like catching up with an old friend!

  20. Ok, I just went through this post and comments and made my reading list for 2015. I think I’ll save series books for 2016 except Little House. I think I’ll start in September when my son is two and a half. Thanks Anne and MMD readers!

  21. Aimeee W says:

    I, and now my 19-year old daughter, read the Susannah Kearsley books – all of them – over and over and over. Particular favorites are The Winter Sea and The Shadowy Horses and The Firebird.

    • the1chery says:

      Pat , Have you read any Arnaldur Indridason? He is an Icelandic author and I find him very similar to Mankell, who I also love.

        • Pat Reddr says:

          Chery,
          I’ve read many of them. I just signed up with Oyster. They have many of the authors and some I never heard of. I signed up (not just for them)because I’ve only seen one Nesbo discount on all of the sites. Most of the Scandanavian books are free which is well worth $9.95 on Oyster. Oyster is really an amazing site. Ive spent the past three hours checking off all the books I’m going to read. I will have to live a long time. I read smeplace they are going to continue the Stieg Larsen/Elizabeth Salander series with a new book coming out soon..nice to hear frm youy

  22. Molly says:

    Anne, I love A Circle of Quiet! Have you read the other Crosswick Chronicles?

    I tend to reread Pride & Prejudice every few year as well as To Kill a Mockingbird and Huckleberry Finn. A couple of books that surprised me with how much I like them are Snow in August and The Alienist.

    • Anne says:

      No, I keep meaning to get to the other Crosswick Chronicles. I’ve read snippets but haven’t read them in their entirety. (YET. 🙂 )

  23. I’ve only read Happier at Home by Gretchen Rubin on this list. I am currently reading classical novels, and may add Emma to my “to read” list. I just finished reading Pollyanna by Eleanor H. Porter, have you read it? It’s a fun read and very encouraging to apply it’s message of being glad in all circumstances. Also, if you haven’t done so, Gretchen Rubin’s book on habits (Better than Before) is also a very good read. ~Yessel

    • Anne says:

      I loved Better Than Before! I haven’t read Pollyanna but I’ve seen the old movie sooo many times. I know it’s not the same but I still feel like I know the story.

      • I tried watching the movie after decades of not seeing it and since I’ve read the book, I actually had to turn it off after about 15 minutes. It just does not compare. at. all. I actually just finished reading The Secret Garden too and it’s incredible. I hope the movie doesn’t disappoint me. 🙂

  24. Anita says:

    I love “The Black Rose” by Thomas Costain. It’s historical fiction. Also, I really enjoyed “Happier at Home”. Excellent book.

  25. Erin Petrak says:

    I am with you on Jayber Crow. Then I read Hannah Coulter, also written by Wendell Berry. I’ve lost count of how many times I’ve read it, loaned it, or bought it for a friend. This beautiful story of Hannah’s life is also the only one Berry’s Port William memberships series written from a woman’s perspective. And, he did so masterfully.

  26. Julie Cooper says:

    The Earth’s Children Series by Jean M Auel, starting with Clan of the Cave Bear. I’ve read it 11 times and repeat every so often. there are 6 books and since the ’80’s, when a new volume is due to be out, I’ll read from the beginning again so it is fresh in my mind.

  27. Another Anne says:

    At age 77, I realize the one book I have read over and over during my life, and gradually come to understand and cherish, is the Tao Te Ching.

  28. Helen Tomlinson says:

    Re-reading again and again: Jane Austen, especially Persuasion; Georgette Heyer, all of them, until they fall to bits and I have to buy new copies (Heyer once described on BBC radio as, ‘Jane Austen on roller skates’; and, have to re-read Elswyth Thane’s Williamsburg novels at least once a year because they’re my family (well, it feels that way). The first one, Dawn’s Early Light begins with the American War of Independence and the seventh and final novel is set in London in 1942 – highly, highly recommended. Also have a secret a love for O. Douglas books (sister of John Buchan) such as Penny Plain and Priorsford and anything by Anne Hepple. Happy re-reading everyone!

  29. Anita says:

    I’ve been a serious BookWorm since childhood (on March 1, I will turn 82). I enjoyed reading about the books people love. My favorites are: The Kite Runner (Khaled Hosseini), Water for Elephants (Sara Gruen), Stones from the River (Ursula Hegi). The Poisonwood Bible (Barbara Kingsolver), A Prayer for Owen Meany (John Irving), One Hundred Years of Solitude, and Love in the Time of Cholera (both by Gabriel Garcia Marquez)….and The Sparrow by Mary Doria Russell. The last one I have read five times. My very favorite things (in alphabetical order) are: Books, Cats, Chocolate, Music and Trees.

    • Martha Newman says:

      Anita Who Is 82: Your list includes a number of my favorites. I think I must read the rest of your list! Thank you, Anita.

  30. Molly says:

    I have to agree with rereading Brideshead and give the BBC version a chance, it really does come close. All Jane Austen get a regular reread. I would add a few favorites: The Shell Seekers by Rosamunde Pilcher, any Daphne de Maurier but a special crush on Frenchman’s Creek, Tess of the Durbervilles by Hardy… I seem to be a hopeless romantic…

  31. Carly says:

    This is an old post, but the book I’ve re-read the most is C.S. Lewis’ “Till We Have Faces”. Gives me hope that there is more to life than what we see.

  32. Nancy says:

    Annie Dillard’s Pilgrim at Tinker Creek is a book I return to and read in parts over and over again over the past 30 years.

  33. DanielleD says:

    Yes, Circle of Quiet. Love her non-fiction far more than her fiction. The only one i’ve not read is the Summer of the Great Grandmother, because I can’t deal with the thought of my mom dying. And I LOVE Brideshead Revisited! I still remember where I was when I cracked it open and started reading (on a public bus in Chicago). I couldn’t get over how beautiful the writing was. I kept rereading sentences because they were so lovely. I liked the book way more than the movie.

  34. Mary says:

    The book I call my January book is “The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society” by Annie Barrows and Mary Ann Shaffer

    It is a book of letters exchanged between friends and acquaintances. Set on post WWII Guernsey Island, we learn the reason for the above named Society-the German soldiers caught a group of neighbors out after curfew and they had to think on their feet for a reason curfew had been broken.

    It’s a lovely story that I recommend all the time to people asking for a good read.

  35. Ruth says:

    I reread A Christmas Carol every few years. It’s a wonderful story and reminder of appreciating all one has. As I’ve gotten older, it reminds me it’s never too late to make changes in our lives!! Also, Pride & Prejudice is a favored reread to help me not to judge a book by its cover. I love rereading any of Michael Connelly’s books especially the Bosch series. Everyone counts or no one counts is a pretty valuable life rule!!

  36. Margaret says:

    I’ve read/listened to Station Eleven by Emily St John Mandel at least 5 times now, including in the midst of the covid pandemic. It is a beautifully written and thoughtful book and I get something new out of it each time I revisit it.

  37. Annabel L says:

    Lord of the Rings
    Watership Down
    Harry Potter
    Weirdly all fantasy when I almost exclusively read historical and literary fiction, but they all have the strongest themes of friendship, loyalty and the notion that even the weakest will win out against evil if they’re brave enough to stand up to it.

  38. I’ve Sheldon Vanauken’s A Severe Mercy so often I can almost recite the next line. And I read JI Packers Knowing God every January and then in March read Sacred Rhythms. I’ve read Jerry Coynes Why Evolution is True and both Tess of the D’urbevilles and Anna Karenina maybe three times. The Picture of Dorian Gray is another perennial fav. And the Bible, too: at least annually for many years.

  39. Fran says:

    I’ve tried Jane Austen so many times but just can’t get into it stuffy British people and settings. I want to be a fan but just don’t find the novels interesting or fun. Just boring.

  40. teg says:

    I am a committed Janeite, so I have reread all of Austen’s novels over the years. Also other ‘classics.’ For more recent novels, there are two that I have read a few times because they are just so well-written, poignant, and offer fresh plot approaches.

    The first is WHAT THE WIND KNOWS, by Army Harmon. This takes place in Ireland (mostly) at the time of the Irish Rebellion (1921 or so?) Reading the blurb for the book I thought it would not interest me, but I was so wrong. While it does feature the rebellion, it serves mostly as support for character development. And the characters, and the ‘twist’ of sorts between the relationships of Anne and her grandfather is wonderful.

    The second is LAST CHRISTMAS IN PARIS, by Hazel Gaynor. Oh, my. This is an epistolary novel, told almost wholly through letters between the characters during World War I. It evokes every emotion imaginable but, on finishing it, leaves me perfectly content despite its inevitable end. P.S. If you are into audiobooks, the Audible version of this wonderful too — several narrators and all seem to ‘fit’ my vision of the characters in the book.

    Enjoy if you try one or both. I’ll still be rereading them on occasion in ten years, I’m sure.

  41. Tasha Patterson says:

    Anne Rice The Witching Hour. The TV series was TERRIBLE and I’m not a huge fan of her vampire books but I love this book so much. They finally released an unabridged Audible version and it’s 50 hours. I love revisiting these characters. I HATED the 2nd book in the series and never read #3 but this one is my favorite book of all time. It seems shallow but man it’s good! I’ve read or listened to this book probably 20 times since I originally read it in the 90s.

  42. Summer says:

    Crossing to Safety by Wallace Stegner – I read it first in my 20s, but as I have read it every 5 years or so, I see more beauty in the long-term relationships between the families and the evolution that happens in these friendships parallels many in my own life.

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