As an English teacher, I would reread books every year before I taught them. And every year, I would discover something new. My husband used to laugh and ask if I thought Gatsby would have a happy ending some year! On my own, I have read A Prayer for Owen Meany at least seven times and it stands the test of time. I so look forward to Desert Owl to see what you are reading. Thank you for alerting me to Wild Belief. Really enjoyed it-and so glad he included Mary Oliver. I am going to give a program on her poetry to the Stephen Ministers at ODEC! Just finished Matrix and am still deciding about it. Loved Sharratt's Revelations and Illuminations. There is a book that you ABSOLUTELY have to read-about a cloistered monk in a monastery
who gives sanctuary to a Somali reegugee-North by Brad Kessler. Fabulous.
It is fascinating following the research you are doing for your book.
I do reread books, sometimes because I love them so much and other times because I am prompted by some event in my life that leads me back to a specific book Either way, I always learn something new, either about the story or about myself. I is always a good thing, although not always welcome at that time.
I love the mystics and the Orthodox who are mystics. Some of my favorites are "Teresa of Avila An Extraordinary Life" by Shirley du Boulay and "In the Heart of the Desert: The Spirituality of the Desert Fathers and Mothers" by John Chryssavgis
The Thorn Birds, and Divine Secrets of the Ya-Ya Sisterhood which I picked up at an airport on a whim. On the second reading, I highlighted & wrote notes, then passed to 4 of my closest friends & they did the same. We could have written it! Next month we have girls week, which we’ve done for the past 45 years. With the exception of last year of course l Most epic was the year we turned 60. We met in St. Louis & drove Route 66 to Malibu. It was “Devine” 🙂
I've both read and listened to the Harry Potter books countless times. I was still working as a bookseller when the first books were released in the United States. Back in the days before cell phones, a colleague called my after she drove home from work and listened to an interview with J. K. Rowling and said, "You better order a few copies of these books, I think this is going to be a big deal." And then I watched kids' relationship with reading change. After all these years, they still take me to a magical place. Another re-reading favorite is Barbara Kingsolver. I've read both The Poisonwood Bible and Animal, Vegetable, Miracle, countless times. Finally Atul Gawande's Being Mortal was life changing for me and for my ministry when I read it the fall after my mother died. Great question, Elizabeth!
I read Lolita when I was newly in college and thought she was badass and progressive. I reread it years later after becoming a mother and was appauled at how my young self could think that and how differently I interpreted Lolita and hurt for her victimization. Other books like Jane Austen or Lord of the Rings have gotten better with time. Because I know more and can recognize the symbolism and layered story. And then there's the comfort food of books like Harry Potter, that are just pure fun and fantasy, b/c I'm not rushing "to see what happens," I can linger and laze in the narrative and disappear in the world.
As an English teacher, I would reread books every year before I taught them. And every year, I would discover something new. My husband used to laugh and ask if I thought Gatsby would have a happy ending some year! On my own, I have read A Prayer for Owen Meany at least seven times and it stands the test of time. I so look forward to Desert Owl to see what you are reading. Thank you for alerting me to Wild Belief. Really enjoyed it-and so glad he included Mary Oliver. I am going to give a program on her poetry to the Stephen Ministers at ODEC! Just finished Matrix and am still deciding about it. Loved Sharratt's Revelations and Illuminations. There is a book that you ABSOLUTELY have to read-about a cloistered monk in a monastery
who gives sanctuary to a Somali reegugee-North by Brad Kessler. Fabulous.
It is fascinating following the research you are doing for your book.
I do reread books, sometimes because I love them so much and other times because I am prompted by some event in my life that leads me back to a specific book Either way, I always learn something new, either about the story or about myself. I is always a good thing, although not always welcome at that time.
I love the mystics and the Orthodox who are mystics. Some of my favorites are "Teresa of Avila An Extraordinary Life" by Shirley du Boulay and "In the Heart of the Desert: The Spirituality of the Desert Fathers and Mothers" by John Chryssavgis
I named one of my daughters Clare...spelled the Italian way out of respect for the Saint.
The Thorn Birds, and Divine Secrets of the Ya-Ya Sisterhood which I picked up at an airport on a whim. On the second reading, I highlighted & wrote notes, then passed to 4 of my closest friends & they did the same. We could have written it! Next month we have girls week, which we’ve done for the past 45 years. With the exception of last year of course l Most epic was the year we turned 60. We met in St. Louis & drove Route 66 to Malibu. It was “Devine” 🙂
I've both read and listened to the Harry Potter books countless times. I was still working as a bookseller when the first books were released in the United States. Back in the days before cell phones, a colleague called my after she drove home from work and listened to an interview with J. K. Rowling and said, "You better order a few copies of these books, I think this is going to be a big deal." And then I watched kids' relationship with reading change. After all these years, they still take me to a magical place. Another re-reading favorite is Barbara Kingsolver. I've read both The Poisonwood Bible and Animal, Vegetable, Miracle, countless times. Finally Atul Gawande's Being Mortal was life changing for me and for my ministry when I read it the fall after my mother died. Great question, Elizabeth!
I read Lolita when I was newly in college and thought she was badass and progressive. I reread it years later after becoming a mother and was appauled at how my young self could think that and how differently I interpreted Lolita and hurt for her victimization. Other books like Jane Austen or Lord of the Rings have gotten better with time. Because I know more and can recognize the symbolism and layered story. And then there's the comfort food of books like Harry Potter, that are just pure fun and fantasy, b/c I'm not rushing "to see what happens," I can linger and laze in the narrative and disappear in the world.