My best chum plans on re-reading her favorite book from 2020, The Second Mountain A Quest for a Moral Life by David Brooks. At least I think that is the David Brook’s book she is re-reading. Frankly, you can’t go wrong with anything by David Brooks!
That got me thinking about books that I re-read. While many of my friends re-read fiction, I rarely do. I always have too many new fiction books calling to me. It is probably because most of my fiction choices are mysteries and one read is usually enough. I also try not to collect many books because I don’t have room for them.
I do have one fiction exception: Winter Wheat. It is a beautifully written book by Mildred Walker and set in Montana’s dryland farming country in the 1940’s. My mother’s family homesteaded in E. Montana and my aunt taught in a one room school so I related to the story. It was originally published in 1944 and I vaguely remember my mother reading it.
There are a host of non-fiction books I have re-read many times, including:
- Anything by Anne Lamott
- Mireille Guiliano’s French Women series
- Alexandra Stoddard’s Living a Beautiful Life Books
- My countless simplicity books: my favorites continue to be the older ones by Elaine St. James
- Books by Thich Nhat Hanh
- Books on healthy living by a variety of authors
As 2020 drew to a close, I read Wintering The Power of Rest and Retreat in Difficult Times by Katherine May. I easily give it 5 stars. I think it is spot on for the times in which many of us find ourselves.
I devoured it the first time I read it and want to go back for a slower re-read. It will no doubt be one of the books I read many times.
I like one of her insights at the end:
‘Nature shows that survival is a practice. Sometimes it (nature) flourishes…..and sometimes it pares back to the very basics of existence in order to keep living.’
Katherine May
So read or re-read one of your favorite books and I will see you on Wednesday.
Allene
Travels with Allene 