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Books Better the 2nd Time?

Hello, I've recently been re-reading books I first read 20 years ago: specifically Camus' The Stranger and Bradbury's Fahrenheit 451.
I hated The Stranger when I read it, but over the years Camus became probably my favorite writer. The Plague and The Rebel blew me away and I learned more about Camus and his thinking. So I gave The Stranger another shot and I came away from it with a new perspective.
Fahrenheit 451 is one the books that made me fall in love with reading and my young mind just took it as a great story about censorship. But now I see it as about a lot more: destruction of relationships and the addictive nature of mass media.
So is there any books you've been re-visiting and coming away with a different impression?
Or Movies or music?

ZantiMisfit 8 Sep 15
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17 comments

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Anything by Allen W Eckert.

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I love this cover!

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I tried reading "Zen and The Art Of Motorcycle Maintenance" by Robert Pirsig again after thirty years, and it didn't seem as poignant the 2nd time around. I have changed, it stays the same.

JK666 Level 7 Dec 25, 2018
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Maybe not better, but perhaps your perspective has changed as you’ve grown and experienced different things. I think all good art - written, visual, performed, etc. - let’s us see and feel new things, reveal new details, esch time we visit.

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Never read a book twice. There's too many books out there that I want to read to waste time treading through chartered waters, and I'll never live long enough to read all of the books on my wish list.

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There’s a book I read every year. It’s called Three Wishes by Liane Moriarty. It’s like revisiting old friends.

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When you read a book a second or multiple times you come with a new set of eyes and insight. You also have an idea of what is coming and a well crafted work will give greater insight into the characters and reveal more about yourself. As my English Lit. Professor said “Let the book read you”

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When the movie came out, I re-read Great Gatsby (in one sitting). It was so much better than I remember from when I had to read it in high school.

I also like to tell the story of my high school AP English teacher. (Who I still linsist was the basis for the main character in Greatest American Hero). We had to read Animal Farm. I had heard 1984 was better, and asked him about it.

He said 1984 was a horrible book, and I should, under no circumstances, read it. Of course, I immediately read it, and loved it.

It took me years to realise he knew EXACTLY what he was doing. By telling me not to read that book, he ensured that I would.

Ozman Level 7 Sep 16, 2018
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Great classic...try "Lucifers Hammer" epic story.

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I just generally read books from Years Gone by as a memory test.
Nothing worse than a ram error.

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Always read it again if you want. You'll get something different out of it every time.

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all the time (until my eyes went bad). songs too. i guess we tend to read/listen to things that have enough depth and width that they simply cannot be taken in completely with one reading/listening. there is also the difference in perspective that comes with having more experience in one's own life the next time one reads/hears whatever it is.

g

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I regularly revisit books. I intend to re-read Catch 22 this winter. If it’s been years, it is almost like the first time again.

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To Kill a Mockingbird ... The first time I didn't even get the story because I didn't understand the context.

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[en.wikipedia.org] Gutenberg Project: [gutenberg.org]

Simplicius Simplicissimus I read this book in my teens. I was probably sick at the time. I read mainly when I was sick enough to stay in bed. I also suspect that I wanted to read it because of some salacious details my elder brother had mentioned. However, these details we buried under heaps of other details and instant gratification didn't seem to be forthcoming. Somehow I didn't like it.
About 40 years later I gave it another go; I tried the original version first but I just found it too laborious. So I ended up reading the English translation and I adore the story.

Great site! I pull books from there all the time, convert them to ereader format and transfer them to my google books library.

@chalupacabre I have to kearn that.

@PontifexMarximus There's an app called calibre that I have on my linux machine. In setting it up, one of the variables is what repositories you want to search - gutenberg is among them.

@chalupacabre does that mean I need a LINUX machine?

@PontifexMarximus Nope. [calibre-ebook.com]

@chalupacabre thank you

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I can't think of any in particular but I've found the same with several books and more particularly with movies. I have occasionally rewatched movies that I saw in my youth and they have all these things going on that I didn't comprehend as a young person.

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First time I read "The Grapes of Wrath, I liked the book. Years later the second time I read the book, I LOVED the book. It changed who I am.

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