I’m a huge re-reader. Sometimes I re-read books cover to cover, sometimes I just pick out my favorite passages and read those again and again. I even used to re-read books I didn’t particularly care for. I’ve found many times that a book I didn’t like the first time improves greatly upon a second read. That’s why my personal library is so large. I don’t get rid of books, even the ones I don’t like, because I know I’ll re-read them someday.

Or I didn’t. Lately I’ve noticed that I don’t do as much re-reading as I used to. Oh sure, I still re-read A LOT, I just don’t re-read a lot of variety. I tend to stick to my long standing favorites. As a result, I’ve managed to – finally – cull down my ginormous personal library to a slightly less ginormous degree. Even so, I’d say I re-read at least 5 books a month – whether from cover to cover or just skimming.

I was thinking the other day about what makes a book re-readable. I’m not sure I can honestly say. My two most re-read books of 2009 were Fall Into Me by Linda Winfree (I have So much <3 for Troy Lee) and Just the Sexiest Man Alive by Julie James. The dialogue in both grabs me, but so does the personalities of the main characters. I love how sassy and smart Taylor is in JTSMA, and how sweet and tender Troy Lee is in FIM.

So far this year, my most re-read novels are Lord of Scoundrels and Pride and Prejudice. That isn’t to say there haven’t been some great books published this year..I’m just stuck on those two books.

Are you a re-reader? About how many books do you re-read a month? Do you re-read from cover to cover, or do you just skim your favorite parts? What are your most re-read novels so far this year?

I asked on Twitter awhile back about whether people skimmed during re-reads, or read cover to cover. The majority seemed to just skim, or not re-read at all. I was surprised, because I thought everyone re-read as much as I do.