Books to Read Again and Again

I'm not typically one of those people who likes to watch my favorite movies over and over again. Except Mary Poppins twice a day with my sister while we were growing up. And Grease a few times a year through high school. And every now and then I like to watch The Jerk. And every year at Christmas I like to watch Elf. But that's it. I'm not a repeat movie watcher.

What about books? I found this post about 100 Books to Reread and felt bad after reading this quote from Oscar Wilde, "If one cannot enjoy reading a book over and over again, there is no use in reading it at all." But then I thought, why feel bad? People don't have to read a book again and and again to enjoy it, right? So, like with movies, I'm not really a repeat book reader. Once I read it I'm usually done (except for pictures books when I read them to kids). But, again like the movies, there are a few exceptions to my once and done reading habit.




I'm sure I'm not the only person who likes to read and reread this classic. It's just so good. I think I just read it last year, but maybe I'll pull it out and read it again in the fall, when I finish my summer reading list!




I loved Roald Dahl's books growing up and I did an author study of him for a children's literature class in college. I think Matilda is one of my favorites from Dahl. I love the tricks she plays on her dad. I love her teacher Miss Honey. And most of all, I love Matilda's love of books! I'm actually reading this book right now with my husband because he claims he NEVER READ IT!! Tragedy!




I LOVED when my second grade teacher, Mrs. Grady, read The Boxcar Children to our class. I loved it so much that I played "boxcar children" with friends at recess. We pretended we didn't have a home and collected sticks and leaves and made our fires and cooked our food. I wonder if these friends still remember doing this. I recently read the book again and while I was glad I still remembered most of the story, I found I definitely enjoyed this better as a second grader than as a 30-something adult reading it!

I really think these might be the only books I have read more than once. Is that weird? Do you read books again and again? What titles do you return to?