What, again?

Isn’t once enough?

Our consultant with too many books, following a chain of references, recently pulled out one he’d read a number of years ago.  He didn’t remember much about it, which implies he was not terribly impressed one way or the other.  He kept it probably because it was by an author of some standing.  Our consultant has put it on his list of books to reread.

But why would anyone reread a book?  That gets to the heart of the reason for our consultant’s large library in the first place.  For nonfiction the case is fairly easy to make.  Science and mathematics texts are worth going back to in order to remind us of details, like assumptions and lines of reasoning, and especially refreshers on techniques.  (Granted, many of our astronomer’s books that were cutting-edge are now entirely out of date; but he’s looking for a good home for those maybe with some historian.)  History, if well done, is also worth hanging on to.  It may only serve as a reminder of details, but sometimes we want to compare different authors approaching the same topic.

Fiction is a harder sell.  We do retain some classic detective/mystery stories.  The whole point of that genre, it would seem, disappears once you know the ending.  You do not reread them in order to find out what happens; it’s not going to change.  But we still go back to them.  The second time through we find ourselves appreciating the structure, the way things are set out, the red herrings and the sequence of activities, even though the end is inevitable.  And this shift in what we read for applies to fiction in general.  With the outline of the plot known, it’s easier to absorb other parts of the work.

And there are certain authors whose style of writing alone is pleasurable to come back to.  This is of course a matter of personal taste, but we reread Kipling and P. G. Wodehouse, to name two, sometimes just for the turn of the phrase or the way things are expressed.

But not every book is worth rereading.  In fact, most merit the discard pile as soon as the last page is scanned (some even earlier).  Retention is a pretty tough standard to meet, asking oneself at the end: would I actually read this again?  The bargain paperback racks in every used-book store are stuffed with volumes for which the answer was no.

And we can extend the question to movies.  Would you sit through another couple of hours or so of the same thing again?  Was the acting, writing, photography or whatever worth another look?  In fact, it’s a question worth asking of any piece of art.  And some will pass the test.

Our librarian-consultant brings up another consideration for when we’re asking our questions.  He last read this small volume of anecdotes and essays many years ago.  He was a different person then and has seen many things since.  Dipping into the book now, he finds the writing itself of higher quality and the presentation simply better than several recent reads.  It could be that he himself has matured as a reader.