The Value of Re-reading (読み返す)

We've all done it. You find yourself with some free time (for once!) during the weekend and decide to read a book. But which one? There are literally millions of books out there with hundreds of genres on so many different topics, it's hard to choose..... so many glittery paperbacks with cool pictures on the front, or heavy volumes that you promised yourself you would get to as a youth but never quite did....that new New York Times Bestseller that everyone's been raving out.....or maybe some self help is in order and can't be put off? Maybe, just maybe, the correct answer is re-reading a book you once read. Your interpretation of the book and its significance can completely change the second or third time around.....

That's part of what I've found to be true: we draw from books and movies parts that fit into our own narrative, things that we can resonate to ourselves, have personal experiences in, which is why sometimes people's opinions are so divided on certain books.....people either love them or hate them, can't seem to agree.....that's because we're all different people, bringing our own different experiences into reading a book, and there's only so many way a book can manipulate you into thinking it's good. (Although, I also adhere to the adage that a good book is a good book, no matter who's reading it).

To be truthful, I can't take the time to re-read books for fun anymore, I just can't afford large chunks of hours of time, but re-reading a book can be so enjoyable the second time, picking up loose parts that didn't seem essential the first time, kind of like MJ telling me to sweep the floor a second time after the first pass-through, you might get something you missed the first time! Plus you know you've enjoyed the book the first time already, so you know you're in for at least decent return (or else you wouldn't be reading it anymore), as opposed to getting disappointed by a new book.
The best is probably mystery novels (I was a big Agatha Christie fan in my youth) where you pick up odd clues and hints the second time around that memory didn't deem useful enough to remember the first time around. "OH, man, that's why he was acting so strange!" The adult perspective is also so much different from the first one, like "Oh, OK, now I get why the son devoted so much time to his family," or "Oh man I used to hate this character, now I think he's pretty cool. We should get a beer sometime and talk."

Reading Time magazine/ news articles 5 or 10 years after they were published- really fascinating. Which is why I preserved some copies from way back in the day. Obscure news stories suddenly flash back, it's like a time capsule.

Reading this blog! - is so awesome sometimes knowing what my mind was spouting off at certain points in my last 10 years of life.

Reading essays I did in college- nah, I actually never do that, way too boring and now exposed to be a hoax, I wasn't trying that hard anyway.

Reading old emails/ texts sent to old friends- really really heartwarming, and makes me wax poetically/ nostalgically for a time past.


Also applies to movies- the 2nd or 3rd rewatch can be very fulfilling, and some Star Wars fans do those eight or nine times when the new movie comes out (kind of extreme IMO)

Other areas where re-reading can seriously be of use:

1.) menus! - "O, so this dish has meat in it? Never mind, we'll have something else, we're vegetarians"
2.) Amazing Race clues! - MJ and I just finished Season 29, wasn't happy with the winner but did enjoy the last 2 legs of the race, Seoul, S. Korea and Chicago! AMAZING how some teams with so much money on the line can miss a key part of the clue, when that's one of the few things they can control. Follow directions, no matter how much of a hurry you're in.
3.) Contracts- yes, this is my job as a lawyer, and one can make quite a bit of money at this (and really, make a living off of), contract drafting and negotiation
4.) Emails- For invitations before a party, right before you go to a party. Oh, so this was a costume party! let
5.) Emails- for proofreading right before you send it out. I know everyone on social media is intent on sending emojis and gifs and using abbreviations like AF and "totes," but professional emails still need to be edited and re-worded, especially with Apple autocorrect (yes, you!) sometimes turning the correct spelling into something it thinks is right but not appropriate for the situation.


Fantasize on,

Robert Yan