Re-reading in the Pandemic

This chapter examines how participants in our data reported returning to books that they had previously read which offered familiarity, reliability, and nostalgia and thus provided a coping mechanism. The chapter begins with a survey of the latest research in re-reading as a phenomenon, drawing on theoretical and empirical studies that have sought to explore why people re-read and the personal benefits of re-reading fiction. We then turn to our data to explore the reasons participants gave us for returning to particular books or reading habits from before the pandemic, and we examine the ways in which they talked about the emotional, immersive, and parasocial aspects of re-reading. We then look at the specific ways that they explain their reasons for re-reading books. In this latter respect, we examine the metaphors, generally concerned with reassurance and the emotional support brought about by returning to familiar storylines, that readers draw on to frame their re-reading choices and to reveal their motivations for re-reading.