Mine is Dune. 47 years ago, as an eleven year old, I got the novelization of Star Wars tried to read it and I just wasn’t grabbed by it. Then my 65 year old grandmother, who lived a significant part of her life without indoor plumbing and by the time I came along lived in the house my grandfather and his brothers built for her, took me to see Star Wars. I was then able to read the novelization which to me was better. It might have stopped there, except over summer break I was on a ladder scraping old paint from the eves in preparation to paint them, both my parents were at work. I fell and fractured my left foot. Thing is I was supposed to be going to a two week summer camp with all my friends the next day, so I was stuck at home unable to really do much and all my friends were off at summer camp. My mother’s co-worker’s husband heard about this and loaned me Dune. It is so good. The flights of imagination I had actually made me happy for fracturing my foot. There are so many concepts and ideas in it. I seem to always find something new in it everytime I read it. It is my gateway book. It led to Tolkien, Moorcock, Howard, Wagner, Leiber, the Star Trek novel series( I really want them to make a movie based on book 16, The Final Reflection), I can go on. The hard sci-fi stuff like Asimov only interested me in short stories. Dune though, that’s my book.
@@GrammaticusBooks My likes have changed overtime as should be expected, like when I discovered Shakespeare. But after Dune and Tolkien, I discovered Howard’s Conan stories which led to Moorcock’s Elric and the first Corum trilogy. Point being in the fantasy and scifi realms I gravitate towards action. The first 6 books of Weber’s Harrington series, The Last Deathship Off Antares by Watkins, Hardwired by Williams, etc. For pure enjoyment at the use of language it really is Shakespeare for me now days. When I move into something more modern, Red Storm Rising, Red Phoenix, Flight of the Old Dog and add in John Ringo’s 4 book zombie story starting “With Under A Graveyard Sky”. I’ll close out by recommending Elizabeth Moon’s Paksenarrion trilogy, my second favorite fantasy trilogy after LotR.
My mainstay is The Hobbit and The Fellowship of the Ring (LOTR Book 1) whenever I feel the need to leave this planet and vacation in Middle Earth. I usually go in the Fall. Another reread favorite of mine is Wind in the Willows, and The Phantom Tollbooth. More recently I’ve considered adding The Boy, the Mole, the Fox and the Horse to my list of annual rereads.
Those are all great reads Senacht! And the Phantom Tollbooth!!! I'd forgotten about that one. That is an excellent book. Now you've got me on a mission to find that book!
I first read Charles Dickens' A Christmas Carol when I was 8 years old. I've read it every Christmas since, without fail. I'm now 73 years old. I will read it every year until I pass away. It personifies the spirit of Christmas.
My own frequent re-reads are Bloodstone by Karl Edward Wagner ( his short stories as well, particularly Undertow and Lynortis Reprise) and Almuric by Robert E. Howard, which I love but can't really explain why. I've also read The Hobbit a number of times, but I've never felt the urge to read LotR again. I hope your 'new normal' is proving tolerable, and I wish you and yours all the very best.
@@GrammaticusBooks Do be warned, Almuric is of uncertain provenance. There's been a persistent rumor it was actually written by Howard's publisher. Certainly people have remarked on the different writing style of the first and second half of the book. What the truth of the author...who knows? Unlikely we'll ever know for certain.😛
1984. Last year was the only year I skipped on my annual reading of it. I've lost count the number of times I have read it over the decades. It's not just that it gets increasingly relevant to our modern-day situations and listening to the rhetoric of a certain party sounds chillingly similar to that spoken by the Inner Party. It's also a gripping story. Even though I've read it more than twenty times (probably) it never never fails to grab me, even though I know the outcome of the two main characters. It's really the exploration of this dystopian world that has fallen into the grip of an authoritarian regime that watches them constantly and dictates their behaviour, until one Winston Smith decides to stage his own private rebellion by just expressing his hatred for Big Brother in a journal. He realizes this act alone is enough to have him either imprisoned or executed, but he feels compelled to do it all the same. Then he meets Julia and they begin an illegal affair. But when Winston is given a book that contains another written by dissident named Goldstein his fate is cast and ends with a long sequence in which he defends his actions against a man named O'Brien. It's a great novel. Orwell writes in a very simple and straightforward manner and doesn't try to be clever. He wanted write to a story that he thought people should read. It's all the more fascinating when you understand the conditions under which he was writing. He was dying of tuberculosis and it was a race against the clack to finish the novel before he succumbed to the disease. Thankfully for us he did. We can only imagine what he might have gone on to write had he lived longer and survived World War 2. What insights he might have offered on the Nazi party and others who were anathema to his war on these groups. In very broad strokes he worked it into 1984, although we're never given any history of how Big Brother and the Inner Party came into power. But if you read The Origins of Authoritarianism by Hannah Arendt the patterns of these groups share a similar path to power.
A book I read frequently, though not once a year, is Heinlein's "The Moon is a Harsh Mistress". And every time I read it I can't put it down and end up finishing it in a night. In the story, the moon is used as a penal colony and the prisoner's engage in a revolution with the help of a sentient AI. Memorable characters, especially the AI, and interesting plot twists and turns.
I read Tolkien every year and have done for around 15 years. Silmarillion (Aug), Hobbit Sept), Fellowship (Oct), Two Towers (Nov) and Return (Dec). They always make me feel better no matter how many times I’ve read through them. Legolas and Gimli's friendship and Merry and Pippin’s banter make me smile even after all these years. 😱 You don’t like Tom Bombadil 😢
That's an impressive Tolkien read list Jenni! And you are correct, I don't particularly care for Mr. Bombadil Lol! Although, he does seem to play a rather important role in the Tolkien's Middle Earth!
I re-read The Hobbit/LOTR every 4-5 years, since it's an undertaking. The one I re-read most frequently, however, is The Hitchhiker's Guide To The Galaxy - the first 4 books in the trilogy. It never fails to crack me up and inspire me with its clever writing. I also delve back into the Elric Saga and Corum Chronicles every so often. And Dune, of course.
Mine is a trio of books - 1984, Brave New World, Animal Farm. I always find something I hadn't thought of as I cycle through the books one book per year.
RUSH says it best in their song Rivendell: "You feel there's something calling you You're wanting to return To where the misty mountains rise and friendly fires burn A place you can escape the world Where the dark lord cannot go Peace of mind and sanctuary by loud water's flow"
The Hobbit was the first REAL book I read as a kid. I don’t finish it every year, but I do read passages from it all the time. "Riddles in the Dark" is the single greatest chapter ever written in a fantasy novel.
I've read the Hobbit more times than I care to admit. As I have aged I find that I do not care for conflict and misery, even in fictional characters. The Hobbit has always been a source of comfort to me. I'm drawn more to tales now than I am to epic struggles. In the same vein, I really enjoy the writing of T. Kingfisher.
The one book I've read Every Year is my Sir Arthur Conan Doyle/Sherlock Holmes anthology. I've read each of the following books many times over the years: Stranger in a Strange Land, Childhood's End, The Best Science Fiction Stories of 1951, David Copperfield, Great Expectations, The Pickwick Papers, The Catcher in the Rye, The Citadel and The Century of the Surgeon.
A premium choice sir. I also revist it on occasion or just let audiobook play in the background. It's basically a child's bed time story (why it was written apparently) and that makes it just so easy on the reader. Bonus if you get a primo british audiobook reader version.
For me it is an author rather than a single book that I always go back to. John Wyndham is an author that I can read again and again. I was introduced to Wyndham's work when I was assigned 'The Day of the Triffids' in grade 9 Language Arts. As a teenager I loved the monster part of the story. I've reread it many times since and now I marvel at Wyndham reflecting on his WWII experiences and how easy it is for the veneer of civilization to fall apart. Yet Wyndham has faith in people pulling for the common good. This optimism in the face of catastrophe draws me back to his work. Great topic!
@@GrammaticusBooks I'd recommend 'The Day of the Triffids', 'The Midwich Cuckoos' or 'The Chrysalids' as a starting point. Look forward to hearing your thoughts if you get around to reading Wyndham!
@@GrammaticusBooks There's a good omnibus Paranoid Fifties with Triffids, I am Legend by Matheson, and a Dick story - if you have not read Legend, I'd look for the omni
Great video Grammaticus. For me, the book I keep going back to on a semi-regular basis, is Passage At Arms (1985) by Glen Cook. This book is hard core military sci-fi set in his 'Starfishers' universe, but has almost nothing to do with that trilogy. The story is essentially the movie 'Das Boot' set in space in a very grim 'war at sea' setting. While it's only 265 pages long, it's gripping and non-stop from the very first page. I'm drawn back to this book over and over again, through the years I've owned and loaned out a half-dozen copies (I never seem to get them back) and always end up buying another beat up dog-eared copy to keep close at hand.
Good stuff BSA! And I'll keep an eye out for that one. I just recently discovered Glen Cook. I love his Black Company series. I'll see if I can track this one down too.
I tend to re-read Starship Troopers. I found your channel because of that, and I really like how you are one of the few to really capture the meaning behind the book.
I really liked the format of this video! I was guessing which book it was as I watched. At first I guessed Dune. I read Haruki Murakami's Hard-Boiled Wonderland and the End of the World at least once a year. Incredible sci-fi fantasy novel. I completely agree with you on the Hobbit vs the Lord of the Rings.
Thank you and Dune was close Liminal! I've not heard of Hard Boiled Wonderland before. I'll definitely take a look at it and thank you for the heads up on that book!
I will agree with you that The Hobbit is a wonderfully written book, and I also read it every year. It is the introduction to Middle Earth and when I first read it in 1965 (at age 13), it was magical. The next year Ballantine released a paperback edition of Lord of the Rings. That summer I lived in Middle Earth alongside the Hobbits, Elves, wizards, dwarves, and men. The next year I introduced it to some friends, so I read it again. The next year I spread the word more widely, so of course I had to read it again. Not to continue ad infinitum I have now read it more than 58 times (I'm not sure exactly, some years I read it more than once). It has given me comfort through college, medical school, marriage, parenthood, divorce, leukemia (I rode with the Rohirrim through radiation and chemotherapy), and all the trials of a longish life. Today I am with Aragorn as he leads his army to the gates of Mordor and am eagerly anticipating returning to the Scouring of the Shire and on to the Grey Havens. So, while I agree that Tom Bombadil was a diversion, and sometimes I wish that Frodo and Sam could pick up the pace, I would not change a word, and I hope I can read it another twenty or twenty-five times before I sail west.
58 times!!! That’s an amazing feat Lensman! I am very glad that Tolkien and LoTRs has been able to provide you with so much enjoyment. And someday I will take that ship West with you to the Gray Havens!
I'm a bit behind in my watching. You make a wonderful argument for The Hobbit. There are a couple of books that I tend to go back to. The first is Dickens' A Christmas Carol. It's just not Christmas without Scrooge's redemption story. My other is Hermann Hesse's Siddhartha. It helps me center and take life on its own terms. Hesse is actually one of my favorite authors.
Thanks KDJ, and I do need to read both of those books at some point. I believe the Siddhartha was very influential for Zelazny when writing the Lord of Light. Good stuff!
Every October I read Roger Zelazny’s “Night in the Lonesome October” - plus listen to it as an audiobook. (If you go looking for an audio, there is a version Zelazny narrates at Speaking Volumes. The Audible version is not recommended. Speaking Volumes also has the original Zelazny narrations for the Amber series. Best!) Lonesome October might be characterized as superior fanfiction. It’s a love note from Zelazny to Lovecraft, Conan-Doyle, Stoker, Shelley, and historical/fictional characters like Jack the Ripper, Rasputin, Larry Talbot, and more. The story is narrated by Snuff, a guard dog, Jack’s familiar. When the moon is full on Halloween night, players in a game of opening and closing try to either protect or upset the balance between earth and The Great Old Ones. Each of the players has a familiar, and most of the story is told through their eyes. So if you enjoy reading about “Creatures of the Night and Unholy Practices and Living Blasphemies and Things Like That,” and appreciate a story where the dog and cat save the day, make a Pot of Tea, grab a sleeve of Lorna Doones, and enjoy.
Delaney is one of my favorites Tanks! I’m actually reading Jack of Shadows right now. I’ll keep an eye out for that novel as well. It sounds like a lot of fun!
Bugger! Forgot to do it this year! I bought it last year to finally sit down and read the whole thing through. 🙄🙄. Awesome info about the Zelazny cds. Now I know what to treat myself this Christmas...a portable cd player...😂🤣😛
"Moonwise" by Greer Ilene Gilman 1991. This fantasy novel is one that takes a bit of effort. I've read this novel out loud to myself at least once a year for 20 years. The language is absolutely beautiful. This novel is bigger on the inside than on the outside; like Chinese boxes. I discover something new every time I read it. Adventure, danger, thought and humor. Two authors get caught up in one of the worlds that they have created. This world becomes terrifyingly real. Ultimately they save the universe. I can't recommend it more highly!
Great choice, GB! The Hobbit was my first exposure to Tolkien as a middle school student way, way back in the late 60's and I do cherish it however, my annual autumn literary pilgrimage is to C. S. Lewis' "space trilogy" in the usual order; Out of the Silent Planet, Perelandra and That Hideous Strength. Cheers.
There are several I revisit regularly: Margaret Atwood’s “The Handmaid’s Tale,” Stephen King’s “It” and “The Stand,” Clive Barker’s “Weaveworld,” Frank Herbert’s “Dune,” and Dean Koontz’s “Watchers.” (I have that same “Dune” hardcover.”)
@ It’s a first edition from Chilton. I found it in a Cleveland thrift store for $2 back in the early 90s. It had been in a library, so it has a plastic cover and a few stamps… but a first edition is a first edition. I love it.
@@GrammaticusBooks I was going to argue with you that LOTR was the superior work, but after hearing you out, it is the Hobbit's simplicity and the originality of JRRT's inspiration that makes it THE classic that never grates or grows old. LOTR tries for more, but at times the striving shows and the narrative becomes stilted. The Hobbit strikes us as the inspired, contained effort to tell a magical children story; it succeeds in so many unexpected ways. You reminded me of how brief yet deeply felt was the last Thorin-Bilbo conversation. Yes, the Hobbit is silly in ways LOTR is not, but it doesn't signify. It IS a perfect book. I came into my first Hobbit reading a cynical and realistic adventure-story loving teenager. The Hobbit gave me a wider and more tolerant world view. I first read the Hobbit to my son when he was about four, and he laughed at the bent spoons and smashed plates and the silliness, but he BECAME a reader (he still is). He still talks about that experience.
@@kevinrussell-jp6om The LoTR is an absolute work of genius. Without doubt! But I find the Hobbit more accessible and fun. Thanks for checking it out Kevin!
And to answer your question : I'm not a big re-reader but I do often return to Joyce's Dubliners in December. Maybe it's the weather, the Catholic air, the timing of the last story ... Just seems to fit.
Thanks! Like your choice. I found The Lord of the Rings tough reading:) so many books so little time. My once a year read which I haven’t continued for a while was Catch 22 by Joseph Heller. The closest thing to a yearly read is probably the Iliad but by different translators. Notable double and triple reads: The Reivers by William Faulkner Cold Mountain by Charles Frazier The Killer Angels Michael Shaara The Egyptian by Mika Waltari The River God by Wilbur Smith The Maltese Falcon Dashiell Hammet The Big Sleep Raymond Chandler Starship Troopers Robert Heinlein I just realized I have too many of these double and triple read books to list:) Thanks for the video.
Those are all great reads Duke! Are list definitely intersect there on a number of books; Starship Troopers, The Killer Angels, The River God.... Good stuff sir.
It’s so funny what you landed on. I’ve seldom read a book more than once, Lord of the Rings- 7 times, that was years before any films were made…I appreciate this video and the very idea that it’s a good way to spend time…
The Hobbit and LOTR are by far my most reread books - at least 10 times each. I'm 66, so it's generally been about every 5 years. I don't have any annual reads. My second most reread books are Zelazny's Amber series.
Not a guy that can reread a book until after around 3-year time period but there are three books I did read back-to-back for about 5 years in a row for each book separately. James Joyce's "Ulysses", Herman Melville's "Moby Dick" and Gene Wolfe's whole "Book of the New Sun" series. There was always something new to find in each of them and I just became addicted to them each. "Dune" comes close for me as well.
Of those four Dune would be the one I've read the most. And several of yours I have yet to read! But Moby Dick five years in a row?! My hat is off to you sir!
The reason for Bombadil is simple, to show that Sauron is not all-powerful. The ring has no effect on Bombadil. There are other powers in the world. It's like Sam seeing the star in Mordor and realizing that there is always beauty out there that Sauron can't overpower. I read The Hobbit and LOTR every year and they are different types of stories, so it may depend on what they are read for. The Hobbit is a flight of fancy made very real while the LOTR is a feigned history, world building that ties through thousands of years. Every character is true to type. The story is extended through the appendices, which add more depth to both the story and some of the characters. There is some insight into Denethor's personality and why he is at odds with Gandalf, and would have been even more so with Aragorn. Even the Nazgul get additional treatment along with the power of the ring. Both are wonderful.
I used to read the Hobbit and LOTR frequently if not yearly. There are many books I've read several times but the only ones I have read four or more are Watership Down and several of Terry Pratchett's Diskworld novels.
My yearly reread is "The Complete Rynosseros" (2 volumes) by Terry Dowling. A series of interlinked short stories that form a novel (in the style of Jack Vance or Cordwainer Smith). Beautifully evoactive stories about humanity and being human. Gorgeously written. Full of science fiction elements, action and ships that sail the desert sands of future Australia. Absolutely brilliant and compelling.
@ It is Todd (Earl Dumarest is the main character of my all time favorite book series - Dumarest of Terra) Hope you can indeed find time for the Dowling books. I know you have much on your plate. You’d enjoy visiting my library if you were ever in Pittsburgh. Always welcome.
I read The Hobbit for the first time a month ago and already crave a re-read. It makes me crack up at times, and pacing makes all the difference for me, too. By the way, I’m genuinely curious, how do we pronounce Tolkien? I was told Christopher Lee knew him personally and Lee had always said “Tolkeen” but maybe I have the story wrong.
I think you are probably right on the pronunciation Potato. I tend to pronounce it several different ways if I have to say it more than a couple times in a video!
I figured it was JRRT. But you surprised me that it was The Hobbit (aside from the clue in how you placed it on the shelf). For me, I revisit The Hobbit, tLotR, and the Silmarillion at unexpected times throughout the year. Just finished reading the Hobbit to my six year old and now we are just entering the old forest.
I'm due for a revisit on the Silmarillion as well Robert! And I hope your six year old is enjoying the Hobbit. What a great way to be introduced to Middle Earth!
I have a few books that I go back to once every five years or so. They are Childhood's End, Lord of the Flies, Brave New World, and Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy. There is also a grouping of Stephen King novels that I have to revisit once every 10 years or so, including Pet Semetary, The Shining, The Stand, It, and a few others. I'm on my fourth or fifth read of all of those.
Hi Grammaticus, interesting to see your choice. The Hobbit is a great book, that I have read a couple of times and have been thinking of re-reading. Books that I have reread on a regular basis are: Dune - Frank Herbert, Shogun - James Clavell, Rumours Of Spring - Richard Grant, The Very Best Of Charles De Lint, LOTR - JRR Tolkien. There is one book that I have reread more than any other and that is: Mythago Wood - Robert Holdstock. Is there a comic book collection or series that you also reread on a regular basis? I think the one comic book collection I have reread the most is Judge Dredd - The Apocalypse War, although I also regularly reread The Legion Of Superheroes from back in the 70's and 80's.
I don't have a single book that I read every year. Instead, I have a number of books that I love and frequently re-read, some 10+ times over my reading life. They are: The City and the Stars & Rendevous with Rama (Clarke), The Forever War Haldeman), Starship Troopers (Heinlein), October the First is too Late (Hoyle), and The Mote in Gods Eye (Niven and Pournelle). Obviously, these books are deeply resonant with me but who can know why exactly.
Great presentation...of fantasy, I adore Elric...but for reading once every year, I read the first volume of The Spirit by Will Eisner in the DC archive editions.
I used to read Lord of the Rings once a year. Dune was another book I came back to a lot. I'm rereading Elric right now. I used to read Mallory's Morte D'Arthur every year.
@@GrammaticusBooks I lost the version I originally owned in university and then a second version that I quite liked. I've got a version now that I struggle with. Now is it the way the editor has put it together or just my decreasing nimbleness of thought over time? Great collection of interwoven stories just laden with the tragic trajectory that at least mallory was up front about.
It's a wonderful book. I revisit chapters of Fellowship every Fall, so we are of a similar mind. Oddly enough, until my 50s, I used to also reread The Outsiders annually, usually in a single afternoon.
Got a couple i re-read every year. Castle Roogna by Piers Anthony, an imaginative romp in a pun ridden magical land with a giant sentient spider....ticks a lot of boxes and always makes me smile, with a slight moistening of the eyes at Jumper's fate. The Huntsman by Douglas Hill, this is the first sci-fi book i can remember reading (about age 10) its still there after 40 years, its stained, yellowed and has an odd smell but every January i read it again usually in a day.
@@GrammaticusBooks He's probably better known for the Galactic Warlord books (which i have of course), but i always liked the Huntsman trilogy more. Very much simple teen fiction, but still love reading it.
I read The Hobbit back in 8th grade, thought it was OK, but it didn't impress me that much, except for the Gollum part. I read LOTR when I was 18, it really gripped me, couldn't drop it for a minute. Read nonstop for three days. Only read it that one time, though, so I guess the slower parts weren't an issue for me. Also read The Silmarillion, a few years later. Loved it.
Sort of fell off on my promise these days but for a few years I read Something Wicked This Way Comes by Bradbury every year around Halloween. Bradbury's poetic writing and the harkening to a boy's youth different from mine but somehow the same. It's set in late summer which relates well to a fall read when the leaves are crunching under foot. A relatively short book that delivers on the surface and with the underlying themes. I get my fantasy and my life lessons all in one go.
Would you believe I haven't read that one yet Martini? ... Thanks for bringing that one back to my attention and putting it on my radar. I really should check it out!
I agree 100% on your Frost giant's daughter take, and your point about the hobbit really makes sense as well, i read the Hobbit the first time really easily and it just flowed, whereas LOTR trilogy was kind of a slog at certain points. I don't really reread a lot of books, but I do reread Comics, and the one I really enjoy rereading every single time is a French comics by the name of "Les Aigles de Rome", which translates to Eagles of Rome, or Águias de Roma in portuguese which is how I read them since my French is quite limited. I recommend it and would love to hear your take on it once day! 😋
I'm drawn every year to the Belgariad and Malorian series by David and Leigh Eddings. I really love the plot lines and the prophecies as they play out in the books.
Those are good, although I was annoyed that everything must happen perfectly for the good guys to "win." And the adventuring party is way too overpowered. (One Gandolf-stand-in is not enough for Eddings, he needed 4!)
@@User_Un_Friendly As I recall there was one hidden as a bird or something through much of the story. Plus the main character (can't remember his name, the teenage boy) had potential to be their equal.
@@douglasdea637 Beldin's favorite form was that of a blue banded hawk. And as for Garion, or Belgarion, he almost started a world wide Ice Age. Belgarath and Polgara had significant reservations about Belgarion using the Will and the Word. Belgarath told him he needed to study for several hundreds of years before he could use sorcery safely. 😂🤣😛
I was introduced to Tolkien in HS with The Hobbit. It does have a freshness and fun about it because it doesn't have so much of the larger world weighing on it.
@@GrammaticusBooks The paradox of getting what you want :). Star Wars felt the same way. What it must have been like to see the original movie and have no idea about what would happen or had happened before.
Too many books to do a yearly reread. I do rereads though. I'm thinking Gene Wolfe's Book of the New Sun and/or Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance by Robert Pirsig (50th anniversary!) this winter.
I couldnt agree more. The Hobbit is what sent me down the rabbit hole of fantasy for my entire life. I read a book I really loved about the people under the stairs. I dont remember it at all. But at the time I was looking for another book like it. My cousin recommended the hobbit. I was like no. 3 feet? I wanted 1 foot people. But of course I read it anyway. Eventually read the Lord of the rings. Local bookstore only had fellowship and return. I had to order 2 towers. It took 6-8 weeks to arrive. Anyway; after that I eventually found Lin Carter and a look behing the lord of the rings. That book as an extensive bibliography at the end. I tried to read a lot of those books. Morris, Dunsany, Eddison, Peake. And then of course all the pulp writers. One thing I have noticed about you booktubers. Large book collections. Like me. I wanted to reread a book once. Could not find. So sense then, I saved all my books if they were genre. I never collected much of the ones from my local library. Heinlein, Norton, Anderson, Clark. Until later. But now thanks to Jeff Bezos, the books are a burden. I dont read as often as I should, and Im not using my library for much. If you ever saw the lord of the rings movies, at the end frodo has a sore around his neck from the ring. I feel like my books are my ring. I love them. They are my precious. But I want to toss them in a volcano every time I move. My only version of the hobbit I own is the large illustrated book from the tv movie. I love it. But hard to read. It is heavy and large. I put on a music stand to try to read it last time. Thanks for the great videos as always.
Thanks Mike and I feel your pain about moving books! The only thing worse to move would be a rock collection! And glad to hear the Hobbit was your gateway drug to fantasy!
I also reread The Hobbit not quite every year but pretty close. While I don't agree on all your points, I do think The Hobbit is more of a pure adventure story whereas The Lord of the Rings is designed as an epic. Every year I reread at least one novel by Raymond Chandler. They are excellent every time.
Hobbit is a great choice. I watch the Rankin/Bass cartoon every year (it is a much easier watch than the 3 movies). I have read Siren of Titan by Kurt Vonnegut a few times. I love that book and the twists and turns. Alan Moore definitely read it too since Watchmen borrow a few aspect of that book.
Good Evening Called out on Elric by Sir Michael, shall we see a clash of Hellblades? I think not, there are to many books to read instead. It is good to have yout measured tones delivering the goods once more, and it is indeed wonderful to immerse ourselfs in the worlds these great writers have created" And of course Middle Earth now resides forever dowunder now in the Land of the Long Whote Cloud. Worthy caretakers of the realm' Al TheGoldKeyfourcolorkidownunda
I actually agree with this (although I must admit I never made it through the entirety of LOTR) The Hobbit is one of the greatest fantasy novels of all time. I'm not a big re-reader but I have probably read Dracula and H.G Wells' The First Men In The Moon more times than anything else.
For me it's Kurt Vonnegut's The Sirens Of Titan. By turns laugh out loud funny and profoundly moving, on the surface a cracking sci-fi yarn but simultaneously an impassioned anti-war parable, Sirens comes up fresh every time and is - if anything - even superior to the author's better known Slaughterhouse 5.
I hear of people doing this. I don't have the time or energy to read the same book time and again. There are only a few books I've read more than once such as the Amber novels, Dune and Gateway. I have a friend who claims to have read the entire Wheel of Time series three times. More power to him but... no way for me. The Hobbit is a good choice. I read it for a class in Jr. High. Too bad Peter Jackson screwed up the movies (should have been 2, not 3.) I read Elric back in my high school days in the early 80s. They were considered must-read fantasy in my friend group. I liked them but they have problems. All too often Elric solves his issue by sticking his sword into the foe or summoning a beast from beyond with his family ring. Those two solutions solve almost any problem. I've heard that Moorcock was deep into drugs while writing these short stories in the 70s and I think it shows. But then others have denied that accusation. I don't know.
I LOVE Amber! And I'm planning on rereading the first cycle in Ambuary. I watched the Hobbit movies in the theatre and disliked them. However...I very recently rewatched them...and they're not nearly as bad as I remembered. They're not great either though! Regarding Elric, I think he and Zelazny were deep into drugs in the 1970s! Great comments Douglas!
@@GrammaticusBooks Same w Dune, tho. I’ve read it quite a bit and just finished a reread of the first three books. They’re really excellent, although Herbert gets weirder and more esoteric w each installment. Couldn't build up the energy to read God Emperor of Dune, but will read that eventually.
I watched this twice, great video. I agree with you. Viewers will be smashing their keyboards with this one. I'm not a Tolkien fan anyway, but I prefer The Hobbit over Bore of the Rings. It's easily better, AND funny. It has a fair dinkum start, middle and final act. The Snore of the Rings is an ambling, droning, snooze fest. Your point about recall is an excellent one. I don't have an annual read but I've read Dune, Blackhawk Down and Band of Brothers most frequently (3x). A Fire Upon the Deep (Vernor Vinge), Dreadnought (Robert K Massie) and The Tide at Sunrise (Denis Warner) may overtake those one day (all read twice). Highly recommend those (last) three books, if you haven't read them, and happy to do a read along if you're ever interested.
Thanks DDB and I've read most of those. But I've not heard of Dreadnought before. I'll track that one down and take a look. Regarding read alongs...I appreciate the offer but I've always been a bit shy on that format!
@GrammaticusBooks I hope you like Garrett P.I. as much as I do. They are fun pallette cleansers. I used to fit one in between my "normal" reading just as a way to reset my internal "literary" clock.
Great book, and it takes place at this time of year. He leaves in October and comes back on December 21 I believe. Jim Dale does a great job on the audiobook.
That is task! It took me ten years to read the Silmarillion. I had to get my head into the right space for it. But once I did, it was a fantastic read!
Thank you for another very interesting discussion! I tend to agree with you that The Hobbit's plot and pacing are "superior" to the LoTR. The Hobbit is much more accessible than the LoTR, and overall, I prefer The Hobbit. In a way, I feel that the LoTR suffers somewhat from "sequel-itis" in which a smaller, charming and well-paced original is popular and the subsequent sequel must be "bigger, bolder and MORE", to the detriment of its overall pacing and story. Uh-oh, now I've done it. I'm going to get massacred by the legions of the LoTR fans. ; )
I've have long thought that the Hobbit is superior to LOTR from a literary perspective. It has characters and a magic LOTR doesn't have. It's unfortunate that LOTR overshadows the Hobbit so much due to its scale and world building. The Hobbit is just a better story.
There's no book that I read every year. The ones that I do reread periodically on purpose are... The original Sherlock Holmes stories by Doyle usually in my Annotated edition. The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings. I always read them as one long story. The Foundation series by Isaac Asimov and most of his short stories. The Complete Saki by Saki (H. H. Munro) which, oddly enough, isn't quite complete. The Harry Potter series. This is the one I've reread the most since when I jumped on around book 3, I'd reread all the existing ones right before the next one was due. Lolita by Nabokov. The Abhorsen stories by Garth Nix. The Young Wizards series by Diane Duane. Lord Darcy Investigates by Randall Garrett. The Travis McGee series by John D. MacDonald The James Bond stories by Ian Fleming. There's a bunch more I reread as the mood takes me, often short story collections.
Good for you on The Hobbit! I totally agree it's a better book than Lord of the Rings. A favorite author of mine, Roald Dahl, said writing for the young is far more difficult than for adults much for the same reasons why you like The Hobbit so much.
Too many other books to read one every year.... I suppose the one I read the most might be Starship troopers - it's short, but the concepts can also make you think. I am not saying I agree with all his opinions - I do not - but they are worth thinking about. I'll also say, short, light, corny.... ERB A Princess of Mars is escapist. I'll also admit that i have always thought Tolkien somewhat overrated - he's good, but not great. He never uses a word where he thinks he can fit a sentence, or a sentence where he can fit a paragraph. I'd rather read Red Nails or the like in an evening than the trilogy in a week or two.
You are right on the pronunciation! I think I changed how I said it a dozen times during the video...whenever I talk JRR, I tend to say it different ways. I'm not sure why, it just comes out that way!
Mine is Dune. 47 years ago, as an eleven year old, I got the novelization of Star Wars tried to read it and I just wasn’t grabbed by it. Then my 65 year old grandmother, who lived a significant part of her life without indoor plumbing and by the time I came along lived in the house my grandfather and his brothers built for her, took me to see Star Wars. I was then able to read the novelization which to me was better. It might have stopped there, except over summer break I was on a ladder scraping old paint from the eves in preparation to paint them, both my parents were at work. I fell and fractured my left foot. Thing is I was supposed to be going to a two week summer camp with all my friends the next day, so I was stuck at home unable to really do much and all my friends were off at summer camp. My mother’s co-worker’s husband heard about this and loaned me Dune. It is so good. The flights of imagination I had actually made me happy for fracturing my foot. There are so many concepts and ideas in it. I seem to always find something new in it everytime I read it. It is my gateway book. It led to Tolkien, Moorcock, Howard, Wagner, Leiber, the Star Trek novel series( I really want them to make a movie based on book 16, The Final Reflection), I can go on. The hard sci-fi stuff like Asimov only interested me in short stories. Dune though, that’s my book.
I hear you on Dune Leeland! It's my number two for most read books. And I own that novelization of Star Wars...and I've yet to read it! Good comments!
@@GrammaticusBooks My likes have changed overtime as should be expected, like when I discovered Shakespeare. But after Dune and Tolkien, I discovered Howard’s Conan stories which led to Moorcock’s Elric and the first Corum trilogy. Point being in the fantasy and scifi realms I gravitate towards action. The first 6 books of Weber’s Harrington series, The Last Deathship Off Antares by Watkins, Hardwired by Williams, etc. For pure enjoyment at the use of language it really is Shakespeare for me now days. When I move into something more modern, Red Storm Rising, Red Phoenix, Flight of the Old Dog and add in John Ringo’s 4 book zombie story starting “With Under A Graveyard Sky”. I’ll close out by recommending Elizabeth Moon’s Paksenarrion trilogy, my second favorite fantasy trilogy after LotR.
My mainstay is The Hobbit and The Fellowship of the Ring (LOTR Book 1) whenever I feel the need to leave this planet and vacation in Middle Earth. I usually go in the Fall.
Another reread favorite of mine is Wind in the Willows, and The Phantom Tollbooth. More recently I’ve considered adding The Boy, the Mole, the Fox and the Horse to my list of annual rereads.
Those are all great reads Senacht! And the Phantom Tollbooth!!! I'd forgotten about that one. That is an excellent book. Now you've got me on a mission to find that book!
Not read it in years. Thanks for the reminder. Happy reading to you.
An easy reread IDEAS, check it out again if you have time!
I first read Charles Dickens' A Christmas Carol when I was 8 years old. I've read it every Christmas since, without fail. I'm now 73 years old. I will read it every year until I pass away. It personifies the spirit of Christmas.
I have seen the movie but I’ve never read the book Snowy. I need to change that!
@GrammaticusBooks . Oh please do!! The book is so much more than any of the movies. ☺️
@@snowysnowyriver Even the Muppet version?! Heresy! 😂🤣🐶😛
@@User_Un_Friendly So say we all.
Another of my traditions.
My own frequent re-reads are Bloodstone by Karl Edward Wagner ( his short stories as well, particularly Undertow and Lynortis Reprise) and Almuric by Robert E. Howard, which I love but can't really explain why. I've also read The Hobbit a number of times, but I've never felt the urge to read LotR again. I hope your 'new normal' is proving tolerable, and I wish you and yours all the very best.
Thanks Para. And I need to track down Almuric. I think I have a copy of it around here somewhere!
Thanks Para. And I need to track down Almuric. I think I have a copy of it laying around here somewhere….
@@GrammaticusBooks Do be warned, Almuric is of uncertain provenance. There's been a persistent rumor it was actually written by Howard's publisher. Certainly people have remarked on the different writing style of the first and second half of the book. What the truth of the author...who knows? Unlikely we'll ever know for certain.😛
1984. Last year was the only year I skipped on my annual reading of it. I've lost count the number of times I have read it over the decades. It's not just that it gets increasingly relevant to our modern-day situations and listening to the rhetoric of a certain party sounds chillingly similar to that spoken by the Inner Party. It's also a gripping story. Even though I've read it more than twenty times (probably) it never never fails to grab me, even though I know the outcome of the two main characters. It's really the exploration of this dystopian world that has fallen into the grip of an authoritarian regime that watches them constantly and dictates their behaviour, until one Winston Smith decides to stage his own private rebellion by just expressing his hatred for Big Brother in a journal. He realizes this act alone is enough to have him either imprisoned or executed, but he feels compelled to do it all the same. Then he meets Julia and they begin an illegal affair. But when Winston is given a book that contains another written by dissident named Goldstein his fate is cast and ends with a long sequence in which he defends his actions against a man named O'Brien. It's a great novel. Orwell writes in a very simple and straightforward manner and doesn't try to be clever. He wanted write to a story that he thought people should read. It's all the more fascinating when you understand the conditions under which he was writing. He was dying of tuberculosis and it was a race against the clack to finish the novel before he succumbed to the disease. Thankfully for us he did. We can only imagine what he might have gone on to write had he lived longer and survived World War 2. What insights he might have offered on the Nazi party and others who were anathema to his war on these groups. In very broad strokes he worked it into 1984, although we're never given any history of how Big Brother and the Inner Party came into power. But if you read The Origins of Authoritarianism by Hannah Arendt the patterns of these groups share a similar path to power.
That’s a great book and choice Madahad!
A book I read frequently, though not once a year, is Heinlein's "The Moon is a Harsh Mistress". And every time I read it I can't put it down and end up finishing it in a night. In the story, the moon is used as a penal colony and the prisoner's engage in a revolution with the help of a sentient AI. Memorable characters, especially the AI, and interesting plot twists and turns.
That's a great one Deron! I read quite a bit of Heinlein and read that one not that long ago. One of his better novels!
I read Tolkien every year and have done for around 15 years. Silmarillion (Aug), Hobbit Sept), Fellowship (Oct), Two Towers (Nov) and Return (Dec). They always make me feel better no matter how many times I’ve read through them. Legolas and Gimli's friendship and Merry and Pippin’s banter make me smile even after all these years.
😱 You don’t like Tom Bombadil 😢
That's an impressive Tolkien read list Jenni! And you are correct, I don't particularly care for Mr. Bombadil Lol! Although, he does seem to play a rather important role in the Tolkien's Middle Earth!
Grammaticus…not turned on by Elric! 😂 The wielder of Stormbringer defeated by Bilbo Baggins! Great video full of your usual controversial opinions! 😅
Glad to hear I’m living up to expectations!
Ah, the shocking revelations, the scalding controversies!!
I re-read The Hobbit/LOTR every 4-5 years, since it's an undertaking. The one I re-read most frequently, however, is The Hitchhiker's Guide To The Galaxy - the first 4 books in the trilogy. It never fails to crack me up and inspire me with its clever writing. I also delve back into the Elric Saga and Corum Chronicles every so often. And Dune, of course.
Those are all good ones Wow!
Mine is a trio of books - 1984, Brave New World, Animal Farm. I always find something I hadn't thought of as I cycle through the books one book per year.
The dystopian future trio of greatness! All great books Stischer!
RUSH says it best in their song Rivendell:
"You feel there's something calling you
You're wanting to return
To where the misty mountains rise and friendly fires burn
A place you can escape the world
Where the dark lord cannot go
Peace of mind and sanctuary by loud water's flow"
Excellent quote Joe! PS - I love Rush.
The Hobbit was the first REAL book I read as a kid. I don’t finish it every year, but I do read passages from it all the time. "Riddles in the Dark" is the single greatest chapter ever written in a fantasy novel.
Absolutely FSB!
I've read the Hobbit more times than I care to admit. As I have aged I find that I do not care for conflict and misery, even in fictional characters. The Hobbit has always been a source of comfort to me. I'm drawn more to tales now than I am to epic struggles. In the same vein, I really enjoy the writing of T. Kingfisher.
I completely agree with your sentiments on this one Tharmout.
The one book I've read Every Year is my Sir Arthur Conan Doyle/Sherlock Holmes anthology.
I've read each of the following books many times over the years:
Stranger in a Strange Land, Childhood's End, The Best Science Fiction Stories of 1951, David Copperfield, Great Expectations, The Pickwick Papers, The Catcher in the Rye, The Citadel and The Century of the Surgeon.
Those area all great books Music! And would you believe I've not yet read the Sherlock Holmes anthologies? A deficiency I need to fix!
A premium choice sir. I also revist it on occasion or just let audiobook play in the background. It's basically a child's bed time story (why it was written apparently) and that makes it just so easy on the reader. Bonus if you get a primo british audiobook reader version.
Oh, yeah I hear you on the British accent audio book Grant! .... I want to say there's a Rankin and Bass version out there somewhere?
@@GrammaticusBooks Right here on youtube
ua-cam.com/video/dU_t6wEvGf4/v-deo.html&ab_channel=Children%27sClassicAudiobooks
For me it is an author rather than a single book that I always go back to. John Wyndham is an author that I can read again and again. I was introduced to Wyndham's work when I was assigned 'The Day of the Triffids' in grade 9 Language Arts. As a teenager I loved the monster part of the story. I've reread it many times since and now I marvel at Wyndham reflecting on his WWII experiences and how easy it is for the veneer of civilization to fall apart. Yet Wyndham has faith in people pulling for the common good. This optimism in the face of catastrophe draws me back to his work. Great topic!
Excellent comments Richard! Would you believe I have not yet read Wyndham? I definitely need to change that!
@@GrammaticusBooks I'd recommend 'The Day of the Triffids', 'The Midwich Cuckoos' or 'The Chrysalids' as a starting point. Look forward to hearing your thoughts if you get around to reading Wyndham!
@@GrammaticusBooks There's a good omnibus Paranoid Fifties with Triffids, I am Legend by Matheson, and a Dick story - if you have not read Legend, I'd look for the omni
Great video Grammaticus. For me, the book I keep going back to on a semi-regular basis, is Passage At Arms (1985) by Glen Cook. This book is hard core military sci-fi set in his 'Starfishers' universe, but has almost nothing to do with that trilogy. The story is essentially the movie 'Das Boot' set in space in a very grim 'war at sea' setting. While it's only 265 pages long, it's gripping and non-stop from the very first page. I'm drawn back to this book over and over again, through the years I've owned and loaned out a half-dozen copies (I never seem to get them back) and always end up buying another beat up dog-eared copy to keep close at hand.
Good stuff BSA! And I'll keep an eye out for that one. I just recently discovered Glen Cook. I love his Black Company series. I'll see if I can track this one down too.
I tend to re-read Starship Troopers. I found your channel because of that, and I really like how you are one of the few to really capture the meaning behind the book.
Thanks Skyler and that is one of Heinlein's best books. Nice choice!
I really liked the format of this video! I was guessing which book it was as I watched. At first I guessed Dune. I read Haruki Murakami's Hard-Boiled Wonderland and the End of the World at least once a year. Incredible sci-fi fantasy novel. I completely agree with you on the Hobbit vs the Lord of the Rings.
Thank you and Dune was close Liminal! I've not heard of Hard Boiled Wonderland before. I'll definitely take a look at it and thank you for the heads up on that book!
I will agree with you that The Hobbit is a wonderfully written book, and I also read it every year. It is the introduction to Middle Earth and when I first read it in 1965 (at age 13), it was magical. The next year Ballantine released a paperback edition of Lord of the Rings. That summer I lived in Middle Earth alongside the Hobbits, Elves, wizards, dwarves, and men. The next year I introduced it to some friends, so I read it again. The next year I spread the word more widely, so of course I had to read it again. Not to continue ad infinitum I have now read it more than 58 times (I'm not sure exactly, some years I read it more than once). It has given me comfort through college, medical school, marriage, parenthood, divorce, leukemia (I rode with the Rohirrim through radiation and chemotherapy), and all the trials of a longish life. Today I am with Aragorn as he leads his army to the gates of Mordor and am eagerly anticipating returning to the Scouring of the Shire and on to the Grey Havens. So, while I agree that Tom Bombadil was a diversion, and sometimes I wish that Frodo and Sam could pick up the pace, I would not change a word, and I hope I can read it another twenty or twenty-five times before I sail west.
58 times!!! That’s an amazing feat Lensman! I am very glad that Tolkien and LoTRs has been able to provide you with so much enjoyment. And someday I will take that ship West with you to the Gray Havens!
I'm a bit behind in my watching. You make a wonderful argument for The Hobbit. There are a couple of books that I tend to go back to. The first is Dickens' A Christmas Carol. It's just not Christmas without Scrooge's redemption story. My other is Hermann Hesse's Siddhartha. It helps me center and take life on its own terms. Hesse is actually one of my favorite authors.
Thanks KDJ, and I do need to read both of those books at some point. I believe the Siddhartha was very influential for Zelazny when writing the Lord of Light. Good stuff!
Every October I read Roger Zelazny’s “Night in the Lonesome October” - plus listen to it as an audiobook. (If you go looking for an audio, there is a version Zelazny narrates at Speaking Volumes. The Audible version is not recommended. Speaking Volumes also has the original Zelazny narrations for the Amber series. Best!) Lonesome October might be characterized as superior fanfiction. It’s a love note from Zelazny to Lovecraft, Conan-Doyle, Stoker, Shelley, and historical/fictional characters like Jack the Ripper, Rasputin, Larry Talbot, and more. The story is narrated by Snuff, a guard dog, Jack’s familiar. When the moon is full on Halloween night, players in a game of opening and closing try to either protect or upset the balance between earth and The Great Old Ones. Each of the players has a familiar, and most of the story is told through their eyes. So if you enjoy reading about “Creatures of the Night and Unholy Practices and Living Blasphemies and Things Like That,” and appreciate a story where the dog and cat save the day, make a Pot of Tea, grab a sleeve of Lorna Doones, and enjoy.
Delaney is one of my favorites Tanks! I’m actually reading Jack of Shadows right now. I’ll keep an eye out for that novel as well. It sounds like a lot of fun!
@@GrammaticusBooks LOL! My favorite tank is a 125 gal. full of clown loaches!
Bugger! Forgot to do it this year! I bought it last year to finally sit down and read the whole thing through. 🙄🙄.
Awesome info about the Zelazny cds. Now I know what to treat myself this Christmas...a portable cd player...😂🤣😛
"Moonwise" by Greer Ilene Gilman 1991. This fantasy novel is one that takes a bit of effort. I've read this novel out loud to myself at least once a year for 20 years. The language is absolutely beautiful. This novel is bigger on the inside than on the outside; like Chinese boxes. I discover something new every time I read it. Adventure, danger, thought and humor. Two authors get caught up in one of the worlds that they have created. This world becomes terrifyingly real. Ultimately they save the universe. I can't recommend it more highly!
Moonwise it is Larry! I'll have to run that one down. That's a new one to me. Thank you for the tip!
Great choice, GB! The Hobbit was my first exposure to Tolkien as a middle school student way, way back in the late 60's and I do cherish it however, my annual autumn literary pilgrimage is to C. S. Lewis' "space trilogy" in the usual order; Out of the Silent Planet, Perelandra and That Hideous Strength. Cheers.
Thanks Rick! And I did not know Lewis did a space trilogy! Now I have to track that one down.
There are several I revisit regularly: Margaret Atwood’s “The Handmaid’s Tale,” Stephen King’s “It” and “The Stand,” Clive Barker’s “Weaveworld,” Frank Herbert’s “Dune,” and Dean Koontz’s “Watchers.” (I have that same “Dune” hardcover.”)
Those are all great picks Hlifirien! My Dune hardcover is a first print but it's the book club edition. Is yours a non BC edition by chance?
@ It’s a first edition from Chilton. I found it in a Cleveland thrift store for $2 back in the early 90s. It had been in a library, so it has a plastic cover and a few stamps… but a first edition is a first edition. I love it.
@@halifirien Dang!
The Hobbit definitely survives re-reads. My favourite read of The Hobbit was when I read it to my son when he was a boy.
Great stuff Gareth! How old was your son and was he old enough to appreciate it?
@@GrammaticusBooks yeah he loved it - he was about 8
@@GrammaticusBooks I was going to argue with you that LOTR was the superior work, but after hearing you out, it is the Hobbit's simplicity and the originality of JRRT's inspiration that makes it THE classic that never grates or grows old. LOTR tries for more, but at times the striving shows and the narrative becomes stilted. The Hobbit strikes us as the inspired, contained effort to tell a magical children story; it succeeds in so many unexpected ways.
You reminded me of how brief yet deeply felt was the last Thorin-Bilbo conversation. Yes, the Hobbit is silly in ways LOTR is not, but it doesn't signify. It IS a perfect book. I came into my first Hobbit reading a cynical and realistic adventure-story loving teenager. The Hobbit gave me a wider and more tolerant world view.
I first read the Hobbit to my son when he was about four, and he laughed at the bent spoons and smashed plates and the silliness, but he BECAME a reader (he still is). He still talks about that experience.
@@kevinrussell-jp6om The LoTR is an absolute work of genius. Without doubt! But I find the Hobbit more accessible and fun. Thanks for checking it out Kevin!
And to answer your question : I'm not a big re-reader but I do often return to Joyce's Dubliners in December. Maybe it's the weather, the Catholic air, the timing of the last story ... Just seems to fit.
That’s sounds like an excellent and atmospheric book James.
The one book i read every year is All Quiet on the Western Front. I don't think a better war story has ever been written.
I haven't read that on since grade school. I really need to go back and give it a reread. Great book John!
Mine is Good Omens, though I tend to reread LOTR every so often, too. I may start adding that to my reading list every 3-5 years.
I need to check out Good Omens one of these days Mindy!
Thanks! Like your choice. I found The Lord of the Rings tough reading:) so many books so little time. My once a year read which I haven’t continued for a while was Catch 22 by Joseph Heller. The closest thing to a yearly read is probably the Iliad but by different translators.
Notable double and triple reads:
The Reivers by William Faulkner
Cold Mountain by Charles Frazier
The Killer Angels Michael Shaara
The Egyptian by Mika Waltari
The River God by Wilbur Smith
The Maltese Falcon Dashiell Hammet
The Big Sleep Raymond Chandler
Starship Troopers Robert Heinlein
I just realized I have too many of these double and triple read books to list:) Thanks for the video.
Those are all great reads Duke! Are list definitely intersect there on a number of books; Starship Troopers, The Killer Angels, The River God.... Good stuff sir.
It’s so funny what you landed on. I’ve seldom read a book more than once, Lord of the Rings- 7 times, that was years before any films were made…I appreciate this video and the very idea that it’s a good way to spend time…
Thank you for checking it out Peter!
The Hobbit and LOTR are by far my most reread books - at least 10 times each. I'm 66, so it's generally been about every 5 years. I don't have any annual reads. My second most reread books are Zelazny's Amber series.
All good stuff Mule and a HUGE thumbs up on the Chronicles of Amber!
Not a guy that can reread a book until after around 3-year time period but there are three books I did read back-to-back for about 5 years in a row for each book separately. James Joyce's "Ulysses", Herman Melville's "Moby Dick" and Gene Wolfe's whole "Book of the New Sun" series. There was always something new to find in each of them and I just became addicted to them each. "Dune" comes close for me as well.
Of those four Dune would be the one I've read the most. And several of yours I have yet to read! But Moby Dick five years in a row?! My hat is off to you sir!
Thanks for this I love the Hobbit it's always nice to start my day before work watching your videos
Thanks for checking it out Doc!
The reason for Bombadil is simple, to show that Sauron is not all-powerful. The ring has no effect on Bombadil. There are other powers in the world. It's like Sam seeing the star in Mordor and realizing that there is always beauty out there that Sauron can't overpower. I read The Hobbit and LOTR every year and they are different types of stories, so it may depend on what they are read for. The Hobbit is a flight of fancy made very real while the LOTR is a feigned history, world building that ties through thousands of years. Every character is true to type. The story is extended through the appendices, which add more depth to both the story and some of the characters. There is some insight into Denethor's personality and why he is at odds with Gandalf, and would have been even more so with Aragorn. Even the Nazgul get additional treatment along with the power of the ring. Both are wonderful.
I used to read the Hobbit and LOTR frequently if not yearly. There are many books I've read several times but the only ones I have read four or more are Watership Down and several of Terry Pratchett's Diskworld novels.
I love Discworld Kathy! Those are great books!
My yearly reread is "The Complete Rynosseros" (2 volumes) by Terry Dowling. A series of interlinked short stories that form a novel (in the style of Jack Vance or Cordwainer Smith). Beautifully evoactive stories about humanity and being human. Gorgeously written. Full of science fiction elements, action and ships that sail the desert sands of future Australia. Absolutely brilliant and compelling.
That’s a new one to me Earl! It sounds like a great read. I’ll look it up. Thanks for the heads up on it!
@ It is Todd (Earl Dumarest is the main character of my all time favorite book series - Dumarest of Terra) Hope you can indeed find time for the Dowling books. I know you have much on your plate. You’d enjoy visiting my library if you were ever in Pittsburgh. Always welcome.
Great review! You make a compelling argument. Excuse me while I load up my copy of The Hobbit!
I'd love to hear what you think if this is your first read Gordnuke!
I read The Hobbit for the first time a month ago and already crave a re-read. It makes me crack up at times, and pacing makes all the difference for me, too. By the way, I’m genuinely curious, how do we pronounce Tolkien? I was told Christopher Lee knew him personally and Lee had always said “Tolkeen” but maybe I have the story wrong.
I think you are probably right on the pronunciation Potato. I tend to pronounce it several different ways if I have to say it more than a couple times in a video!
I figured it was JRRT. But you surprised me that it was The Hobbit (aside from the clue in how you placed it on the shelf). For me, I revisit The Hobbit, tLotR, and the Silmarillion at unexpected times throughout the year. Just finished reading the Hobbit to my six year old and now we are just entering the old forest.
I'm due for a revisit on the Silmarillion as well Robert! And I hope your six year old is enjoying the Hobbit. What a great way to be introduced to Middle Earth!
Man’s Search For Meaning. Viktor Frankl. Helps me maintain a positive mindset.
I’ll have to take a look at that one Starship!
I recommend the Phillip Jose Farmer novels of the World Of Tiers. Very underrated.
I’m familiar with his riverboat novels. But that’s a new one to me. I’ll give it a look.
@GrammaticusBooks hope you enjoy, it's a ride
I have a few books that I go back to once every five years or so. They are Childhood's End, Lord of the Flies, Brave New World, and Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy. There is also a grouping of Stephen King novels that I have to revisit once every 10 years or so, including Pet Semetary, The Shining, The Stand, It, and a few others. I'm on my fourth or fifth read of all of those.
All great books Sleestack. And I have Stephen Kings novel Salem's Lot on my short list!
Hi Grammaticus, interesting to see your choice. The Hobbit is a great book, that I have read a couple of times and have been thinking of re-reading.
Books that I have reread on a regular basis are:
Dune - Frank Herbert, Shogun - James Clavell, Rumours Of Spring - Richard Grant, The Very Best Of Charles De Lint, LOTR - JRR Tolkien.
There is one book that I have reread more than any other and that is:
Mythago Wood - Robert Holdstock.
Is there a comic book collection or series that you also reread on a regular basis?
I think the one comic book collection I have reread the most is Judge Dredd - The Apocalypse War, although I also regularly reread The Legion Of Superheroes from back in the 70's and 80's.
Great stuff FF! And a lot of those are on my frequent read list as well. My comic rereads would have to be Savage Sword. Great comments!
I don't have a single book that I read every year. Instead, I have a number of books that I love and frequently re-read, some 10+ times over my reading life. They are: The City and the Stars & Rendevous with Rama (Clarke), The Forever War Haldeman), Starship Troopers (Heinlein), October the First is too Late (Hoyle), and The Mote in Gods Eye (Niven and Pournelle). Obviously, these books are deeply resonant with me but who can know why exactly.
The Forever War and Starship Troopers are high on my list too Andre! And those are all great books!
Great presentation...of fantasy, I adore Elric...but for reading once every year, I read the first volume of The Spirit by Will Eisner in the DC archive editions.
Thanks David! And Will Eisner's Spirit is a classic!
I used to read Lord of the Rings once a year.
Dune was another book I came back to a lot. I'm rereading Elric right now.
I used to read Mallory's Morte D'Arthur every year.
All great books BiffStrong! I need to run down a copy of Morte D'Arthur at some point!
@@GrammaticusBooks I lost the version I originally owned in university and then a second version that I quite liked. I've got a version now that I struggle with. Now is it the way the editor has put it together or just my decreasing nimbleness of thought over time? Great collection of interwoven stories just laden with the tragic trajectory that at least mallory was up front about.
It's a wonderful book. I revisit chapters of Fellowship every Fall, so we are of a similar mind. Oddly enough, until my 50s, I used to also reread The Outsiders annually, usually in a single afternoon.
Good stuff Bob. I haven’t read the Outsiders since grade school. I should go back and reread that classic!
For many years a book of short stories by John Varley, a wonderful author who perhaps does not get much attention now.
I very much enjoyed Varley's Titan series. And I love a good short story collection. Sounds like a winner Scott!
Got a couple i re-read every year.
Castle Roogna by Piers Anthony, an imaginative romp in a pun ridden magical land with a giant sentient spider....ticks a lot of boxes and always makes me smile, with a slight moistening of the eyes at Jumper's fate.
The Huntsman by Douglas Hill, this is the first sci-fi book i can remember reading (about age 10) its still there after 40 years, its stained, yellowed and has an odd smell but every January i read it again usually in a day.
I have that Piers Anthony book laying around here somewhere Sleepy! But I've not heard of the Huntsman before. I'll have to take a look at that one!
@@GrammaticusBooks He's probably better known for the Galactic Warlord books (which i have of course), but i always liked the Huntsman trilogy more.
Very much simple teen fiction, but still love reading it.
Lord of the Rings books for me. 31 years in a row- always read them around October. Still have the same used reading copies I bought back in 1993.
This does seem to be the season for Tolkien! And those are works of genius XJMX!
I read The Hobbit back in 8th grade, thought it was OK, but it didn't impress me that much, except for the Gollum part. I read LOTR when I was 18, it really gripped me, couldn't drop it for a minute. Read nonstop for three days. Only read it that one time, though, so I guess the slower parts weren't an issue for me. Also read The Silmarillion, a few years later. Loved it.
All three of those books are works of genius Psychonaut! Good stuff!
Every year I listen to Andy Serkis reading The Lord of the Rings. A masterpiece of reading. Highly recommended
I will have to track that one down Kristin!
Sort of fell off on my promise these days but for a few years I read Something Wicked This Way Comes by Bradbury every year around Halloween. Bradbury's poetic writing and the harkening to a boy's youth different from mine but somehow the same. It's set in late summer which relates well to a fall read when the leaves are crunching under foot. A relatively short book that delivers on the surface and with the underlying themes. I get my fantasy and my life lessons all in one go.
Would you believe I haven't read that one yet Martini? ... Thanks for bringing that one back to my attention and putting it on my radar. I really should check it out!
Lovely video, I really enjoyed your reading
Thank you Stunik!
Love this talk about your reading. And --no lie!-- I thought it would be The Hobbit before I pressed play.
An excellent guess James!
I agree 100% on your Frost giant's daughter take, and your point about the hobbit really makes sense as well, i read the Hobbit the first time really easily and it just flowed, whereas LOTR trilogy was kind of a slog at certain points. I don't really reread a lot of books, but I do reread Comics, and the one I really enjoy rereading every single time is a French comics by the name of "Les Aigles de Rome", which translates to Eagles of Rome, or Águias de Roma in portuguese which is how I read them since my French is quite limited. I recommend it and would love to hear your take on it once day! 😋
I'm guessing the Eagles of Rome is a highly embellished (art wise), beautiful historical fiction comic. It sounds great!
@@GrammaticusBooks It is indeed!
I'm drawn every year to the Belgariad and Malorian series by David and Leigh Eddings. I really love the plot lines and the prophecies as they play out in the books.
I need to track those down and give them a look. Those are new ones to me!
Those are good, although I was annoyed that everything must happen perfectly for the good guys to "win." And the adventuring party is way too overpowered. (One Gandolf-stand-in is not enough for Eddings, he needed 4!)
@@douglasdea637 Belgarath, Polgara, and Beldin makes three. Though the Twins participated in Thull Mardu...
@@User_Un_Friendly
As I recall there was one hidden as a bird or something through much of the story. Plus the main character (can't remember his name, the teenage boy) had potential to be their equal.
@@douglasdea637 Beldin's favorite form was that of a blue banded hawk. And as for Garion, or Belgarion, he almost started a world wide Ice Age. Belgarath and Polgara had significant reservations about Belgarion using the Will and the Word. Belgarath told him he needed to study for several hundreds of years before he could use sorcery safely. 😂🤣😛
I was introduced to Tolkien in HS with The Hobbit. It does have a freshness and fun about it because it doesn't have so much of the larger world weighing on it.
I agree 100% Boonton!
@@GrammaticusBooks The paradox of getting what you want :). Star Wars felt the same way. What it must have been like to see the original movie and have no idea about what would happen or had happened before.
For years I would read LOTR and the Dragonrider of Pern series every year. Then I got into the Silmarillion and Dune.
Those are all great books Joe. I have not finished Dragon Riders though. I should probably fix that!
Too many books to do a yearly reread. I do rereads though. I'm thinking Gene Wolfe's Book of the New Sun and/or Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance by Robert Pirsig (50th anniversary!) this winter.
All good books Pipe! I need to reread Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance myself here soon!
I have read The Hobbit four or five times, but I have not read it for many years. It's time to revisit Bilbo and middle earth.
Definitely time HermitFrodo!
Have you read the Sabres of Paradise? It's a nonfiction book and Herbert based Fremen culture on it.
I have not read Sabres. But I have read The Seven Pillars of Wisdom which does have several direct parallels to Dune.
I couldnt agree more. The Hobbit is what sent me down the rabbit hole of fantasy for my entire life. I read a book I really loved about the people under the stairs. I dont remember it at all. But at the time I was looking for another book like it. My cousin recommended the hobbit. I was like no. 3 feet? I wanted 1 foot people. But of course I read it anyway. Eventually read the Lord of the rings. Local bookstore only had fellowship and return. I had to order 2 towers. It took 6-8 weeks to arrive.
Anyway; after that I eventually found Lin Carter and a look behing the lord of the rings. That book as an extensive bibliography at the end. I tried to read a lot of those books. Morris, Dunsany, Eddison, Peake. And then of course all the pulp writers.
One thing I have noticed about you booktubers. Large book collections. Like me. I wanted to reread a book once. Could not find. So sense then, I saved all my books if they were genre. I never collected much of the ones from my local library. Heinlein, Norton, Anderson, Clark. Until later. But now thanks to Jeff Bezos, the books are a burden. I dont read as often as I should, and Im not using my library for much. If you ever saw the lord of the rings movies, at the end frodo has a sore around his neck from the ring. I feel like my books are my ring. I love them. They are my precious. But I want to toss them in a volcano every time I move.
My only version of the hobbit I own is the large illustrated book from the tv movie. I love it. But hard to read. It is heavy and large. I put on a music stand to try to read it last time.
Thanks for the great videos as always.
Thanks Mike and I feel your pain about moving books! The only thing worse to move would be a rock collection! And glad to hear the Hobbit was your gateway drug to fantasy!
I also reread The Hobbit not quite every year but pretty close. While I don't agree on all your points, I do think The Hobbit is more of a pure adventure story whereas The Lord of the Rings is designed as an epic.
Every year I reread at least one novel by Raymond Chandler. They are excellent every time.
Would you believe I still need to read a Chandler novel Seth?
@@GrammaticusBooks No time like the present, after you finish rereading The Hobbit, of course.
For me it’s the Dying Earth books (2-4) they’re just too fun. I agree with you about the Hobbit vs the trilogy too.
I have those (Dying Earth) fantastic books. Jack Vance is a favorite of mine. Good choice Scrumpy!
Hobbit is a great choice. I watch the Rankin/Bass cartoon every year (it is a much easier watch than the 3 movies). I have read Siren of Titan by Kurt Vonnegut a few times. I love that book and the twists and turns. Alan Moore definitely read it too since Watchmen borrow a few aspect of that book.
I need to read some Vonnegut Gregor! Good choice. And I’d love to track down the large picture book of Rankin’s Hobbit film. That’s a great book.
@@GrammaticusBooks I had the old 45 record book of the hobbit. I used to listen to it all the time.
Great choice. I'm not against audio books, so that's how I conquer my LOTR re-listens. 🙂
I love audio books Krommer!
Good Evening
Called out on Elric by Sir Michael, shall we see a clash of Hellblades? I think not, there are to many books to read instead. It is good to have yout measured tones delivering the goods once more, and it is indeed wonderful to immerse ourselfs in the worlds these great writers have created"
And of course Middle Earth now resides forever dowunder now in the Land of the Long Whote Cloud. Worthy caretakers of the realm'
Al TheGoldKeyfourcolorkidownunda
Thank you Sir! And one day I do hope to make it to Aotearoa!
I actually agree with this (although I must admit I never made it through the entirety of LOTR) The Hobbit is one of the greatest fantasy novels of all time. I'm not a big re-reader but I have probably read Dracula and H.G Wells' The First Men In The Moon more times than anything else.
Dracula is excellent Bobby! And the fact you haven't made it through to the end of LotR but have finished the Hobbit speaks volumes!
For me it's Kurt Vonnegut's The Sirens Of Titan. By turns laugh out loud funny and profoundly moving, on the surface a cracking sci-fi yarn but simultaneously an impassioned anti-war parable, Sirens comes up fresh every time and is - if anything - even superior to the author's better known Slaughterhouse 5.
I really do need to read that one Joseph!
Not every year, but The Hobbit and Lord of the Rings are the books I return to most regularly
They are works of genius Gino!
I hear of people doing this. I don't have the time or energy to read the same book time and again. There are only a few books I've read more than once such as the Amber novels, Dune and Gateway. I have a friend who claims to have read the entire Wheel of Time series three times. More power to him but... no way for me.
The Hobbit is a good choice. I read it for a class in Jr. High. Too bad Peter Jackson screwed up the movies (should have been 2, not 3.)
I read Elric back in my high school days in the early 80s. They were considered must-read fantasy in my friend group. I liked them but they have problems. All too often Elric solves his issue by sticking his sword into the foe or summoning a beast from beyond with his family ring. Those two solutions solve almost any problem. I've heard that Moorcock was deep into drugs while writing these short stories in the 70s and I think it shows. But then others have denied that accusation. I don't know.
I LOVE Amber! And I'm planning on rereading the first cycle in Ambuary. I watched the Hobbit movies in the theatre and disliked them. However...I very recently rewatched them...and they're not nearly as bad as I remembered. They're not great either though! Regarding Elric, I think he and Zelazny were deep into drugs in the 1970s! Great comments Douglas!
I knew that it was The Hobbit as soon as you mentioned that you read it in the fall.
Good catch Blackrock!
Pavanne by Keith Roberts.
An excellent choice Stephen!
The Great Gatsby by Fitzgerald and The Razor’s Edge by Maugham.
Great choices Raven!
@@GrammaticusBooks Same w Dune, tho. I’ve read it quite a bit and just finished a reread of the first three books. They’re really excellent, although Herbert gets weirder and more esoteric w each installment. Couldn't build up the energy to read God Emperor of Dune, but will read that eventually.
I watched this twice, great video. I agree with you. Viewers will be smashing their keyboards with this one. I'm not a Tolkien fan anyway, but I prefer The Hobbit over Bore of the Rings. It's easily better, AND funny. It has a fair dinkum start, middle and final act. The Snore of the Rings is an ambling, droning, snooze fest. Your point about recall is an excellent one. I don't have an annual read but I've read Dune, Blackhawk Down and Band of Brothers most frequently (3x). A Fire Upon the Deep (Vernor Vinge), Dreadnought (Robert K Massie) and The Tide at Sunrise (Denis Warner) may overtake those one day (all read twice). Highly recommend those (last) three books, if you haven't read them, and happy to do a read along if you're ever interested.
Thanks DDB and I've read most of those. But I've not heard of Dreadnought before. I'll track that one down and take a look. Regarding read alongs...I appreciate the offer but I've always been a bit shy on that format!
I totally agree with when it comes to The Hobbit being better than The Lord of the Rings.
This was a great video!
Thanks Joseph and thanks for checking it out. And also i just picked up Garett P.I.!
@GrammaticusBooks I hope you like Garrett P.I. as much as I do. They are fun pallette cleansers. I used to fit one in between my "normal" reading just as a way to reset my internal "literary" clock.
Video starts at 6:00
There are time hacks you can reference on the bottom.
I reread Around the World in 80 Days at least once or twice a year. Love it.
I have not read that one yet Space Toast! I've seen the movie, I should probably give that one a read. It's a classic!
Great book, and it takes place at this time of year. He leaves in October and comes back on December 21 I believe. Jim Dale does a great job on the audiobook.
Mine is The Silmarillion. Currently on my 7th read. :)
That is task! It took me ten years to read the Silmarillion. I had to get my head into the right space for it. But once I did, it was a fantastic read!
I'd have to agree with you on The Hobbit, Grammaticus. I love Lord of the Rings, but the Hobbit is perfect and eminently rereadable.
Very accessible as a book Jim!
Thank you for another very interesting discussion! I tend to agree with you that The Hobbit's plot and pacing are "superior" to the LoTR. The Hobbit is much more accessible than the LoTR, and overall, I prefer The Hobbit. In a way, I feel that the LoTR suffers somewhat from "sequel-itis" in which a smaller, charming and well-paced original is popular and the subsequent sequel must be "bigger, bolder and MORE", to the detriment of its overall pacing and story. Uh-oh, now I've done it. I'm going to get massacred by the legions of the LoTR fans. ; )
I hope not David! And your description of the Hobbit as more accessible hits the nail right on the head!
The enhanced Kindle version has JRR singing "break the dishes, crack the plates!" 😮😳😂🤣
Check out Harold Lamb if you like Howard, particularly if you like El Borak.
I have an El Borak but I need to break it out and read it!
I've have long thought that the Hobbit is superior to LOTR from a literary perspective. It has characters and a magic LOTR doesn't have. It's unfortunate that LOTR overshadows the Hobbit so much due to its scale and world building. The Hobbit is just a better story.
I couldn't agree more John!
The Hobbit pretty much started my lifelong love of books. The Hobbit and the Dr. Dolittle books dominated my childhood.❤🐶
There's no book that I read every year. The ones that I do reread periodically on purpose are...
The original Sherlock Holmes stories by Doyle usually in my Annotated edition.
The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings. I always read them as one long story.
The Foundation series by Isaac Asimov and most of his short stories.
The Complete Saki by Saki (H. H. Munro) which, oddly enough, isn't quite complete.
The Harry Potter series. This is the one I've reread the most since when I jumped on around book 3, I'd reread all the existing ones right before the next one was due.
Lolita by Nabokov.
The Abhorsen stories by Garth Nix.
The Young Wizards series by Diane Duane.
Lord Darcy Investigates by Randall Garrett.
The Travis McGee series by John D. MacDonald
The James Bond stories by Ian Fleming.
There's a bunch more I reread as the mood takes me, often short story collections.
Those are all great books Bargle! And I really need to pick up and read the original Sherlock tales!
Ok, I've been putting this off way to long.............. I'm 68 years old and I MUST READ 'The Hobbit'☺
No More Excuses😉
I'd love to hear what you think of it Boxer!
Outstanding choice
Thank you Jones!
The Flame Trees of Thika by Elsbeth Huxley
I’ll have to check that one out Dan! Huxley is a great writer!
Good for you on The Hobbit! I totally agree it's a better book than Lord of the Rings. A favorite author of mine, Roald Dahl, said writing for the young is far more difficult than for adults much for the same reasons why you like The Hobbit so much.
James and the Giant Peach! Good stuff Nstents!
The Razor’s Edge - W Somerset Maugham
Another good one Bslatimer!
Too many other books to read one every year.... I suppose the one I read the most might be Starship troopers - it's short, but the concepts can also make you think. I am not saying I agree with all his opinions - I do not - but they are worth thinking about. I'll also say, short, light, corny.... ERB A Princess of Mars is escapist.
I'll also admit that i have always thought Tolkien somewhat overrated - he's good, but not great. He never uses a word where he thinks he can fit a sentence, or a sentence where he can fit a paragraph. I'd rather read Red Nails or the like in an evening than the trilogy in a week or two.
Good points Fionam! And Starship Troopers has gotten a lot of mentions!
Pride and Prejudice. For the language
That's a wonderful read Stella!
I also read Robert E. Howard over and over.
I re-read REH yearly, but the story changes. By the way, I think Tolkien is pronounced "Tolk-en"
You are right on the pronunciation! I think I changed how I said it a dozen times during the video...whenever I talk JRR, I tend to say it different ways. I'm not sure why, it just comes out that way!
LOL - I was wondering whether I'd been saying it wrong for Eleventy-One years!
The Hobbit is the work of a storyteller.
That it is!
The Hobbit is excellent! As you say it is a wonderful !
I do love that book!
Lost Horizon, by James Hilton
Checking it out now! That's a new one to me.
the Hogfather. A 'Christmas' read.
I will keep that in mind come December Ian!