How to Read a Book (A Touchstone Book)

I first discovered this treasure in 1971 (19th paperback printing). I wished then that I knew about it from its first printing in 1940 (a pretty impressive feat given that I was born in 1942). This edition adds the convenience of being able to read it on my computer or phone--so I always have it with me.

This is the book that teaches you how to read difficult books on any topic and make sense of them. If you want to read for understanding and enlightenment, this is the book for you.

Fantastic book that covers nearly every aspect of reading that a demanding reader should master. Some of the lessons and tips can be put to use right away when tackling a challenging book with the hopes of growing with it.

From the beginning, the authors inform you that this book you hold in your hands will not be easy to digest. They methodically detail categories of books and painfully dissect them using well constructed writing like an adroit surgeon uses a scalpel.

It took me several trials to start and finish this book. If you're like me and like to break complex concepts into manageable minute parts, you may enjoy this book if you can get passed some of the very dry portions on grammar, propositions and other exposés. If you want a reference to attack any of the "Great Books of the Western World", this book is for you. Otherwise, stay clear from it: it can suck out the simple unpretentious pleasure of reading. Period.

I gave it two stars because I'll likely revisit it in the future and because it is a reference in its own merit.

This book was very dense with information on how to read books more effectively. Some of the chapters are lengthy and may require sometime to get to the parts that you really need. If you struggle with getting the mst out of books that you read this book will help you understand what to look for and take note of in the literature that you read.

Delivery – great
The book was wonderful as I expected, and I really enjoyed it.
I got what I wanted, and I got everything I needed.
What more do you need?
I recommended it to my friends.

This book will both inspire you to read better and show you how. I just finished it this morning and it gave me the confidence to begin a 'tough' reading list beginning with Plato and Aristotle and work my way through Rousseau and Ludwig Von Mises. Overall, it taught me to try harder on harder books to reap the great dividends from the classics. Another huge bonus has been the lesson on reading with varying speeds, including speed reading. I'm now reading twice as fast, comprehending much more, and tackling harder books. Well worth it, highly recommended. Only criticism is that while useful, the appendices turn into a bit of a sales pitch (understandably so) of their "Great Books" series, which I'd actually like to get. Best $11 you'll ever spend on a book.

I finished reading this book three years ago, but because of my poor written english I did not dare to write review.

Mortimer J. Adler (1902-2001) was an American philosopher and writer. Charles Van Doren (1926) is an American intellectual, writer and editor. For it is linked to a scandal in the TV quiz show of the fifties of last century. Robert Redford was filmed and a successful movie about it: Quiz Show (1994). Van Doren and starred Ralph Fiennes. The film was screened several times on our television.

Books are read from the following reasons:
- for fun
- to obtain new information,
- for understanding the world we live in and ourselves
The third reason is the subject of the book How to Read a Book.

This book mentions four levels of reading. Every next level includes the previous level of reading - as Russian Babushka dolls:)
I. Level: Elementary Reading
II. level: Inspectional Reading
III. level: Analytical Reading
IV. level: Syntopical Reading

So, the last level of reading, syntopical reading contains the last three levels of reading. That basically means that we will not be able to apply analytical reading, if you have not mastered the elementary and inspectional reading.

Elementary reading is what you usually think all of us. That's what we learned to read in elementary school, ... and there stopped. We were learning letters, words, sentences ... And no one has taught us how to read above that level.

The first real level of reading is inspectional reading. This is what we read when a time is limited of say 30 minutes, to decide whether we will read the book or will not. This level is characterized by superficial reading. At this stage, is not necessary to understand everything in the book. Studying the book, its index, preface - it all belongs to the inspectional reading. From time to time to read the passages that seems interesting, and sometimes several pages in a row.

The third level of reading is analytical reading. This is a systematic reading. At this stage we find out what kind of book you read belongs. We discover a whole and the parts of the book and how these parts are as a whole. Through the words writer uses, we find the terms that are important in his book. This is the highest level of reading and the most explained in the book. What I learned here is this: before you say that you like the book or not, you have to first say that you understood it.

The highest and most complex level of reading is syntopical reading. It means that we read from multiple sources simultaneously, to connect, we make our own conclusions. Finally we come almost to a discovery of their own, which we can use for a "our book" we would have written.

This book specifically deals with how to read and practical books, fiction, novels, theater plays, part epic, tragedy, poetry, on history, biographies and autobiographies, to read about current events, summaries (digests), books on science and mathematics, philosophy of social science.

At the end of the book is Recommended Reading List: a list of 137 books worth reading (in their opinion).

All in all, I think this book helped me a lot. It seems to me that in future reading I would browse through each subsequent book in a different way than before (inspectional reading) I decide to read it.

Good book on the various kinds of reading techniques. However, I think the content could take fewer pages as sometimes the arguments are too winding. Many things could be said with fewer words that lead directly to the point.

This books tells the reader about the four types of reading: reudimentar, inspectional, analystical and syntopical. Form its reading on, one looses the shame of reading a book just to understand what is it about without reading the whole text. And more, the book tells you how to do it. From the syntopical reading, one learns how to retrieve from any book what is most interesting to the reader.
It is a must.

Most of us do not receive reading instruction beyond 4th grade, and this book is a must, especially if parents and/or teachers could introduce its contents to their kids. Some of the reading is challenging for young readers (4th grade and under), but is still essential.

With, How to Read a Book, Mortimer Adler and Charles Van Doren, outline a methodical approach to quantifying and enjoying quality books. They start with explaining the four levels of reading: elementary, inspectional, analytical and synoptical, and the level of understanding one should expect from each level. They also explain the basic principles of gaining an anticipatory understanding of the book you're attempting to read. For instance, it's critical that you first read, understand and think about (and I stress, think about) the jacket, title, contents, index, preface and the introduction before reading the body of the work. In essence, How to Read... introduces the reader to a level of involvement that hopefully makes for a more satisfying and enlightening experience. The authors also make a strong case for reading and understanding the classics (something I tend to agree with) because they (the authors) think the classics add an element of philosphical depth to ones life. All in all, it has improved my approach and appreciation of books.

The book necessitates concentration. It also demands multiple readings in order for the reader to get past the dense language. It can be a better book. The book needs illustrations. The book could benefit from illustrations of the following concepts: a term, good and bad propositions, good and bad premises, good and bad conclusions, good and bad arguments, and examples of inductive and deductive reasoning. Without these concepts, the reader has to go to extra-textual sources to understand the concepts. Of course, some would argue that these concepts are elementary. Maybe so. But this book could have used an index to clarify and expand on those concepts.

A guide to reading for the serious reader. It teaches about the different reading levels and the needed rules to accomplish them. Good book for anyone that wants to master the art of reading, in specific analytical reading of classics and other great books. Not so good for someone looking to learn how to speed read or take in the most information with minimum effort.