IS REREADING BOOKS A WASTE OF TIME?

rereading books is a waste of time

You only go around this world once, so you might want to make the most of it. For me, as a massive book nerd, one way I measure life is by how many books I've read. With only a short amount of time on this earth I want to read as many books as I can. With so many books out there, is it a waste of time to re-read a book?

A lot of people say "yes, it's a waste of time! You've already read that book! You know what is going to happen. Voldemort is defeated by Harry Potter for the umpteenth time! Re-reading a book is not going to change that."

Which book? The hardest question in life.

While somewhat logical - what's the point of reading a story if you already know how it ends - it seems to me that reading is somewhat illogical. Rereading a book is amazing!

It shouldn't make sense, but we humans do not always make sense (like the sentence structure of this sentence).

Reading a book is different every single time. You might linger and absorb more of the details in your second lap. It may have been a decade since you last read the book, and you have that much more life experience behind you. You may be in a different mood, or have a slightly different outlook on life. There are so many variables that shift and change a person, that each re-read is a different experience.

I just reread Another Fine Myth. A book I've reread half a dozen times. And, as I've stated above, every single time is completely different.

Another Fine Myth - Robert Asprin

I remember the first time I read this book, I was in grade seven. I picked up the book because my Dad was reading the series. He said it was funny and made it sound amazing when he told me they travelled through different dimensions. I was still a sci-fi / fantasy newbie, so the idea of dimensions was a big deal and a big idea that I found fascinating. I still remember reading the book at school, during our reading time right after lunch. I didn't really find it all that funny, but I could tell it was supposed to be, but the jokes flew over my head. What I did love was the idea of travelling to different dimensions.

As I aged and reread the book years later in my teens, I finally got the jokes. By this time the idea of different dimensions was old news, and bigger ideas of race, class, and stereotypes related to these dimensions threw some depth on this part of the story, giving me something different to think about.

Last month, thirty years later, I reread the book and again had a completely different experience. I had just come off reading a few hard sci-fi books full of science and serious topics. Reading a light, pun filled, wacky adventure was like a breath of fresh air, refilling my desire to spend time flipping through pages.

Rereading books a waste of time?

I'd say no, and I'm pretty certain most readers would agree. But then again, there are so many books in this world and so little time.

Like I mentioned at the beginning, I personally measure the success of life by how many books I've read. Which is what inspired me to design a Reading Journal to keep track of my reads.

Click on Picture to buy from Amazon

There are pages to track the books you've read and what you thought about them.

Book tracking page

I also added some fun pages to write down things like your reading habits, fav books, etc. Now that would be fun to re-read in a decade...like I said we change over time.

All about you - reading habits, fav books, etc

Also for the artistic readers (*puts hand up*), there are some pages for drawing.

Fill in bookshelf

I strongly encourage you to purchase one for yourself, or consider it as a gift for the big readers in your life, or your book club members, or your mother-in-law, or your child's bus driver. It would be great for anyone...and I wouldn't mind the $1.45 royalty either.

It is available on Amazon right now - https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0B2TW69CG