I do like a spot of comfort reading. So far this year I'm way behind on my book club books, and it seems like there's not a hope of reaching my self-imposed target of 52 books in a year. Rather than attempting to read something challenging and worthwhile, I'm reverting to comfort reading - easy, familiar books which I may or may not have read before.
When I was younger I devoured Agatha Christie books. I think I moved on from children's books at a time when 'teen fiction' wasn't really a thing, so Agatha Christie's detective novels were just at the right level. Intriguing, readable, and readily available in my local library - I read at least one a week for months and months. I'm never quite sure which ones I've already read - turns out I had already read this one (Hallowe'en Party) but that didn't really detract from my enjoyment. In fact, it made it more fun to see if my memory of the denouement was accurate. They may not be high literature, but they capture many aspects of English society that no longer exist, and still provide some welcome escapism from our technology driven lives - especially if you read a battered old hardback edition like the book above.
When I was younger I devoured Agatha Christie books. I think I moved on from children's books at a time when 'teen fiction' wasn't really a thing, so Agatha Christie's detective novels were just at the right level. Intriguing, readable, and readily available in my local library - I read at least one a week for months and months. I'm never quite sure which ones I've already read - turns out I had already read this one (Hallowe'en Party) but that didn't really detract from my enjoyment. In fact, it made it more fun to see if my memory of the denouement was accurate. They may not be high literature, but they capture many aspects of English society that no longer exist, and still provide some welcome escapism from our technology driven lives - especially if you read a battered old hardback edition like the book above.
I read all of them plus most of Dick Francis' novels after my O levels, when we had to stay in school with nowt to do! Love re-reading them, though!
ReplyDeleteOh yes - I read Dick Francis too! Much prefer to re-read Agatha Christie nowadays though.
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