Do you comfort read? Do you have an author (or authors) you read when you are feeling stressed or blue?  Is there a book you will pick up every few years or so and re-read for the sheer pleasure of immersing yourself again in it?

Two authors I seem to reach for over and over again is Barbara Kingsolver and Karen Kingsbury - they always touch me and give me comfort even when their subjects are disturbing.

I used to read Gone With the Wind about once a year. Then I read The Stand several times. I read many others more than once. Now there are so many new to me books to read that I don't have time to re-read anymore. The only books I have re-read in the last 10 years are the Harry Potter series (to prepare for the next installment) and The Purpose Driven Life, and the Bible.

My comfort read is Kung Fu and Coffee. It is by far one of my favorites and everytime (after I cry once) I get to the end I am so upbeat and happy that nothing can stop me.

My ultimate comfort read is the Little House series it's also something I tend to pick up when I'm sick.

Oddly enough, the only books I have ever read more than once (over and over and over to be accurate) were any/all of my "LITTLE HOUSE" (on the Prairie) books.  And I haven't done that since I was 13-ish and I am triple that age now.  With so many books and so little time, I don't feel the need to re-read.  I am the exception, not the rule. 

Whenever I am in a "mood" I reach for a classic. I think my most read one is:

Kidnapped by Robert Louis Stevenson. Always satisfies me!

When I am in a depressed mood I ironically go for:

A Series of Unfortunate Events by Lemony Snicket. For some reason that series makes me feel better! I guess because it shows that my life could be worse, and it helps you see the humor in whatever situation you are dealing with.

I don't reach for certain authors so much as certain genres. Depending on how stressed I am is how I choose my books. When things seem frantic and crazy I usually go for contemporary romance, cozies or chick lit. When I am depressed I usually read fantasy. When I need to feel literate I read a best seller. LOL

I'm not one to re read books, so I don't know that I comfort read with a certain book/books, but I will go for something uplifting/touching like the Karen Kingsbury books mentioned by Cozi.  Also anything really funny is good, but meaningful is best if I need something comforting.

LOTR, for me.  I'm on my second set, having worn out one!  I too went through a stage of reading GWTW often.  In fact when I watch the movie I can do the dialogue LOL.  I have a new favorite I plan to read often; Heinlein's Stranger In A Strange Land, it's too deep to appreciate in just one reading.  Ah, books, nothing like them for bringing back memories.  My best friends have always been books.

Cheers, Margaret  

I am not one to usually re-read books - especially since joining PBS, there are just way too many to keep up with to re-read others.

But, every few years I re-read "The Hobbit" and The Lord of the Rings trilogy. I first read them in high school (mostly during geometry class) and just like to revisit them now & then. Of course, my first readings were WAY before the whole movie phenomenon took place so I got in on the ground floor I guess you could say.

Another book I have re-read is "Five Smooth Stones" by Ann Fairbairn. I don't know exactly why the book draws me back but, I just enjoy her writing and characterizations.

I think Gone with the Wind is my favorite- read it every couple of years and have been since I was a kid!!!!

Whether I'm stressed, or a little down, I go straight to Tom Clancey.

The combination of action/adventure, with plot twists that aren't so complex that a distracted mind has trouble following them, and a hero who is clearly trying to do the right thing (although if they are following the correct path and whether they will succeed is by no means certain) makes for an escapist "guilty pleasure" somewhat like a James Bond movie, though Clancey tends to have less sex but more gadgets and violence.

All of my reading is comfort reading but not uplifting, spiritual books.

I find a good mystery with learning material in it [ie: Susan Wittig Albert's herbal mysteries] where I can escape into a good mystery and try to solve it along with the protaganist and at the same time learn something out of my realm of knowlegde.  Egyptology is another example.

Leyba

I'll pick up a Tom Robbins book when I need an emotional lift.  The wit, the absurdity and the sheer fun of his novels are guaranteed to put a smile on my face and a spring in my step.

I've been trying doggedly to get thru my TBR pile this year.  Or at least make enough of a dent that I don't need three bookcases to hold it.  I find that after every 5 or so new books, I turn back to my keeper shelves and have to pull one off to read. 

I've got several by Linda Howard that I've pulled quite frequently and then the Anita Blake series (up to Obsidian Butterfly).  Julie Garwood's historicals would make a comfort read list for me too. 

The book I go back to over and over is "The Sunne in Splendor" by Sharon Kay Penman.  I like all her books - but the mystery series is the least of my favorites by her.

I also like M.M. Kaye (Trade Winds) and Grace Livingston Hill (either Crimson Roses, White Orchids, or Coming through the Rye).  These books I can read over and over again.

I like good escapist fantasy or sci-fi when I'm in need of a little stress relief because it's good to get out of this world and into another.  My favorite is Lord of the Rings.  I've re-read it several times over the years.  Another one I pick up every few of years is Dune, by Frank Herbert.  I think I'm about due for another read of it soon.   I also like re-reading Dickens' A Christmas Carol every year or two during the Christmas season.

I get great comfort from rereading the Lenora Mattingly Weber books that I read as a kid.  I'm trying to complete my collection through PBS.

ooooo I love Little House on the Prairie books!!  Lori Wick's books are nice and cozy too.

I don't really comfort read per se--but when I have read a book that I didn't much like (or wanted to throw at the wall! LOL) and am frustrated with, I then will usually seek out a "sure thing," something I know I'll enjoy. For me, this is usually one of my favorite mystery series like the Brother Cadfael medieval mysteries or the Supt. Richard Jury series by Martha Grimes, something like that.

Cheryl

I re-read the James Herriot vet series books. My grandmother shared them with me when I was a pre-teen. I always felt so grown-up to be reading the same books as my grandmother!  Whenever I want to feel her love...I pick up one of the books and am transported back in time!