When my aunt was in her 90s, she said that one of the best things about losing her memory was that she could re-read her favorite books and they were all new to her!
I’ve read Pride and Prejudice multiple times and listened to the audio once during a paint project. A more recent read that I know I’ll come back to is Amor Towles’s A Gentleman in Moscow.
These quickly come to mind: Pascal's Pensees, Chesterton's Orthodoxy, Augustine's Confessions, Bunyan's The Pilgrim's Progress, The Crucifixion by Rutledge, Proper Confidence by Newbigin, Democracy in America by Tocqueville, The Saints' Everlasting Rest by Baxter, Religious Affections, and The Apostolic Fathers.
Hi Joel, This is a beautiful post. So much resonated with my own experience. My book club is meeting this week to discuss Till We have Faces. I first read it for a class with Peter Kreeft at Boston College 40 years ago. I remembered almost nothing of the story except that I thought it was mysterious. Having lived a lot since then I reread it and could experience its beauty and joy. Like your other reader I think it is time for me read Montaigne’s Essays!
I'm glad I'm not the only one with multiple copies of some books! I keep coming across references to Montaigne's essays, so I think the universe is trying to tell me something. I now need to figure out which edition is best. I've ordered a Penguin edition from the library. I usually find their editions, and the introduction, quite informative.
I love Taleb's books, and like to dip into them every so often. So much wisdom therein.
I think the books I read over and over are the one-upmanship books by Stephen Potter. They're quite humorous, and superficially quite bonkers, but they contain quite a bit of clever psychology!
I’m in the stage of homeschooling my kids and I never get tired of reading or listening to the Narnia books. It is world that I love living in. We also read some form of Pilgrim’s Progress or Little Pilgrim’s Progress ever year during Lent and we all look forward to it. Another book that I have come back to a few times is Gift From the Sea by Anne Morrow Lindbergh. I think Remembering by Wendell Berry is now becoming one of those books. I just read it for the first time in January but I can see myself revisiting it again and again.
I appreciate these insights very much. Well said. I'm displaced from my study right now due to some renovations that are happening, so 90% of my library is in a storage area at our church. It's kind of sad seeing them sit on the floor in stacks, but also exciting. I need to cull some, and this transitional time gives me the chance to do that. While it's difficult, I think this is the perfect time to really ask, "What really needs to go back in that study?"
I enjoy your newsletter very much. Thanks for your evident care in putting it together. I have a few things I would like to send you via email. My email address is davidgemoore@gmail.com.
When my aunt was in her 90s, she said that one of the best things about losing her memory was that she could re-read her favorite books and they were all new to her!
I’ve come back to the King James Version Bible over the decades, Old and New Testaments. What an odd book. Thanks!
I’ve read Pride and Prejudice multiple times and listened to the audio once during a paint project. A more recent read that I know I’ll come back to is Amor Towles’s A Gentleman in Moscow.
Left off the author on one in my list: Religious Affections by Jonathan Edwards
These quickly come to mind: Pascal's Pensees, Chesterton's Orthodoxy, Augustine's Confessions, Bunyan's The Pilgrim's Progress, The Crucifixion by Rutledge, Proper Confidence by Newbigin, Democracy in America by Tocqueville, The Saints' Everlasting Rest by Baxter, Religious Affections, and The Apostolic Fathers.
Everything by Wendell Berry, but especially That Distant Land and Hannah Coulter
Hi Joel, This is a beautiful post. So much resonated with my own experience. My book club is meeting this week to discuss Till We have Faces. I first read it for a class with Peter Kreeft at Boston College 40 years ago. I remembered almost nothing of the story except that I thought it was mysterious. Having lived a lot since then I reread it and could experience its beauty and joy. Like your other reader I think it is time for me read Montaigne’s Essays!
The Freedom of Self-Forgetfulness by Timothy Keller
I enjoy your reminiscences about books Joel, perhaps especially the Christian theme that runs through many of the selections you choose.
I'm glad I'm not the only one with multiple copies of some books! I keep coming across references to Montaigne's essays, so I think the universe is trying to tell me something. I now need to figure out which edition is best. I've ordered a Penguin edition from the library. I usually find their editions, and the introduction, quite informative.
I love Taleb's books, and like to dip into them every so often. So much wisdom therein.
I think the books I read over and over are the one-upmanship books by Stephen Potter. They're quite humorous, and superficially quite bonkers, but they contain quite a bit of clever psychology!
Here are five additional books that I often come back to:
• Eugene Vodolazkin, The Aviator
• Virginia Postrel, The Future and Its Enemies
• Nassim Nicholas Taleb, Fooled by Randomness
• Robert Louis Wilken, The Spirit of Early Christian Thought
• Wilhelm Ropke, A Humane Economy
I’m in the stage of homeschooling my kids and I never get tired of reading or listening to the Narnia books. It is world that I love living in. We also read some form of Pilgrim’s Progress or Little Pilgrim’s Progress ever year during Lent and we all look forward to it. Another book that I have come back to a few times is Gift From the Sea by Anne Morrow Lindbergh. I think Remembering by Wendell Berry is now becoming one of those books. I just read it for the first time in January but I can see myself revisiting it again and again.
You just officially inspired me to start purchasing hard copies of my favorite audiobooks. Thank you!
J.D. Vance, Hillbilly Elegy
I appreciate these insights very much. Well said. I'm displaced from my study right now due to some renovations that are happening, so 90% of my library is in a storage area at our church. It's kind of sad seeing them sit on the floor in stacks, but also exciting. I need to cull some, and this transitional time gives me the chance to do that. While it's difficult, I think this is the perfect time to really ask, "What really needs to go back in that study?"
Hi Joel,
I enjoy your newsletter very much. Thanks for your evident care in putting it together. I have a few things I would like to send you via email. My email address is davidgemoore@gmail.com.