How To Get The Most Out of A Book - Analytical Reading 101
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- Опубликовано: 9 июн 2024
- Companion article: / how-to-get-the-most-ou...
A quick video on how to mark up a book and get the most out of your reading.
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"absolutely demolished", he says as he shows me the cleanest page i've seen in my whole academic life.
Gatekeep
XXDDD
Maybe the book isn't as dense
I’ve seen people annotate romance novels more lololol
@@ateacherexplains it’s me, i’m people
Let me summarize the ideas included in the video in my own way of thinking:
- “Demolish” the book and its pages by notes, highlights, marks - to make it feel like a convo between you and the author
- Mark the book pages based on chapters and sections so that you can systemize what you’re reading
- Summarize what you read with your own words (like what I’m doing now lol). FORCE your brain to do that!
- Convert that summary into a digital version so that you can carry it around (notion, drive, phone notes, etc)
Thank you. Life savior
Tks sis. Sis pr0 vcl
Why not carry it around in your memory?
@@wolfthequarrelsome504 Because that needs time and spaced repetition and connecting it with a lot more to understand it perfectly.
@@wolfthequarrelsome504 bc memorizing is disgusting
I'd add that you can do this with fiction too. I think there's a tendency to see reading fiction as pure enjoyment, something you immerse yourself in without taking notes, but then when you're done you hardly recall anything. For me, adding notes and underlining passages makes me more attentive to not just what the author is doing with her prose, but also how, and this only adds to the pleasure. Plus, noting certain phrases and descriptions won't hurt your own writing, either.
i agree with this! annotating non-fiction helps me analyze the text, but annotating fiction captures my reaction to the story i’m reading :)
Hey! I have a question. While reading fiction, what exactly should I make notes about (unless it's for a school assignment). Like, I underline a lot in my books, my favourite passages and quotes, but I can't figure out what people exactly write in there. Please enlighten me
Have a great day:)
He’s done videos on this and doesn’t just say ‘her’ for some reason when referring to any author, as he isn’t coming at the audience with a political agenda.
@@chrysanthemum5594 I just write what it makes me think, what I like what I don’t, my favorite lines and what I think they mean, maybe predictions. After I finish reading for a while and am gonna stop I grab a sticky note and write my stream of consciousness thoughts, not necessarily about everything that happened but what it made me ponder on and put it in that part of the book that I’m stopping on.
As a writer, I agree. I do that to learn how other people structure there stories, but to be honest in for exemple philosophy books I don't mind using my pen, but in fiction books I only use stickey notes, or a pencil.
there are two options for a reader to get into the books:
1. anotate it with pen or highlighter
2. choose to write the point you want to remember in another book or journal book (if the reader want to keeping the book clean from a mess)
My exact thoughts. I follow more with number 2. Get a journal or a section of a notebook for that book alone, jot down chapters, more specifically page numbers and write down your thoughts on the particular idea/concept on that particular page. Even write down the passages you would underline. I feel it gets you thinking about it more than just underlining. It’s not necessary to mark up your books. But hey, it’s your book, if that’s what you wanna do, go for it.
Yup. I can have a conversation with the author in another notebook tyvm.
@@rustyshackelford934 Yes i do this. I share my books with many friends so i don't like to mark them.
@@OsvaldoBayerista And a 3rd option: There are clear sticky notes that you can use to highlight, underline, make notes, etc. you can take them out if you hate what you wrote or if you are ganna sell the book or something
Jesus loves you and wants a relationship with you. He wants you to live for him. If you don't already, you should read the Bible ✝️❤️
I've always been kind of afraid to write anything in my books but this changed my mind. Awesome and helpful video as usual!
Same here! I never heard the analogy of having a conversation with the content and author before !
@@walterwhite003 Glad you've finally encountered this insight! Game-changing one, especially when reading difficult works. It's from Mortimer Adler and Charles Van Doren's How to Read a Book. I highly recommend reading the book, but if you want to sample a bit more content before reading it, look no further than Robin's earlier videos-it's the most-cited book on his channel!
I LOVE marking up my books - funnily I learnt it from Sal Khan of Khan Academy. I thought I was reimagining his tutoring style of writing on a digital board by marking up a book as I grappled with the ideas, but How to Read a Book introduced me to the bookmarkers of the world!
@@G-Tarun oh! I've heard of this book before. I'll have to check it out!
When i was younger i underlyined a book (a very beautiful edition of the picture of dorian gray sadly) with a highlighter. the result was, as expected, horrible. I now annotate my books with pencils so if i don't like it i can alway clean everything up easily, try it! Plus, the more you annotate the more you understand the style you like and the less you'll erase.
I absolutely love annotating books which is exactly why i don't borrow from others or from the library cuz I know I am gonna make a mess. Infact I don't even use a pencil, it's mostly a black pen which i use to underline or write. It's so much fun and your books look so loved and used. Also I am able to recall the things I read more efficiently thanks to these note taking. The book reviews i write also have improved quite a bit. It's a habit I began just a few months ago and by the way thanks for the tip of using those blank pages at the end. Gonna try it from now.
The purpose of library books is to be the audition for books you may wish to buy.
my thing with writing in books is that when I re-read those books time later, I'm not the same person. It's very interesting to see how my understanding and ideas have evolved, if that makes sense. great video btw
It's true that you are not the same person when you re-read a book. You are certainly matured. Here's a tip. When you read a book additional times, use a different color pen than before. And then afterward, you can compare you now with how you were before. Ideally, your notes would grow as you've grown yourself.
@@bill_jennings I love that tip!
@@dahliaherrod4301 Thanks. I'm working hard to improve, a little bit more every day.
@@bill_jennings Same. As my therapist says, small steps
Glad to see young people in this day and age taking their learning seriously and understanding that learning does not end with school, but is only the beginning. I wish I could have had a decent education. I began my self-education not until I was 29! I lived almost my entire life dealing with hardships, anger, depression, and many other things I will not mention. If only I knew that learning was the answer I could have saved myself a lot of heartaches. A good education is the most important thing in life in my opinion. Truly brings a sense of understanding and fulfillment. I can say I am a truly happy person every day no matter how bad life seems. Good for you man and I appreciate your efforts to share this wisdom with others. It helps me out quite a bit in my self-education. Stay safe and keep doing the good work. Oh, I really enjoyed your article "Only Read What You Enjoy". It really helped me to stop putting books aside thinking "I am not ready for that yet". I always felt I had to understand this and that to be able to tackle certain works. Letting that go will send me on journies that are absolutely life-changing in some cases. Truly opens you up. Thank you.
Do you have advice for pursuing learning while suffering from severe long term depression?
@@unluckyokinawan I can only speak to my experience and recommend speaking with a professional before taking anything I have to say into account since we are all different. What worked for me was finding something to learn that gave me a sense of meaning in my life. Something that will allow me to change myself to become a better person which will raise my confidence and eventually my perception of myself and my situation. For me, philosophy was the big one. It can teach us to become more ethical, think well, understand our minds, and guide us through life if we let it. I will say at first it will be hard and you will not want to do it (we resist change) but you must force yourself and eventually it is all you will want to do. It changes you eventually to give you a good habit that gives you meaning and self-development but it is tough. Still easier than dealing with depression though. I am sorry I am not good at giving advice but I hope this helps a little. Good luck and I hope you can find your thing.
@@JDG602 actually this was very helpful, and I could tell it was genuine, thank you very much , you kinda opened my eyes a little :)
Honestly, I love coming across a second-hand book with annotations from the previous reader. It just elevates the reading experience to see what the previous reader found interesting, important, their commentary, questions or opinions in the margins, etc.
Like book club, without the added frustration of the social aspects.
Agree! And this becomes a whole other, parallel conversation - at times, even passionate debate - that the subsequent reader can enjoy.
I agree, I got a secondhand Frankenstein novel from OfferUp and it was annotated by a high school teacher. It was very interesting reading what they thought about the book. Apparently she never finished reading because the notes ended abruptly halfway through the book. Made me a little sad ngl
As a bookworm, I appreciate this video especially now that it's summer and I have even more time to read. On top of that, I'm going to start reading "Ecce Homo" by Nietzsche. Perfect timing. Thanks Robin 🤟🏼
you'll mark almost every sentece that it is written, be prepared. this book changes the perspective about everything...
Ecce Homo was one of the best books I´ve read... And I´m Christian!
@@marvelous5334 Did the book change your perspective on religion? how so?
@@chiiko7090 Yes, it did! I found myself asking if what he was writing could be accurate or make sense! That´s crucial for a believer (In my opinion)...taking serious other people's input on a religious matter is a humbling and rich experience... I didn´t agree with him for the most part but I could see his point. This was a book I was warned not to read for several reasons but it only strengthened my faith if I´m honest!! Plus I gained a new habit (critical sense).
@@marvelous5334 W
I can totally agree with you I’m not sure why a lot of people are so scared to write or to annotate in their books, honestly it’s kinda fun.
I think it's because schools and libraries taught us not to at a young age
@@amarisjoseph Libraries-makes sense, since the books are shared. But in such cases it's still helpful to have a portal for writing your thoughts as you read or after you read.
A lot of us are poor and need to resell our books so we can buy more books
@@xtwinni I second this!!
@@xtwinni how do you resell books? 🤨 for me, if I don’t want a book anymore I just give it to a second-hand shop, which they don’t pay you for your charity (at least in my experience idk)
This video is something really amazing that i couldn't even paused it for a moment! Probably the best content so far on RUclips I must say and I'll definitely give a watch to all your videos. Thanks a ton for your priceless efforts! ❤
I've long seen reading as a dialog with the author - a magical one 💙 It warms my heart to see others spreading such message. Thank you 🙏
& yes yes yes to Life-changing Notion!
oh! for those who don't want to totally write on your books (if you hate your handwriting like me sometimes), there's these see-through/transparent plastic sticky noted available for buying online. it takes most inks but i personally prefer using dry ball point pens better since they smudge less and dry faster, or just plain pencils on raw paper
You can start with writing on sticky notes if you're not comfortable writing in a book. Or you can write very lightly in pencil and then flag it. If you end up hating it, you can easily erase it.
I'm exactly backwards. I used to mark up/highlight/underline in books all the time. And now I don't. I think it's because I used to do a lot of highlighting and didn't realize that highlighting can fade, especially in cheap paperbacks! I had worked so hard to highlight favorite portions of Lord of the Rings. On my next reread, I realized it was all gone. Plus, I cannot write or underline straight to save my life. I'm too much of a perfectionist and it drives me nuts.
Like I said, I am going backwards. I need to get over all this nonsense and start highlighting/underlining/marking again. It really does help you think through and remember things. Summarizing chapters is such a good idea!
I use my bookmark to draw straight lines, and sticky notes are a brilliant idea! I’ve never thought of that, I’ll have to use that for library books from now on. Ty!
RUclips notifies me of comments sometimes and sometimes not, so I'm just seeing this. I hope things have worked out for you.
Amazing content! I used to line, write, signalize books that I am reading. From now I will include the “marker” to follow each line and the notes the book’s end
In an academic sense sure but I have issues with the whole “every aspect of our lives needs to be hyper efficient and min maxed” sometimes you can just read a book
A timely video, I was just needing something like this!
i really enjoy those shorter videos of yours! much easier to fit into my busy schedule. i bought bonjour tristesse the other day to revive my french vocab so this comes in real handy
Bonjour Tristesse is such a wonderful little novel. I read L'étranger in French again for a uni class and I think if you like BT, you'd also love Camus in French. :)
@@RCWaldun thank you so much for the recommendation! I'll check it out as soon as I finish BT :)
Coincidentally, I have recently finished a biography about John Adams. He was a ferocious annotator. He argued or rejoiced with the author via annotations and comments. I looked it up in the Massachusetts Historical Society's archives which holds most of his journals and notes and I found them to be very inspiring.
I love this video. Short, precise and he gets straight to the point. This is my first time watching one of your videos and it makes want to get up and become a lifelong student
I'm not a writer but I love your channel. It's a breath of fresh air from the rest of RUclips, honestly. I like a nice calm, real talk about reading and thinking and just... living. I really want to get back into reading, although these days I'm more interested in the books of my religion. I'm dying to start a commonplace book too!
Thanks for all your advice- it's very neat.
I used to worry about marking in my books and then I picked up a book from a used book sale with all sorts of annotations in it and fell in love with it. Seeing the past owner's history on the pages made me unable to do anything but love the book even more. Now, I always leave at least a small mark in my books for the next reader when I cycle them back into the book sale
You are coolest in between person ever. You completely understand the concept of annotation as being in deep bond with the author over his book.
I love this video. I have been wondering about that for a while! Looking forward to other reading tips!
Your videos are phenomenal. So good to watch man.
I love how consise this is!! It's rly baffling to me that we're not all taught how to be more efficient readers in school
Just discovered you. I appreciate short and to the point videos. It breaks it down easier for me. Sitting through educational videos that are long is daunting for me and discouraging. I think it’s my adhd.
Loved your video.
Thank you so much this is the first video on this subject that I have found that went over the process and no just the supplies...
Love the way that you presented this critical part of academic reading. Keep it up! Thanks!
This may be my favorite video on this whole website, so valuable
I just want to say, thank you! I just came across one of your videos in my recommendations. And this video right here helped a lot.
Thanks for this video! Can't believe this video popped up on my feed right as i was reading a book and wondering the exact time thing as the title of this video.
One of the most helpful videos on reading academic books or any books at that! Massive thanks
Please make this into a series, wold help a lot specially for social science students
Finally someone else who marks up their books! I love taking notes, tabs, and highlights while reading my favorite books
your presentation is lucid and incredible
~Another great video ... You NEVER disapoint! ~Always a joy to watch your videos.
bro just discovered your channel. you touched my life man i love you
Man, you're such a good speaker. I didn't realize the video ended that quickly.
Maybe you should give us tips on how to speak like you.
Thanks
just getting back into reading,i really like the sigh posting idea for organization.
I like to borrow my books out to my friends and family, so I am always hesitant to mark my books with any sort of notes. What I have done instead is keep a notebook in which I have written down passages that stood out or seemed important and then wrote the page number and paragraph number next to it.
I'm so happy to have found your channel. Great advice 🌸
You’re amazingly articulate!
love it! when i write on the book, everything gets more clearily n stick on the brain. thanks for de video.
*Yes thank you for your videos and creative factual content. Very accurate experiential analysis.*
Informative and enlightening as this video is, few minutes watching this worked even more particularly for me in a sense that I got to hear ideas that I already practice on daily basis but being told in a very different and pleasant way that it's tenderly amusing. Thank you neh ♡ Hope your day will be filled with a lot of really interesting conversations that a bit of demolishes done to the carrying material is just sign of how engaging the exchange was.
THANK YOU❤❤❤❤❤ As growing up I was always a slow reader (due to some learning disabilities and autism) yet as an adult now…I ❤❤❤❤❤ to read at my own pace and very much just gently soaking in all of the words and descriptions of what a character is doing…
i could listen to a podcast of yours for hours
You know exams are coming up when you dive deep into one of your interests that have nothing to do with your studies at university.
I´ve been watching literature related videos for hours, even looked at where you can study literature and what are the requirements. During A-levels I used to watch violin and ballet masterclasses non stop...
Great tips! Thank you.
I’ve been watching a lot of annotation/critical engagement/getting most out of books videos and this is by far the best one I’ve seen - I am looking forward to deep diving into the rest of your content for more literature value! Ps I hope the postgrad is going well!
A massive thank you! really helped me alot to understand and how to analyse a piece.
Your handwriting is beautiful. Also I really don't get the no-marking-in-the-book religion. Books are owned by us and are there to serve us, not the other way around. They are physical objects, only glorified by the great thoughts and brilliant words on their pages, and to grasp those is what matters most. To me, to truly claim the ownership is the process of marking a book as much as you wish to help you enjoy/ understand it, not the moment you pay for it in a bookshop.
this video is so good... i have seen this kind of topic being discussed but so rarely thet talk about doing an archive
Just subscribed after watching a few of your videos! Already learning so much from your channel. Keep it up!
You helped me so much, many many thanks ☺️
That microphone is so sensitive I feel like it’s gonna pick up the sound of the Earth rotating
Dear Robin, thank you for this video, this is so helpful.
Excellent points, truly.
Thank you for this! I’m going to try this on my next book
I sometimes even write LOL, WTF or any idea that comes up in my mind when I read a particular chapter. I express my feelings about the writing right on the page. It helps me to have a dialogue with an author. And when I revise the book it makes it easier to get back in that state of mind when I was reading the book for first time making me remember the chapter as I had read it.
That was basically the previous owner of my used Secret Life of Plants. Someone was NOT buying the part about plants being reliable witnesses.
me too help
Great video, full of actionable recommendations.
Nicely put. Well done.
People are confused with me and don't understand when I say I only read one book this year. Not because I was bored of reading or I'm a slow reader but because I really took my time highlighting, taking notes, and understanding almost every line that was in the book. But, I would rather read a book a year and really understand it then reading 1,000 books a year and just getting the simple text out of it.
Insightful and thought provoking, two adjectives that best suit your very content. Thank you
I really enjoyed this video. Thank you so much.
Great video Robin! Thank you for making this video as I'm sure it will heavily help out people like myself and others with their reading comprehension and memory. You jumped straight to the points and explained them in an easy, clear and concise manner. Keep up the videos man 👍
This is very useful, thank you!!
Holy cow - I’ve never considered reading nonfic to be a conversation with the author. Just the concept alone opens up my frame of understanding significantly.
hehe I have a kuru toga and Zebra pencils for outline my books being doing it as natural habit since started reading. Also pro-tip use different stick colors and use them consistently and in order. Blue for ideas, orange for new words, green for topics to discuss with other people, etc... That way if you come across a philosophy book you will know which sections are important to read again.
It's very helpful. Thanks so much!
Thank god i found this channel, i have a feeling it's going to help me sm
"Excellent video I found on the internet! Now, it really makes sense to me to mark at least after a quick read. I tried reading and marking at the same time with my first-ever reading book, which was Atomic Habits. Trust me, it was horrible. Now I will surely try these tips in my third book, which is 'The Art and Business of Online Writing.'"
Yes, as a man on the street I am learning so much from you. And the subtle touching even not so much, of your elbow on the table is really is integral, as I enjoy the vid ... to me it accentuates my experience. Don't let anyone complain about that to you.
Keep it up ...more...more...more!
I've been doing this my whole life and I thought I was the only one! My books are full of notes, papers, and a summarization of each chapter and it is beautiful.
Hehe same, I also thought I was the only one😂
Simple and effective. I am also a major fan of marking up books
I am so grateful to you for sharing your overall educational journey complete with techniques and explanations. I am on a personal quest to educate myself in HOW to learn. I don’t ever recall being taught how to truly read and digest information and I feel quite ignorant for this lack in my education. So thank you for helping me along my journey by recording yours. I’m also enjoying your videos on how to read poetry.
Thank you. This is very helpful.
Thank you for the great advice ❤
your videos are literally the motivation for me to read and study for my literature degree. Love you videos
Great advice! Thank you
Thank you very much ! Great video !
Thank you for this!
I do this a lot but for you people that are doubting it, just buy the pdf and the book itself demolish the copy and put the original hardback on your shell
Love the content you put out! Subscribed 🙏
To summarize the chapter in your own words, i find being the most effective way to learn. But in order to do that, u must try to find the most essential parts in the text for you to refer to. Awesome video Rc!
I have a great problem to find the essential parts in the texts.
I am so happy that i have been doing since past 2years i guess. the first reason why i started doing it was because of this book called the screwtape letters and it was difficult for me to comprehend what the author was trying to say, it was a mess in my head until i started summarising each ch after reading it and underlining sentences and writing what they meant, according to my comprehension skills.
One tip: for all multilinguals or bilinguals write notes in your native language, it helps a lot in comprehending chapters of a book you are finding difficult😊
Btw great video, thanks for sharing.
Thank you for the video, your channel is very useful and relaxing at the same time. I wanted to ask, what do you think about making a video on how to grade books or to write reviews? I would be interested to know how you determine if a book is good or not.
Lovely topic suggestion! Just wanted to mention that Robin did cover this tangentially in his earlier videos. It's called "You Don't Need to Read All the Classics". Also How To Read a Book DOES cover how to judge a book as accurately as you can. There's many rubrics, though, and the book doesn't cover book-reviewing per se even as it offers invaluable advice on it.
Thank you , Thank you , Thaaaank You ! For this video 😊 🙏🏻
I just have little break from my essay but not know somehow your vide so soothing its being here for while
i used to do this with my philosophy books, it allows me to remember some concepts and ideas issued by the authors, but also it helps me to have my own opinion about these ideas. I write them down on my pages and then compare it with what the author said. Interesting video by the way, thanks for sharing your tips ! :)
Highlights and make notes in your book. Its your book, feel free to decorate it according to you.
I'm a visual artist, and a graphic designer. I read books mostly for fun (and also to practice my English, as it is not my first language). Maybe it's the artist in me, but I never liked altering my books in any way, as I like to read them over and over again. I mostly read fiction, which helps inspiring most of my work, so maybe that plays a part. Also, it's never the same experience every time I get to enjoy a book. Recently I went through the entirety of my small library, as I challenged myself to read a book a week and I ended up going all the way; and I was amazed on how much I changed as a person emotionally and intellectually in just a matter of months, as I got completely new experiences from books I've been reading since I was in middle school.
Your perspective really made me appreciate how this is all just loving ideas and feelings, that people get to paint with words. It's not matter of what, but how.
absolutely a great video. got impressed so much. well, i'm native korean it's struggle that i speak like native English speaker but i've got a limitation on my vocabulary for delivering of my thoughts. i need to read stuffs and this dang will help me out.
Would love to see a walkthrough of your Notion archive!!!
Me too!
You articulate very well!
Really enjoy your content
Very helpful thank you so much ❤
So the flags are there to generally mark page-parts that would be important for a summary or are they there to mark where you even took notes to begin with? Do the pen-marks reinforce and articulate in detail what the flags wanted to point out, meaning that the flags simply tell you on what page you're marked, or are both independant of one another? If the later, what are the flags for?