Comments on: How to read everything (without speed-reading)

By: Alastair Humphreys (@Al_Humphreys)

Mon, 13 Oct 2014 09:17:12 +0000

Instapaper app for iPhone has massively increased the quality and quantity of the on-line stuff I read.

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By: joelsnape

Sun, 04 May 2014 08:11:39 +0000

Hey Debbe! One recommendation I like is to stick to fiction before bed: non-fiction, especially self-improvement stuff, is likely to get your mind racing and affect your quality of sleep.

To be honest, six books is a lot, and *might* be starting to affect your ability to enjoy/remember critical chunks of them. Then again, it might not. I can usually get away with about four: a fairly brainless novel, a hard-going novel, an easy pop science one and a hard technical one. That way I’ve usually got something that suits my mood. Audiobooks I only bother with when I’m walking around and so can’t read. Hope that helps!

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By: simon mickle

Wed, 30 Apr 2014 08:33:27 +0000

Totally agree with this.

One of the hardest things is to change habits. Personally my biggest failure point when sitting down to read is the first 10 minutes. I get restless and think about all the other shit I could be doing. If I fight through that i’ve made it and my mind has silenced or at least muffled. It’s all about getting into a state of mind and settling into the book.

A bit of gamification by making it a challenge to read for 30 minutes each day for 30 days is also a good methodology. It’s all about showing up. The rest will take care of itself.

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By: Debbe

Tue, 29 Apr 2014 23:47:31 +0000

I’m a reading specialist and I agree completely! Critical reading is necessary, a little mindless fun is great, but really good stuff is, well, really good stuff for your brain and vocabulary. Speed reading only means you call words fast.

I have a problem, “Dr.” Joel. I have six books going at once using three different platforms. Four-the usual paper, one-kindle, and one-audio. Now that I have a smart phone, I can read my kindle book on the app, when necessary, anywhere. Or, I could listen to my audio book. I get through them slowly, but I need all sorts of information and always need some entertainment. What is your diagnosis? Be gentle, but tell the truth. 🙂

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By: joelsnape

Sun, 27 Apr 2014 10:52:35 +0000

Ha! Jess once told me she doesn’t need to read any cycling books because I just recite the best bits as I read them.

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By: ralph

Sun, 27 Apr 2014 10:34:40 +0000

I bought a kindle last August and my overall reading has exploded! I set myself a target of reading 3 books a month (mostly non fiction). Now I have discovered that highlighting feature the game is about to change! Love the idea of being able to review them every couple of weeks.

Cheers!

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By: joelsnape

Sun, 27 Apr 2014 07:53:41 +0000

I guess all e-readers are largely the same – but one thing that I forgot is that the ‘dictionary’ function (for instantly looking up words) has massively helped my vocab. Also I sometimes find turns of phrase in literature that I just *have* to highlight. Long story short: I use the Kindle for everything now.

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By: Joanna Shock

Sat, 26 Apr 2014 18:43:12 +0000

Great post! You may have convinced me to get a kindle for non-fiction. Completely agree that good fiction should be lingered over though.

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By: Ray Hays

Sat, 26 Apr 2014 14:39:06 +0000

My brother Dave once said Tom Clancy can squeeze a 200 page book into 600 pages.
As for Malcolm Gladwell, what works best for me is for Debbe to read his books and then tell me all about it on a long walk.

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