How to read a book: The Ultimate Guide

How to read a book

I am sure you already know how to read a book. You were taught in elementary school.

But do you know how to read well?

There is a difference between reading for and reading for information.

If you like most people, you might not have thought about how you read. And how you study makes a lot of difference on knowledge accumulation.

Many people get confused by knowing the name of something with understanding. Great for using your memory, repurposing facts without understanding and context gives you very little benefit in the real world.

A good heretic: read for any easily digested information.

Think newspaper, are you really learning something new? Do you consider the writer to be your best, having knowledge in the subject? Odds are probably not. This means that you are studying for information. This means that you parrot an opinion, which is of no use to you.

This is how most people study. But most people are not really learning anything new. It is not going to give you an edge, make you better at your job, or allow you to avoid problems.

Learning something practical requires work. You must read something above your current level. You need to find authors who are more knowledgeable on a particular subject than themselves. Through narrowing the gap between the writer and yourself, you become smarter.

Four levels of reading

1. Primary reading
2. Observational reading
3. Analytical reading
4. Syntactic reading 

How do you study why are you studying

The goal of reading determines how you study. Reading the latest Danielle Steele novel is not the same as reading Plato. If you are reading for entertainment or information, then you are going to read a lot different (and possibly different content) than reading to increase comprehension. While many people are skilled at reading for information and entertainment, some improve reading ability for knowledge.

Before we can improve our reading skills, we need to understand the difference in reading levels. They are thought of as levels because you cannot move to a higher level without understanding of the previous one - they are cumulative.

1. Primary Reading

This is the level of teaching in our primary schools. If you are reading this website, then you already know how to do it.

2. Observational reading

We have been taught that skimming and superficial reading are bad for comprehension. This is not necessarily the case. The understanding can be increased by using these tools effectively. Observational reading allows us to look at the author's blueprint and evaluate the qualities of a deeper reading experience.

There are two subtypes of inspection reading:

• Systematic Skimming - This should give you enough knowledge to understand the important chapters in the book for the author's argument. Dive in here and there, but never with more than a paragraph or two. Skimming helps you reach a decision point: Is this book worth my time
• Surface reading - this is when you just read. Don't argue, don't look at things, don't write in the margins. If you don't understand anything, then move on. What you gain from this quick reading will help you later when you go back and put more effort into reading. Now you come to another decision point. Now that you have a better understanding of the book's content and its structure, do you want to understand it?

Observational reading gives you the gist of things.

Sometimes we all want or need. But sometimes we want more. Sometimes we want to understand.

3. Analytical Reading

You can think of that analytical reading as chewing and digesting. It is working

Analytical reading is a complete reading.

If observational reading is the best you can do quickly, it is the best reading you can give time.

There are four rules for analytical reading

Classify the book by type and subject.
Describe how briefly the entire book is.
Calculate its command and its major parts in relation, and outline these parts as you outlined the whole.

4. Symbolic reading

It is also known as comparative reading and represents the most demanding and difficult reading of all. Synthological reading involves reading several books on the same subject and comparing and contrasting ideas, vocabulary, and arguments.

The task is to identify relevant passages, translate vocabulary, solve and sort questions that need to be answered, define issues and interact with responses.

The goal is not to gain a holistic understanding of a particular book, but to understand the subject and develop a deeper flow.

It is all about identifying and filling your knowledge gaps.

There are five steps for symbolic reading:

Finding Relevant Routes -  You need to find the right books and then the routes that are most relevant to fill your needs. So the first step is an observational reading of all the works that you have identified as relevant.

Bringing the writer to terms - In analytical reading, you must identify keywords and how they are used by the author. It is quite straightforward. This process has become more complex now as each writer has probably used different words and concepts to frame their argument. Now you have onus to set the conditions. Instead of using the author's language, you should use your own. In short, it is an exercise in translation and synthesis.

Questions to be clear - Instead of focusing on the problems the writer is trying to solve, you need to focus on the questions you want answered. Just as we should establish our vocabulary, similarly we should also set up our proposal by highlighting our problems, to which the author answers. It is important to formulate questions in such a way that all or most authors can be interpreted as providing answers. Sometimes we cannot get answers to our questions because they cannot be seen as questions by the authors.

Defining Issues - If you have asked a clear question that has multiple answers, then define an issue. Resisting responses, now translated into your terms, must be ordered in relation to each other. Understanding multiple perspectives within an issue helps you form a wise opinion.
Analysis of the discussion - hoping that we will not find a single untrue truth for any of our questions. Our answer is the struggle to answer the opposition. Price is the discussion you have with these authors. Now you can have an informed opinion.