Eli Bendersky's website Lately I have a bad feeling about my reading patterns. It seems that when I read, I focus on quantity rather than quality. The bad feeling was especially acute during the vacation, when I was devouring books at a rate of two per week.
I really think I should shift my focus to quality reading. I don't just want to read a lots of books, I want to read good books, and I want to read them thoroughly. What bothers me most about quantity reading is that sometimes I don't remember what the book was all about even a short time after finishing it. Why to read at all, then ? My goal in reading is not just passing time - I actually want to learn from the books I read. This is also the reason for the fact that most of the books I read are non-fiction.
So, I've decided to implement the following steps in an attempt to bring my reading patterns closer to my goals. In no particular order:
- When I read a book, I will read it more carefully. This means not just running forward, but trying to understand what I read, cross-referencing with other books and online resources when needed. There is no goal to finish as many books as possible. No rush.
- I will write much more detailed book reviews on the books I finish. In part, this will serve as a kind of an exam which will force me to actually read books more thoroughly. In each review I will include:
- A general description of what the book is about, possibly "digesting" the table of contents.
- A list of things I learned from the book and I deem important.
- A list of things I liked about the book, and a list of things I didn't like.
- My reviews are meant much more for myself than for readers of this blog. Hence, I will not shun from presenting them in a more informative, even if dry, manner, rather than a talkative one.
- I will reread some of my favorite books - and possibly will update the reviews for them in the aforementioned manner.
This is it, for now. I wish myself good luck in this endeavor.