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Top Ten Books I Wish I Could Read Again for the First Time

This week's Top Ten Tuesday at the Broke and the Bookish is Top Ten Books I Wish I Could Read Again For The First Time. Usually, books that I love, I just want to read again, period, and I often find I get more out of a second reading. Still, there is a certain pleasure in reading for the first time.

1. Lord of the Rings by J.R.R. Tolkien

The first time I read LOTR, I savored it and loved it and just enjoyed spending time in every place and with every character and I got INCREDIBLY emotionally invested, and it's never quite the same, even though I pick up on more in subsequent readings.

2. Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen

I just loved being pulled along by the wit and sparkle, and yes, I knew they were getting married in the end, but I had no idea how that was going to happen. I also kept waiting for what I considered enough vindication for Darcy, never really got there...

3. Harry Potter 1-7 by J.K. Rowling

An experience like no other, because of all the hype and the fact that everybody I knew was reading it too, it really was magic.

4. The Chronicles of Narnia by C.S. Lewis

Also a magical reading experience, especially because I didn't get all the Christian allegory stuff back then, so I could just relate to the characters and laugh at the narrator and marvel at the strange creatures.

5. The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain

It's funny because the first time I read Huck Finn, I just enjoyed it so much, I was totally riveted by the adventurous nature of the story and admiring of Huck and Jim and had no idea about the implications of anything. I've also loved analyzing it later, but it's a very different experience.

6. The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald

I remember hanging on every word, wondering what feat of imagery and language would occur next. I just remember thinking it was sheer beauty.

7. Dune by Frank Herbert

Much like with LOTR, I had an incredibly mesmerizing experience where I got very attached to the characters and very interested in the inner workings of the universe.

8. His Dark Materials by Philip Pullman

I'd never read anything quite like it before, nor have I since. It was a fantasy world that really made me think in delightfully philosophical ways.

9. Wicked by Gregory Maguire

I was entranced and couldn't wait to see what twisted thing would happen next.

10. Jonathan Strange and Mr. Norrell by Susanna Clarke

I know, I also put this on my list of books I want to re-read, but reading it again for the first time would be better because then it could be new again...I just wanted this book to go on and on forever. I'm really hoping she'll write a sequel.


Comments

Trish said…
P&P should have been on my list this week, too! Such a fun story.
Harry Potter - definitely. One of the things I missed most after the series ended was that I would never again have a new Harry Potter book to look forward to, would never have the childish swell of excitement as I cracked open the hardcover. Rereading it again for the first time would, I think, recapture some of that joy. So much magic and excitement. Even though I still reread the books constantly, there was certainly something special about the first time with each of the books...

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