Reading is rereading just as writing is rewriting. Any worthwhile book took many, many drafts to reach completion, and so it would make sense that the first time the reader works her way through the volume it’s more like a first date than a one-time encounter. If the person was uninteresting (not worthwhile) there’s no need for a repeat performance, but if they have promise, good humor, hope or just good manners, you might want to have a second sit-down, a third. There might be something irksome about that rendezvous that makes you feel that you have something to work out. There might be a hint of eroticism suggesting the possibility of a tryst or even marriage. The joy of reading is in the rereading; this is where you get to know the world and characters in deep and rewarding fashion.

Walter Mosley - By the Book - NYTimes.com

This is exactly, exactly right.

(via wordbrooklyn)

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