It’s the first day of the last month of the year! Wah! Christmas is just over the corner and 2021 is knocking on the horizon! 2020 is really closing its curtains and I am fervently hoping that nothing uneventful will happen, nothing that will knock us off of our collective breaths.
Oh well, Tuesday also means one thing, a Top Ten Tuesday update! It has been sometime since I did one but this week’s topic piqued my interest hence this update.

Top Ten Tuesday is an original blog meme created by The Broke and the Bookish and is currently being hosted by That Artsy Reader Girl. This week’s given topic is Books I Want to Read Again.
You see, I am not a huge book re-reader. I am the type to move on to the text one. When I was younger, I did re-read some books because I had no other books to read (haha). As an adult, finding the time to re-read has become doubly challenging because of time constraints and I just have too many books to read. Nevertheless, there are still titles that I want and hope to re-read, if only to re-experience the memories, relive the joy that these books once brought me. Without more ado, here are the ten books I want to re-read. Happy reading!

The Little Prince by Antoine de Saint-Exupéry
Kicking off the list with one of my all-time favorite reads. I read Antoine de Saint-Exupéry’s The Little Prince when I was still in university. I guess I was in to it a little too late but it still filled me with wander. It has taught me a lot of lessons. Some of you might have noticed several references to the book in my blog posts. It was that memorable and it would be a pleasure reading it again.

Murder on the Orient Express by Agatha Christie
A little throwback again to my university days. I came to a point when I lost interest in mystery and suspense novels. It was right at that moment that I got introduced to Agatha Christie and Murder on the Orient Express. Needless to say that the book revived my interest in the genre and I have since then become a devout Agatha Christie fan. She is, in fact, my second most read writer.

The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini
From the moment I opened my first Khaled Hosseini, I was entranced, riveted, enchanted. You name it. I loved his three novels but The Kite Runner hit me differently. The picture of Afghanistan that Hosseini painted left a deep impression on me. It remains one of my all-time favorites, one that I would love to re-experience.
A Woman of Substance by Barbara Taylor Bradford
It has been nearly a decade since I lifted Barbara Taylor Bradford’s A Woman of Substance. Nearly ten years have passed but I am still reminded of Emma Harte, and her tenacious spirit. She is indeed one of the most memorable literary characters I have encountered and reliving her journey, from the quagmires of poverty to opulence would be a pleasure, despite its length.
The Bonfire of the Vanities by Tom Wolfe
Here is another literal throwback read. Just like A Woman of Substance, Tom Wolfe’s The Bonfire of the Vanities is a book that I have read over ten years ago but still remains embedded in me. Its wit made me fall in love with Wolfe’s prose. But my memory has become sketchy. It would be great to reexperience this novel.

The Hundred-Year-Old Man Who Climbed Out of the Window and Disappeared by Jonas Jonasson
Swedish writer Jonas Jonasson’s The Hundred-Year-Old Man Who Climbed Out of the Window and Disappeared is a book I was reluctant to read at first. It was too hyped up and I find the ridiculously long title, well, ridiculous. But I am thankful I overcome this apprehension for it is a book I loved. It also introduced me to the “dry” Swedish humor.
The Count of Monte Cristo by Alexandre Dumas
Here is another all-time favorite. I barely had an iota on what Alexandre Dumas’ The Count of Monte Cristo was about when I borrowed it from our university library. I just knew that it was one of Dr. Jose Rizal’s favorite books. I ended up loving the book and I wouldn’t mind reading this literary classic again.

The Great Expectations by Charles Dickens
Charles Dickens’ The Great Expectations is another book from about a decade ago. It was, I believe, my first Dickensian tale and despite its length (and my relative “greenness” to English classics), I ended up loving Pip’s story. Needless to say, it made me an admirer of Dickens’ works. Ten years thence, I still name this novel one of my favorites and nothing has changed.

Looking For Alaska by John Green
Yep, a young adult novel. Of all of John Green’s prolific works, it was Looking for Alaska that truly hit differently. Yes, it revolves around death but it was this understated work that I found Green’s narrative moving and mature. Everything flowed naturally. Looking for Alaska is one of those very rare young adult novels that I truly liked.
Kafka on the Shore by Haruki Murakami
I’ll be honest. I want to re-read ALL of Haruki Murakami’s works and not for reasons that you think. I want to reread them because I want to understand them deeper but of all his works, Kafka on the Shore looms large. It is a book that many a literary pundit have sang high praises on. Unlike them, the book left me baffled. Yes, it has strong imagery but it was also these images that I found perplexing.
The many wonderful words I read about the book made me wonder. Was I missing something? To my defense, I read it when Murakami’s prose was relatively new to me. I was inexperienced, in a manner of speaking, not just on his works but on magical realism in general. I actually bought a copy of the book just to reread it but the opportunity never came because I have a long list of unread books. LOL. I am still resolute on to rereading this book.
And that ends my Top Ten Tuesday post. How about you fellow reader, what books to you want to read again? I hope you can share them with me in the comment box.
Happy Tuesday!
I’m hoping to read Murder on the Orient Express for the first time and I’m really looking forward to it. I’ve been reading a few Agatha Christie novels this year and this is the one I’ve had on my shelves for a while and haven’t read yet. I’m also interested in A Woman of Substance. I’ve seen bits of the TV adaptations when they’ve been on but I’ve never picked the book up. In fact as it is quite chunky, it looks intimidating!
In regards to my re-reads, I constantly want to re-read every book I’ve loved and called my favourite – The Familiars by Stacey Halls, Hunted by Meagan Spooner, The Tenant of Wildfell Hall by Anne Brontë, and The Starless Sea by Erin Morgenstern to name a few.
LikeLiked by 1 person
I am so looking The Tenant of Wildfell Hall 🙂 I hope you get to read Murder on the Orient Express.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Hello Carll. I am a re-reader. Practically everything on my book case has been read at least twice. I have to read The Little Prince. I loved Bonfire of the Vanities – it has the best description of a hangover I ever read! Right now, I’m waiting for enough time to pass so I can read Redhead by the Side of the Road again. Thanks for that post. I enjoyed it.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Wow! I wonder how you do it 🙂 I am still to find a copy of Redhead by the Side of the Road 😦
LikeLiked by 1 person
I don’t think I could ever re-read an Agatha Christie novel again as I already know the end. Great post!!
LikeLiked by 1 person
That is a valid point though. 🙂
LikeLiked by 1 person
Great post, Carl! I loved learning more about your favorites – Agatha Christie is also among mine 😊 However, since I am one of those people who rereads absolutely everything over and over again (unless I really hated a book), we’d be here forever if I gave you a list of what I plan to reread in the future 😁 Basically, if I liked a book and have a copy on hand, I’ll reread it eventually!
LikeLiked by 1 person
I’d like to reread some of the books that I have but whenever I look at the unread pile, I am swamped. Haha. 🙂
LikeLiked by 1 person
Ooo I’ve always wanted to read the little prince (just the cover makes me want to ha). Hope you enjoy the reread! Here was my ttt: https://hundredsandthousandsofbooks.blog/2020/12/01/ttt-books-i-want-to-reread/
LikeLike
I hope you get around to reading it 🙂
LikeLiked by 1 person
So many of your picks are favorites of mine as well! I love to re-read the Count of Monte Cristo because I notice something new every time.
LikeLiked by 1 person
I am glad you enjoyed my list 🙂 Indeed, I want to reread most of these books because of some realizations I had later in life.
LikeLike
I’m really in the mood to reread Murder on the Orient Express too! It was the second Poirot book I read (following Death on the Nile), and it’s honestly still one of my favorites in the series. Plus, with it being set in winter, it seems fitting to read it during the winter.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Now that you mention it, I do recall the snow falling out the window. 🙂 It is also one of my favorites in the series.
LikeLiked by 1 person
The Little Prince – I love reading it over and over again.
LikeLiked by 1 person
It such a quick but delightful read. 🙂
LikeLiked by 1 person