NF Books You Have Reread

Non-Fiction
Joined
Oct 3, 2005
I find myself returning to favorite books, while others are like Mt. Everest: I climbed that sucker and I will never do it again. What are the books you enjoy rereading? Here's a couple of mine.

The Heart of Darkness. Conrad's critique of European colonialism, its pretense of a civilizing mission, its limitless rapacity, its merciless stupidity, its mediocrity, its lethal violence. Its beautifully written, a hazardous journey by a skeptical steamboat captain into the darkest recesses of human behavior. "The horror, the horror!"
I reread this at least once a year. I am aware there has been some criticism of the centering the entire African Congo experience on its English observer, Marlow and its monster, Mr. Kurtz. Does Africa exist simply to corrupt one white man? But the intensity of its language, images and the building of suspense draw me in, again and again.
 
I find myself returning to favorite books, while others are like Mt. Everest: I climbed that sucker and I will never do it again. What are the books you enjoy rereading? Here's a couple of mine.

The Heart of Darkness. Conrad's critique of European colonialism, its pretense of a civilizing mission, its limitless rapacity, its merciless stupidity, its mediocrity, its lethal violence. Its beautifully written, a hazardous journey by a skeptical steamboat captain into the darkest recesses of human behavior. "The horror, the horror!"
I reread this at least once a year. I am aware there has been some criticism of the centering the entire African Congo experience on its English observer, Marlow and its monster, Mr. Kurtz. Does Africa exist simply to corrupt one white man? But the intensity of its language, images and the building of suspense draw me in, again and again.
I have done this in the past, but not recently: Conrad, Rivers of America (all 68 at least twice and a few 3 times), Inside U.S.A./Europe/Africa (Gunther - long ago).

Presently, I'm on a "Inside the Old West" addiction, and I expect to be rereading many books on that subject for a while because it's a complicated saga to say the least.
 
I find myself returning to favorite books, while others are like Mt. Everest: I climbed that sucker and I will never do it again. What are the books you enjoy rereading? Here's a couple of mine.

The Heart of Darkness. Conrad's critique of European colonialism, its pretense of a civilizing mission, its limitless rapacity, its merciless stupidity, its mediocrity, its lethal violence. Its beautifully written, a hazardous journey by a skeptical steamboat captain into the darkest recesses of human behavior. "The horror, the horror!"
I reread this at least once a year. I am aware there has been some criticism of the centering the entire African Congo experience on its English observer, Marlow and its monster, Mr. Kurtz. Does Africa exist simply to corrupt one white man? But the intensity of its language, images and the building of suspense draw me in, again and again.

I've watched "Apocalyse Now" about 20 times.
 
I have re-read Huckleberry Finn -5 times.
Blood Meridian (Cormac McCarthy) -3 times.
Northwest Passage (Kenneth Roberts) - 3 times.
Mysterious Island (Jules Verne) -2 times.
The Sun Also Rises (Hemingway) -2 times. The Old Man and the Sea -3 times.
Johnnie Got His Gun (Dalton Trumbo) 3 times.
Victory (Joseph Conrad) -2times.

Just finished, A Catskill Eagle (Robert B. Parker) the best of the Spenser series- 3 times.

There are so many others and I haven't even begun to list the non-fiction history books.
 
I have reread Coddington's The Gettysburg Campaign A Study of Command several times.

Other Gettysburg books that I have reread are Scott Mingus book on Extra Billy Smith (quite the character), Pfanz Gettysburg Second Day, Wittenberg and Petruzzi's Plenty of Blame to Go Around -JEB Stuart's Contoversial Ride to Gettysburg. I have also used JD Petruzzi's Complete Gettysburg Guide for every trip I make to Gettysburg since in was published.

I have reread novels, Forrest Gump, Angels and Demons, DaVinci Code and Inferno just to see how the book differed from the movies. I read each one before their respective movie release. Then the movies surprised me with their departure from the book.
 
I read The Killer Angels about ten years ago and I threw the paperback book away. Then a few weeks ago I ordered another used copy in very good condition from Amazon. I enjoyed it just as much and this copy was a larger trade type book and was easier to hold the pages open. They don’t come much better. I still have my paperback of Lonesome Dove on the shelves. Might be a good idea to read that one again also.
 
Several Gettysburg books , but I've reread all of Rheas Overland campaign series at least twice , several 3 times .
 
My most pretentious reread: The Peloponnesian War by Thucydides. I in fact, have read the whole thing twice. It was easy to get lost in the repetitious maneuvers of triremes and hoplites and scores of place names(you need a map!), with the occasional burst of timeless eloquence and insight: The funeral oration, the Melian dialog, the expedition to Syracuse.
 
In the Civil War ilk, they are Recollections of a Confederate Staff Officer (Moxley Sorrel), Fighting For the Confederacy (Porter Alexander), Sykes' Regular Infantry Division, 1861-1865 and That Brave Body of Men The U.S. Regular Infantry in the West.
 
I reread a lot. So much so, I have all my favorite books on a bookshelf near my bed for easy access. :giggle:

My most re-read book is my favorite book, Truman Capote's In Cold Blood. I am up 13 times on that one. Of others mentioned here, I've read Lonesome Dove a few times and Killer Angels, as well. I reread Old Yeller every couple of years. It's a great underrated frontier story. I also reread a lot of mysteries. I just make sure that I wait several years in between revisiting them, so I forget who did what. :bounce:

Maybe the weirdest book I reread regularly is J.C. Masterman's The Double-Cross System in the War of 1939-1945.

I'm actually fixing to reread a few things by an old favorite of mine, though I've not read him in about ten years--James M. Cain.
 
I have read and reread several books what I find helpful is before visiting a place is to reread the book before I visit the place. I always take a few books with me everytime I do a Civil war related trip and if I am at a battlefield will use the books to help me locate where Generals died. I also use my copy of Generals at Rest by Richard and James Owen. when visiting General graves. I have wore the cover almost off the front of my copy due to how much it is used.
 
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