I used to have this problem where I would read a book and less than a month later I wouldn’t remember a thing about it. Since I started to take notes while reading, I have been able to discuss books I have read long ago with ease. This post is also helpful for those of you that have literature classes.
First, a few general tips:
Do not highlight or write on the book
The majority of “how to read” posts I have seen on tumblr advise people to write notes on the book and/or highlight important stuff. Here’s why you shouldn’t do this:
You might want to sell the book later and this will devalue it’s price.
You have less space for writting important things, which makes it easier to just write a few words and skip noteworthy stuff.
Highlighting is uneffective and it is a step to passive reading.
Instead, try to have a notebook where you can write out key points. Or, better yet, use Google Docs.
It is highly unlikely that you understand all the concepts that a certain book might carry, so make sure to have a google tab open at all times. I would not advise stopping your reading just to find out the meaning of a word. Try to search for references you don’t get and historical backgrounds only.
Now, how to virtually read a book:
Create a new Google Docs document and write down the book’s title, year of publication and author’s name.
Search a little bit about the global and the local historical background. For example, if the book was written by an English author on 1950, try to understand what was going on with the world and with England from 1900-1950.
Do not read any analisys of the book right now.
Take notes on characters names, type of narrators and such.
Take notes after every page (if necessary, obviously) and write the page numbers as you take notes.
Never take your notes until you finish the pharagraph, as you might get lost or loose the “vibe” of the book.
Example of how I organize my reading notes: click here.
Write final notes about what you got out of the book.
Search for book analysis and reviews.
Discuss the book with people who have read it.
I understand that this makes reading quite harder and more time consuming, but this is the best way to make the most of the books we read.
If you read on public transportation and such I advise you to mark important pages with postits and write down a few notes when you get home. You could also carry a small notebook.
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