# What's Your Comfort Reading? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [May 21, 2007, 11:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-your-comfort-reading/404910 "2007-05-21T11:18:10Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![kung\_fu\_lola](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/f4b2a3/32.png) [@kung\_fu\_lola](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kung_fu_lola)\ **Post date:** [May 21, 2007, 3:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-your-comfort-reading/404910/21 "2007-05-21T15:54:11Z")
The Prophet, Kahlil Gibran The Anne Shirley Books (yes all 8 of them), Lucy Maud Montgomery The Robber Bride, Margaret Atwood The Pursuit Of Love, Nancy Mitford ---
**Author:** ![Matt\_Holck](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/71e660/32.png) [@Matt\_Holck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Matt_Holck)\ **Post date:** [May 21, 2007, 4:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-your-comfort-reading/404910/22 "2007-05-21T16:09:47Z")
3 lines unless a post is good ---
**Author:** ![Guinastasia](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guinastasia/32/5751_2.png) [@Guinastasia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Guinastasia)\ **Post date:** [May 21, 2007, 4:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-your-comfort-reading/404910/23 "2007-05-21T16:14:05Z")
_Star Wars_ novels. Especially the X-Wing saga. ---
**Author:** ![Gordon\_Urquhart](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/db5fbb/32.png) [@Gordon\_Urquhart](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gordon_Urquhart)\ **Post date:** [May 21, 2007, 4:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-your-comfort-reading/404910/24 "2007-05-21T16:38:22Z")
Garrison Keillor’s _Lake Wobegon Days_. Reading that book is like eating hot biscuits – it’s good for whatever ails you. ---
**Author:** ![Ogre](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/ecb155/32.png) [@Ogre](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ogre)\ **Post date:** [May 21, 2007, 4:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-your-comfort-reading/404910/25 "2007-05-21T16:48:15Z")
I hate the SOB, and would never buy anything new he puts out, because god knows he’s a miserable hack of a writer, but **The Belgariad** , by David Eddings, is wonderful comfort reading. ---
**Author:** ![Flutterby](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/6f9a4e/32.png) [@Flutterby](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Flutterby)\ **Post date:** [May 21, 2007, 4:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-your-comfort-reading/404910/26 "2007-05-21T16:53:35Z")
Mary Stewart - The Crystal Cave, The Hollow Hills and The Last Enchantment Anne McCaffrey - Dragonriders of Pern (the first 3 and a couple others but none of the new crap by her son) or the Killashandra or Talents series Sharon Shinn - any of her Samaria series David Eddings - The Redemption of Althalus or The Belgariad Mercedes Lackey/Andre Norton - Elvenbane Mark Twain - A Conneticut Yankee in King Arthur’s Court, Personal Recollections of Joan of Arc Fairy tales, of any stripe. I’ve got a few different collections and legends either traditional (blood and guts), Disneyfied, politically correct or adult. Always a nice wuick read. All these have a place on my bookshelf, and when I don’t feel like reading anything new on my library pile I generally grab one of these. ---
**Author:** ![Matt\_Holck](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/71e660/32.png) [@Matt\_Holck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Matt_Holck)\ **Post date:** [May 21, 2007, 4:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-your-comfort-reading/404910/27 "2007-05-21T16:56:06Z")
[QUOTE=Flutterby] Mary Stewart - The Crystal Cave, The Hollow Hills and The Last Enchantment Anne McCaffrey - Dragonriders of Pern (the first 3 and a couple others but none of the new crap by her son) [/QUOTE] I read the Dragon singers ---
**Author:** ![Lissla\_Lissar](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/8491ac/32.png) [@Lissla\_Lissar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lissla_Lissar)\ **Post date:** [May 21, 2007, 5:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-your-comfort-reading/404910/28 "2007-05-21T17:19:08Z")
I re-read compulsively. My current favourites for comfort are: Lynn Flewelling’s _Hidden Warrior_ trilogy Most of the Miss Read books about Fairacre (nothing ever happens! They eat sponge cake! It’s great!) The second half of Diana Gabaldon’s _Outlander_ series All the pretty crummy _Recluce_ books _Sunshine_, by Robin McKinley ---
**Author:** ![Dung\_Beetle](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dung_beetle/32/7945_2.png) [@Dung\_Beetle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dung_Beetle)\ **Post date:** [May 21, 2007, 5:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-your-comfort-reading/404910/29 "2007-05-21T17:24:39Z")
Thought of another: Good Morning, Miss Dove, by Frances Gray Patton. ---
**Author:** ![DrCube](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/a3d4f5/32.png) [@DrCube](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrCube)\ **Post date:** [May 21, 2007, 5:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-your-comfort-reading/404910/30 "2007-05-21T17:52:04Z")
_Catcher in the Rye_. I’ve read it about ten times. Anything by Salinger, really. It sounds horrible, but I can’t wait for him to die, so we can finally read all the stuff he’s been writing for the last fifty years or so. Unless it ends up being about a million pages of super-philosophical Buddhist nonsense. Then I’d be really disappointed. I also read Heinlein for “comfort”. Isaac Asimov, too. ---
**Author:** ![Airblairxxx](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/f9ae1b/32.png) [@Airblairxxx](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Airblairxxx)\ **Post date:** [May 21, 2007, 6:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-your-comfort-reading/404910/31 "2007-05-21T18:03:40Z")
Any of the Travis Mcgee novels by John D. McDonald. ---
**Author:** ![shamrock227](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/d78d45/32.png) [@shamrock227](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/shamrock227)\ **Post date:** [May 21, 2007, 6:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-your-comfort-reading/404910/32 "2007-05-21T18:08:17Z")
I have three. _The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy_, _The Hobbit_, and _A Midsummer Night’s Dream_. I have others that I love and have read many times. But these three are my go to books when I just want to snuggle down and relax. ---
**Author:** ![Flutterby](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/6f9a4e/32.png) [@Flutterby](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Flutterby)\ **Post date:** [May 21, 2007, 6:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-your-comfort-reading/404910/33 "2007-05-21T18:14:55Z")
[QUOTE=Matt Holck] I read the Dragon singers [/QUOTE] Dragon Singers are among the few others. 🙂 As is The Masterharper of Pern. ---
**Author:** ![LavenderBlue](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/e95f7d/32.png) [@LavenderBlue](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LavenderBlue)\ **Post date:** [May 21, 2007, 6:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-your-comfort-reading/404910/34 "2007-05-21T18:18:40Z")
_Little Woman_ the classic adolescent novel. ---
**Author:** ![cochrane](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cochrane/32/10441_2.png) [@cochrane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cochrane)\ **Post date:** [May 21, 2007, 6:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-your-comfort-reading/404910/35 "2007-05-21T18:18:51Z")
I have to echo any one of the Hitchhiker’s novels. I have a hard cover book with all five novels, plus a short story called “Young Zaphod Plays It Safe.” Any good **Star Trek** novel. Any Spenser novel. Anything by Elmore Leonard. Anything by Evan Hunter or his alter-ego Ed McBain, particularly the 87th Precinct novels written under McBain. ---
**Author:** ![pinkfreud](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pinkfreud/32/17603_2.png) [@pinkfreud](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pinkfreud)\ **Post date:** [May 21, 2007, 6:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-your-comfort-reading/404910/36 "2007-05-21T18:21:52Z")
I’ve lost count of how many times I have reread William Goldman’s _The Princess Bride_. Ah, if only I could get hold of the original S. Morgenstern version. 😉 ---
**Author:** ![SkeptiJess](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ea666f/32.png) [@SkeptiJess](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SkeptiJess)\ **Post date:** [May 21, 2007, 6:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-your-comfort-reading/404910/37 "2007-05-21T18:22:22Z")
Children’s books. Top choices: the Little House books by Laura Ingalls Wilder, the Betsy-Tacy books by Maud Hart Lovelace, anything by Beverly Cleary. ---
**Author:** ![Eleanor\_of\_Aquitaine](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/a88e4f/32.png) [@Eleanor\_of\_Aquitaine](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Eleanor_of_Aquitaine)\ **Post date:** [May 21, 2007, 6:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-your-comfort-reading/404910/38 "2007-05-21T18:27:06Z")
If I’m feeling moody I will sometimes pick up an old favorite book and skim through it, looking for my favorite scenes. Diana Gabaldon’s \*Outlander \*series is good for this (I can look for all the Lord John Grey bits, for instance.) Like others here, I’ve read _Gone With the Wind_ several times. Also James Herriot’s _All Creatures Great and Small_ books, the original \*Pern \*trilogy, _Dune_, and Heinlein’s _Friday_. **Lissla Lissar** , I only discovered \*Sunshine \*last year, and I’ve read it three times already. ---
**Author:** ![CalMeacham](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/calmeacham/32/35_2.png) [@CalMeacham](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CalMeacham)\ **Post date:** [May 21, 2007, 6:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-your-comfort-reading/404910/39 "2007-05-21T18:28:53Z")
Dave Barry books **The New Annotated Sherlock Holmes** **The Day of the Jackal** by Frederick Forsyth Random Heinlein writings Dave Lileks’ **Gallery of Regrettable Food** and **Interior Desecration** Weller’s \*\*Science Made Stupid \*\* and **CVLTVRE Made Stupid** ---
**Author:** ![Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e99b99/32.png) [@Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Diogenes_the_Cynic)\ **Post date:** [May 21, 2007, 6:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-your-comfort-reading/404910/40 "2007-05-21T18:40:05Z")
Wodehouse – especially the Jeeves stories. I also like Tim Dorsey’s novels a lot. Anarchy and violence with a brain. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-your-comfort-reading/404910.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-your-comfort-reading/404910.md?page=3)