rereading.

while at the library recently, i picked up an interesting set of essays called rereadings. in each essay a writer revisits a book they have loved. having always enjoyed rereading, for the sake of pleasure more than to gain new insight from the text, i am excited to dig into the book. not long after discovering rereadings, i came across an article in newsweek on the pleasures of rereading. in explaining why he finds pleasure in rereading the same books time and again, author David Gates writes: "They fill me with the voices of people I know, thousands of them—many times the number in that old Dickens print—the real and the imagined, the living and the dead. Heaven may be like this eventually, but why wait around when it's right here, right now?"

some might say that rereading is a waste of time, especially when there are so many books out there to still be enjoyed. but Gates states that rereading is tantomount to finding a piece of heaven here on earth. in some ways, i agree with him. for awhile i would reread the nanny diairies each summer. in one way i was reconnecting with characters i had come to love over time... like a little reunion with old friends. at the same time i was also connecting them to my life that summer. a life that had changed since the last time i cracked open those pages. each summer i brought a new perspective to the story, simply because i was in a new place in my life. for me that's just one of the benefits of rereading. i'll be honest though, sometimes rereading fails me. i try to reconnect with a book i loved the first time i read it... but the magic is lost. sometimes you just can't go back.

so do you believe in rereading? if so, what do you reread? i'd love to hear about your favorite books.

have an hour? read a story.

apparently harper perennial has declared this the summer of the short story. i'm assuming this has something do with the fact that all year long they have been celebrating the short story on their site- fifty-two stories. the introduction reads:

This year we're celebrating the thriving art of the story by sharing a new one every week: most of them new, a few of them classics, from authors you know and some you don't, each of them treasurable in its language or wit or human insight. And we'd love to have you join us! Watch this space and enjoy.

as is mentioned by pop candy, short stories are perfect for summer reading. i love to take a nice collection to the beach. you feel like you're actually able to accomplish something between chattering with friends and pausing to dip your feet in the lake. i have fond memories of reading through this alice munro set a few summers ago in traverse city.

be sure to check out the stories they've added so far this year. and in case you aren't inspired yet, this quote by neil gaiman is sure to do the trick.

A short story is the ultimate close-up magic trick- a couple of thousand words to take you around the universe or break your heart.

a picture is worth a 1000 words.

on the tenth day of each month, husband and wife team David and Hannah put into practice the idea that a picture is worth a thousand words. Hannah provides the picture and David provides the words. each piece is a lovely morsel of art that i devour and savor until the next month roles along. i am looking forward to checking out their latest creation on friday. until then, be sure to check out their archives.