[philipswood]

I really dislike this article:

>Quality matters more than quantity. If you read one book a month but fully appreciate and absorb it, you’ll be better off than someone who skims half the library without paying attention.

Let's measure outcomes instead. Choose between these two scenarios:

1) I spend one month reading a book closely and I follow some memory enhancing technique to retain the material - book club style. I can verbally retell the main points of the book afterwards and discuss it intelligently with others who have done the same.

Or

2) I had a quick look at the book and it's outline, I placed it conceptually in it's genre and in relation to other books covering the same kind of material. I had a normal reading of the chapters that seemed most valuable. I found one actionable insight and immediately worked it into my own set of habits/techniques/schedule. All in all I do this in 1-2h. I do this for 5 books a month.

After a year, I suspect strategy 2 has a better yield.

[emadabdulrahim]

You can use both strategies depending on the book.

If you're unsure about the book, then strategy number 2 is better. Skim and find the interesting bits, if any.

If you know it's a dense book and you value the subject and think highly of the author. Then strategy number 1 is better.

[philipswood]

Yes, agreed.

Personally I tend to go with a just-read-whatever-is-interesting-at-whatever-speed-or-level-of-attention-feels-right-and-what-sticks-sticks strategy.

[spats1990]

Are you talking fiction or non-fiction? Strategy 2 will work pretty well for most non-fiction books, especially trendy ones. It'd be a bit odd for fiction IMO.

[philipswood]

Non-fiction. Definitely non-fiction.