Benable — create shareable lists of things you recommend!
E.g., products you love, local businesses, travel recs - you can add anything to a Benable list!
Books I Grabbed Because Nothing Else Looked Good and Now I Reread Them Constantly
45
items You know that feeling when you're scrolling through your library with zero motivation, grab something with a plain cover just to have something to read, and then suddenly you're three chapters deep at 2 AM? That was me over and over. This list is for...
Sections
9
Quiet Literary Fiction That Sneaks Up on You
Cozy Mysteries I Didn't Expect to Reread
Sci-Fi That Reads Like Comfort Food
Fantasy Novels That Became Rereading Rituals
Nonfiction That Reads Like a Novel
Romance Novels I Judged by Their Covers and Was Wrong
Quiet Literary Fiction That Sneaks Up on You
Every single one of these looked like homework when I first picked them up. Then I finished each one in two sittings and immediately started over because I missed the characters already.
Grab this if you think a book about a guy stuck in a hotel sounds boring — I did too, and then I read it three times in one year. Perfect for anyone who needs a warm, slow read that feels like a blanket.
A Gentleman in Moscow eBook by Amor Towles - EPUB
Try this when you're in a reading slump and nothing sounds appealing. A quiet life of a quiet man shouldn't hit this hard, but I literally cried on a Tuesday afternoon reading about a college professor.
Stoner eBook by John Williams - EPUB
Picked this up at a point where I was bored with every thriller on my shelf. An old pastor writing letters to his son — sounds dry, right? Wrecked me emotionally within fifty pages.
Gilead (Oprah's Book Club) ebook by Marilynne Robinson
For the person who thinks they don't like slow books — a butler reflecting on his career sounds like a snooze until you realize you're sobbing about repressed emotions and missed chances at 1 AM.
The Remains of the Day eBook by Kazuo Ishiguro - EPUB
Snag this short novel about a lighthouse keeper if you want something you can finish in an evening but will think about for weeks. It crept into my head and just stayed there.
An Island eBook by Karen Jennings - EPUB
Cozy Mysteries I Didn't Expect to Reread
Picked up each of these thinking they'd be forgettable airplane reads. Now they're my go-to when I need something familiar and comforting after a rough week.
Use this as your palate cleanser after heavy reads — four retirees solving murders sounds ridiculous and it IS, but in the best way. Read it twice already and I'll do it again this winter.
The Thursday Murder Club eBook by Richard Osman - EPUB
Grabbed this because the cover was unremarkable and the premise seemed standard. Chief Inspector Gamache became one of my favorite fictional people within a hundred pages. Stock up on the whole series before you get hooked.
Still Life eBook by Louise Penny - EPUB
For anyone who roots for the underdog — Molly the hotel maid is so earnest it physically hurts. Started rereading it the same week I finished because I missed her voice.
The Maid eBook by Nita Prose - EPUB
Try this if your brain needs a workout disguised as fun. A murder mystery inside a time loop — I thought it would be gimmicky but I've reread it three times and catch new details every single time.
The 7½ Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle by Stuart Turton
Pair this with a rainy weekend and zero plans. The mystery itself is polarizing but the atmosphere is so thick you could chew it. Went back to it four times just for the prose.
So we never learn what happened in the...
Sci-Fi That Reads Like Comfort Food
None of these had flashy covers or hype when I found them. Each one turned into the book I recommend when someone says they don't like science fiction.
Grab this if you want a found-family space crew that makes you feel genuinely less lonely. Zero explosions, all heart. Reread it every time I feel disconnected from people.
The Long Way to a Small, Angry Planet - eBooks
Picked this up thinking it would just be another space survival book — ended up laughing, crying, and immediately flipping back to page one. For anyone who wants a buddy comedy set in space.
Project Hail Mary, Andy Weir
A socially anxious robot that just wants to watch TV shows? Sounded weird, became my personality. Read this in two hours and have reread the whole Murderbot series maybe five times since.
All Systems Red eBook by Martha Wells - EPUB
Toss aside your assumptions about post-apocalyptic fiction. This one is gentle, melancholy, and beautiful. Grabbed it on a whim and now it's the book I press into every friend's hands.
Station Eleven eBook by Emily St. John Mandel - EPUB
Switch to this when you need to feel wonder again. A man living in a house full of statues and tides — makes no sense until it makes ALL the sense. Reread it every few months like visiting a place I love.
Piranesi : WINNER OF THE WOMEN'S PRIZE 2021
Fantasy Novels That Became Rereading Rituals
Walked past each of these multiple times before finally giving in. Now they live on my permanent shelf and I crack them open every season like clockwork.
For the reader who's burned out on grimdark fantasy — a kind, awkward emperor trying his best shouldn't be this compelling, but here I am on my fourth reread.
The Goblin Emperor eBook by Katherine Addison - EPUB
Grabbed this thinking Greek mythology retellings were overdone. Circe's voice is so real and defiant that I finished the book angry it was over. Keep coming back to it like visiting an old friend.
Circe eBook by Madeline Miller - EPUB
Try this if you need a book that feels like a warm mug of tea. Magical orphanage, grumpy caseworker, found family — I sobbed happy tears and have reread it every single December since.
The House in the Cerulean Sea eBook by TJ Klune - EPUB
Picked this up because nothing else caught my eye, expecting a basic fairy tale retelling. Three fierce women, winter magic, and prose so sharp I've gone through it annually. Perfect before the cold months hit.
Spinning Silver by Naomi Novik
Snag this if you want a middle-aged, broken-down hero instead of a teenager with a prophecy. Bujold writes with such warmth that rereading feels like slipping into a favorite coat.
The Curse of Chalion eBook by Lois McMaster Bujold - EPUB
Nonfiction That Reads Like a Novel
Thought these would be dry educational reads I'd abandon halfway through. Instead each one pulled me in so hard I now reread them for fun, which is not something I ever expected to say about nonfiction.
Use this to understand American history through three real people's lives. Sounds heavy — it is — but the storytelling is so gripping I've gone back to specific chapters dozens of times.
The Warmth of Other Suns eBook by Isabel Wilkerson - EPUB
Grabbed this during a buy-one-get-one sale with zero expectations. A memoir about growing up survivalist in Idaho that reads like a thriller. Finished it in a day and have reread it twice since.
Educated eBook by Tara Westover - EPUB
For the person who thinks they don't like nonfiction — this reads faster than most thrillers. Northern Ireland's Troubles told through disappeared people. Couldn't put it down, came back to it six months later.
Say Nothing eBook by Patrick Radden Keefe - EPUB
Keep tissues nearby. A neurosurgeon facing terminal cancer writes about meaning and mortality. It's short, devastating, and I reread the last chapter whenever I need perspective on what actually matters.
When Breath Becomes Air eBook by Paul Kalanithi - EPUB
Try this weird little book about a man who lived alone in the Maine woods for 27 years. Picked it up on a whim and now it's my go-to recommendation when someone wants something different.
The Stranger in the Woods eBook by Michael Finkel - EPUB
Romance Novels I Judged by Their Covers and Was Wrong
Fully expected to read each of these once and forget them. Instead they became the books I reach for when I need guaranteed serotonin on a bad day.
Grabbed this thinking it was fluffy beach fiction — it actually deals with grief and disillusionment while being genuinely funny and romantic. Reread it every summer and it hits different each time.
Beach Read eBook by Emily Henry - EPUB
For anyone who's felt like they don't fit the mold — an autistic economist hires an escort to teach her about dating. Sounds wild, works beautifully. My most-reread romance by far.
The Kiss Quotient eBook by Helen Hoang - EPUB
Picked this up skeptically because the premise sounded like fanfiction. The son of the US president falls for a British prince and it's joyful and political and I've lost count of my rereads.
Red, White & Royal Blue eBook by Casey McQuiston - EPUB
Switch to this when you need a chronically ill heroine who's hilarious and stubborn. Chloe Brown made me laugh out loud on public transit multiple times. Comfort reread status achieved immediately.
Get a Life, Chloe Brown eBook by Talia Hibbert - EPUB
Toss your assumptions about older romance novels — this 2004 book about a bet-based romance is funnier and sharper than most contemporary releases. Reread it annually and it never gets old.
Bet Me eBook by Jennifer Crusie - EPUB
Short Story Collections Worth Revisiting
Nobody rereads short story collections, right? Wrong. Each of these sits on my nightstand because I can open to any page when I have fifteen minutes and feel something real.
Grab this if you want stories about displacement and longing that hit like a gut punch in twelve pages. Won the Pulitzer for a reason. Reread individual stories constantly depending on my mood.
Interpreter Of Maladies eBook by Jhumpa Lahiri - EPUB
Sparse, blunt, devastating — Carver writes like every word costs money. Perfect for the reader who appreciates silence as much as dialogue. Come back to it whenever I need to feel grounded.
Raymond Carver's What We Talk About When We Talk
Try this if you want stories that feel like fever dreams in the best way. Weird, feminist, unsettling, gorgeous. Picked it up confused by the description and now I've read it cover to cover four times.
Her Body and Other Parties Audiobook by Carmen Maria Machado
For the person who loved Arrival — these sci-fi stories are quiet philosophical puzzles that rewire your brain. Each reread reveals something I completely missed before. Worth every minute.
EXHALATION TED CHIANG
Snag this if you've ever known a difficult, prickly person and loved them anyway. These linked stories about a retired teacher in Maine are so human they ache. Reread the whole thing every fall.
Olive Kitteridge eBook by Elizabeth Strout - EPUB
Classics I Finally Gave a Real Chance
Avoided these for years because school ruined them or the covers screamed boring. Picked each one up out of desperation during a reading drought and discovered why people won't shut up about them.
Grabbed this massive book when I had nothing else to read on a long trip. A family saga about good and evil in California — sounds dry until Steinbeck's prose grabs you by the throat. Reread it yearly now.
4 Easy Ways to Apply EAST Framework to Behavioural
Try this gothic novel if you want to feel genuinely unsettled in the coziest way possible. Last night I dreamt I went to Manderley again — that opening line lives rent-free in my head permanently.
Rebecca eBook by Daphne du Maurier - EPUB
For anyone who thinks classics are boring — this is a revenge thriller that moves faster than most modern page-turners. Long but worth every page. Reread the prison escape section obsessively.
The Count of Monte Cristo eBook by Alexandre Dumas
Ditched my Austen prejudice and picked this up at 30. A second-chance love story about a woman who was talked out of marrying the right person. Hits completely different as an adult. Annual reread now.
Persuasion, Jane Austen
Keep this one close for when you need prose that sings. Janie's story of independence and love in the rural South is told in a voice so alive it practically breathes off the page.
Their Eyes Were Watching God ebook by Zora Neale Hurston
Weird Little Books That Became Permanent Favorites
Each of these defied categorization when I picked them up. Couldn't explain any of them to friends without sounding unhinged. Reread all of them multiple times anyway because nothing else scratches the same itch.
Grab this if you want time travel that feels more like a drug trip than a sci-fi adventure. A man becomes addicted to visiting 14th-century Cornwall — I became addicted to rereading it. Deeply strange, deeply satisfying.
The House on the Strand eBook by Daphne du Maurier
A book about trying to read a book — sounds pretentious, feels playful. Calvino writes directly to you in second person and it works. Picked it up confused and now it's a comfort reread I can't explain.
If On A Winter's Night A Traveler eBook by Italo Calvino
Try this if you've ever had an anxiety dream about being unprepared — this entire novel feels like one. Polarizing, bizarre, and somehow soothing in its weirdness. Not for everyone but deeply for me.
The Unconsoled eBook by Kazuo Ishiguro - EPUB
For anyone who's ever felt like they're performing normalcy — this tiny Japanese novel about a woman who only feels alive working at a convenience store is hilarious, sad, and over in ninety minutes. Reread it five times.
Convenience Store Woman eBook by Sayaka Murata - EPUB
Toss this on your list before you forget — the devil visits Soviet Moscow with a giant cat and chaos ensues. Sounds ridiculous because it is. Took me two reads to fully get it and now I go back every year.
THE MASTER AND MARGARITA eBook by Mikhail Bulgakov