I'm sure you've heard me mention by now that I happen to be a voracious reader, and of my new adventures in the world of free books for Kindle. Before my Kindle came along, if I couldn't afford a pricey $7 paperback from WalMart, I would generally re-read one of the thousands of books on my bookshelf.
I have finally gotten rid of many of my books which are not re-read worthy, but there are some which have gained permanent spots on the shelf, of which I will never tire, regardless of the number of times I re-read them.
The Dark Tower Series (pure genius right thar), and really, anything by Stephen King (except for Lisey's Story, which I could not stand), will never earn a spot in my bag of "I've got to donate these somewhere" books. I've re-read the series multiple times, and, since it's so long, I could probably even start it over again after having read the "last" book in the jumble, and still be mesmerized.
All "Reacher" novels by Lee Child have been read at least twice. Same with probably 90% of my Dean Koontz, though admittedly some of them are so "similarly" themed that I get annoyed when I'm on my third go-through and realize I just read it a few weeks prior (and on a side note, they're not really similarly themed, but there are a few which I didn't overly like, and I tend to confuse them). Also my James Follet books (Pillars of the Earth and World Without End), not only because they're good, but also because they're a million pages each, and who could throw something like that away? Anything James Patterson, mainly because he's talented but also he's one of the only persons who posts on my Facebook wall and doesn't annoy the poo out of me. Also, "Sarum" by Edward Rutherfurd.
Having said all that, I'm on my second go-round of the whole "Game of Thrones" saga. I don't think I've complained about this before, but I will say a few things about this here.
First of all, I had a really difficult time getting past the whole "R.R" in the author's name; I knew nothing about him (nor of the fact that there was an HBO series), but I was annoyed at the signal in my brain which suggested that this person was openly comparing himself to the other "R.R." author, Tolkien. I'm sure he wasn't, and I'm sure they are legitimate initials, but, I'm stubborn, so, yeah.
Second, while I was mostly intrigued by the entire series, I did find myself just skimming through certain parts. Okay, many parts. Some of it was due to the fact I was ticked that I would have to wait another 5-6 chapters to read about the characters with which I was fascinated. If it hadn't been for the story line (which is good), and the few characters I was interested in, I likely would not have finished the series because of my annoyance.
On a similar note, I realized in one of the books (maybe the fourth or fifth?) that I hadn't heard at all regarding some of the characters since the previous book. I actually went back in my reading to make sure that the character hadn't died and perhaps I had missed it somewhere.
And finally, the hugest annoyance for me was getting the last book, and realizing that the series was not actually complete. I remember getting about half way through the final book and realizing that there were not nearly enough pages to wrap up the multitude of story lines. You know, you get to the "final" book of a series, and when it's not "final", it's very annoying. Perhaps if I had done a little research beforehand, I would have known, but I'm also guessing that I might have not even bothered, seeing a five-box set and knowing I wasn't going to get to the real finale.
Anyway, I've just started re-reading, and I'm having a hard time with it. Why? Because I know the heartbreaks that are forthcoming, and I've had enough of heartbreak for this year. Knowing how a story ends has never prevented me from a re-read, but in this case, there are still infinity plus nine number of books to read after the "final" book of the series (I actually don't know, I'm afraid to investigate), and I'm still quite upset over the demise of some of the characters (don't worry, I won't spoil it for you).
This is an entirely new feeling for me, but I will persist. Why? Because I know that I will likely want to see the HBO series, and I need to have everything refreshed in my memory - so I can come here to complain about the fact that the television series is nothing compared to the books.
Which I skimmed through.
Page 123 of book one, 84926296412 pages to go......
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